A & A case reports
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Case Reports
Stepwise Rostrocaudal Brainstem Anesthesia as a Complication of Local Anesthesia: A Case Report.
Iatrogenic cranial nerve palsies can rarely complicate neurosurgical, oral maxillofacial, and otolaryngological procedures. Among the most serious complications of cranial nerve palsy is upper airway obstruction, which is life threatening. ⋯ This led to hypoxic respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation before resolving spontaneously. This is the first known case of accidental brainstem anesthesia secondary to lidocaine infiltration at an occipital craniectomy site and serves to caution clinicians who manage similar patients.
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We documented brachial plexus injury by electromyography and magnetic resonance imaging secondary to needle sticks for central line insertion. This type of complication is rare in the literature, as few case reports exist. Brachial plexus injury can happen because of anatomic variations. ⋯ Pain that emerges in the ipsilateral arm after subclavian catheter placement should be taken into serious consideration. It is important to identify the cause of pain as soon as possible so that the correct treatment can be efficiently provided. Use of an ultrasound-guided catheterization may be a better choice for preventing complications.
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Review Case Reports
Hyperleukocytosis Complicated by Intracerebral Hemorrhage and Spurious Hypoxemia: A Case Report and Literature Review.
We present the management of a 15-year-old girl with acute myeloid leukemia who presented with massive hyperleukocytosis and neurological deficit due to intracerebral hemorrhage. Surgical intervention was considered but ultimately not undertaken because of the presence of massive hyperleukocytosis, thrombocytopenia, hypokalemia, and considerable discrepancy between the oxygen saturation values determined mechanically and by peripheral oximetry. Aggressive treatment of the hyperleukocytosis was immediately started, which improved the patient's overall condition and rendered surgical intervention unnecessary. This report shows that immediate treatment of massive hyperleukocytosis and critical interpretation of laboratory results in patients with hyperleukocytosis are warranted.
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A 42-year-old obese woman (body mass index = 30.2 kg/m) presented for urgent anterior cervical diskectomy and fusion. She had been taking oral naltrexone-bupropion extended-release (Contrave, Orexigen Therapeutics Inc, La Jolla, CA) for the past 6 months and continued using it until 12 hours preoperatively. Despite discontinuation of this medication, and employing an intraoperative and postoperative multimodal analgesia strategy, immediate pain control was inadequately achieved. Patients taking opioid antagonists who present for surgery pose unique challenges to the anesthesiologist and require extensive preoperative interdisciplinary discussions and planning for pain control throughout the perioperative period.
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Percutaneous valve-in-valve therapy is a life-saving procedure for patients at high risk of reoperation due to dysfunctional bioprosthetic valves. We have reviewed 3 typical cases of a valve-in-valve procedure using high-quality images to demonstrate the suitability of this method for aortic, mitral, and tricuspid positions. Three-dimensional transesophageal echocardiography combined with other modalities such as computerized tomography and fluoroscopy are key elements for anesthesia and procedural guidance, especially as immediate tools to assess valvular function and specific procedure-related complications.