A&A practice
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Case Reports
Placement of a Double-Lumen Endotracheal Tube Using a Combined Bronchoscopy and Fluoroscopy Technique: A Case Report.
Bronchial artery embolization (BAE) is a well-established intervention for hemoptysis that requires airway management by a trained anesthesiologist. The use of fluoroscopic guidance for positioning a double-lumen endotracheal tube (DLT) has been described in previous studies. The case presented illustrates a combined fluoroscopic- and bronchoscopic-guided approach for positioning a DLT in a patient with active pulmonary hemorrhage causing obstruction of views on bronchoscopy. This combined technique proved valuable in a situation marked by high clinical urgency.
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Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is an autosomal recessive condition characterized by degeneration of the anterior horn cells of the spinal cord, which causes progressive muscle atrophy and weakness. SMA type 1 is the most common type and is associated with severe disability and early mortality. Concomitant restrictive respiratory physiology often manifests with significant implications for anesthetic management. Here, we describe a successful spinal anesthetic for orthopedic surgery in an SMA type 1 patient receiving intrathecal nusinersen maintenance therapy, an antisense oligonucleotide designed to increase expression of the survival motor neuron protein, and the first US Food and Drug Administration-approved drug to treat SMA.
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Case Reports
Münchhausen Syndrome: A Case Report of an Unusual Cause of Vitamin K Antagonist Intoxication.
Psychiatric disorders must be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients presenting to the emergency department with unexplainable somatic symptoms. Physicians should be aware of Münchhausen syndrome as a possible diagnosis. A 46-year-old female patient presented at the emergency department with signs of coagulopathy. ⋯ Urine toxicology revealed the presence of vitamin K antagonists (VKAs). After an extensive workup, she was diagnosed with Münchhausen syndrome. Intentional intoxication with VKA is rare.
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Chronic neck and upper back pain occurs in 40%-60% of patients that suffer whiplash injury. Increasing evidence points to a dysfunction of the cervical and thoracic muscles as the predominant cause of persistent pain in this cohort. ⋯ As a result, there is significant functional impairment leading to excessive health care costs. The authors present a novel treatment, intermediate cervical plexus block with depot steroids, in 3 patients presenting with refractory chronic neck and upper back pain from whiplash injury that produced durable analgesia and enabled return to employment.
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Emergence delirium is a well-known phenomenon that may be encountered after general anesthesia. A common approach to this issue is to risk stratify patients preoperatively and treat them postoperatively if emergence delirium occurs. We present the case of a patient with Barrett esophagus and a history of severe and refractory emergence delirium, who was successfully treated prophylactically with physostigmine, resulting in decreased risk of harm to the patient, trauma to the perioperative staff, and a safer and more positive recovery.