BMJ case reports
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Review Case Reports
Aneurysmal bone cyst of thoracic spine: case report and brief review of literature.
A 16-year-old girl was admitted with insidious onset, gradually progressive spastic sensori-motor paraparesis, with a sensory level at D10 dermatome without bowel or bladder involvement for the last 2 months following trivial trauma on the lower back. MRI of the spine showed a low-to-intermediate signal intensity, heterogeneous mass with multiple fluid levels. A diagnosis of aneurysmal bone cyst was made. ⋯ Histopathology of the mass showed cyst cavity filled with haemorrhage surrounded by bony trabeculae confirming the diagnosis. Following excision the patient had excellent recovery. We report this case owing to its rarity and to emphasise the importance of surgery if there is cord compression.
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We present the case of a 56-year-old man who developed chronic pain following the excision of a facial cancer that was poorly controlled despite multiple analgesic medications. Following the starting of nabilone (a synthetic cannabinoid) his pain control was greatly improved and this had a huge impact on his quality of life. We also managed to significantly reduce his doses of opioid analgesia and ketamine. We review the current literature regarding the medicinal use of cannabinoids, with an emphasis on chronic pain, in an attempt to clarify their role and how to select patients who may benefit from this treatment.
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We describe our experience of a 71-year-old patient with severe renal failure, who exhibited an unusually prolonged rocuronium-induced neuromuscular blockade (>4 h) and apparent recurarisation, following emergency rapid sequence induction (RSI). At the end of operation, 45 min post induction, train-of-four (TOF) testing had been 4/4 prior to wake up. No respiratory effort was seen 150 min postinduction, despite further neostigmine/glycopyrrolate and repeat TOF 4/4. ⋯ At 180 min postinduction, fade was evident on TOF, suggestive of rocuronium reblockade. At 285 min, the patient was extubated safely following sugammadex administration and discharged uneventfully from the ICU. An important lesson to recognise is the potential for extremely prolonged neuromuscular blockade following rocuronium in patients with severe renal failure, particularly when using the higher doses (1.2 mg/kg) required for RSI, and that TOF in such cases may not be reliable in detecting residual blockade.
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A 28-year-old woman presented to accident and emergency department with a 1-day history of right-sided abdominal pain. She was afebrile, and haemodynamically stable, and the initial diagnosis was acute appendicitis. A transvaginal ultrasound scan was performed and was suggestive of appendicitis. ⋯ Postoperatively the patient complained of persisting pain, which settled over 2 days with analgesia and antibiotics. This case is an extremely unusual case of epiploic appendagitis and acute appendicitis. It demonstrates the importance of pelvic laparoscopy in all females with presumed appendicitis, even in the presence of an initial pathology.
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Case Reports
Atypical intraoperative anaphylactic shock with ECG changes secondary to non-ruptured hepatic hydatid cyst.
A 62-year-old woman was admitted to the hospital for removal of hydatid cyst from the liver. Intraoperatively, the patient suddenly became hypotensive with tachycardia and ST segment elevation. There was no erythema, bronchospasm or desaturation. ⋯ Histopathology confirmed hydatid disease of the liver. The patient was discharged from the ICU and then from the hospital in 6 days. Anaphylaxis secondary to hydatid disease is uncommon; however, the possibility of such a diagnosis in all patients with non-ruptured hydatid disease in the endemic areas that develop intraoperative shock should be considered.