Articles: chronic.
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Both inherited and acquired immunodeficiency and chronic pulmonary disease predispose to the development of a variety of pulmonary syndromes in response to Aspergillus, a fungus that is ubiquitous in the environment. These syndromes include invasive aspergillosis, which is now recognized to occur in patients with critical illness without neutropenia and in those with mild degrees of immunosuppression, including from corticosteroid use in the setting of COPD. ⋯ Recent advances in each of these syndromes include a greater understanding of the underlying pathophysiology and hosts at risk; improved diagnostic algorithms; and the availability of more effective and well-tolerated therapies. Improvement in outcomes for Aspergillus pulmonary syndromes requires that physicians recognize the varied and sometimes subtle presentations, be aware of populations at risk of illness, and institute potentially life-saving therapies early in the disease course.
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The shoulder joint is an enarthrodial or ball-and-socket joint. A complex network of anatomic structures endows the human shoulder with tremendous mobility, greater than any other joint in the body. Many pathologies can been found in those patients with chronic shoulder pain. ⋯ Her pain and shoulder range of motion in all planes improved dramatically. Peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) of the suprascapular nerve, in addition to multimodality pain management, is one approach to the difficult task of treating adhesive capsulitis with accompanying pain and the inability to move the shoulder. We conducted a literature review on PubMed and found no case describing a similar patient to our knowledge.
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Interlaminar cervical epidural steroid injections (ic-ESI) are safe and effective treatment options for the management of acute and chronic radiculopathy, spinal stenosis, and other causes of neck pain not responding to more conservative measures. However, the procedure inherently lends itself to possible spinal cord injury (SCI). Though reports of such events have been documented, the clinical presentation of patients with needle puncture SCI varies. ⋯ Though most cases of devastating outcomes, such as hemiplegia and death, have been reported during cervical transforaminal epidural injections and rarely with ic-ESI, it is important to understand the symptoms and potential pitfalls of performing any cervical epidural injection. Cervical epidural malpractice claims are uncommon, but exceed those of steroid blocks at all the levels combined, demonstrating the need for improved awareness of potential complications in ic-ESI. Here, we will describe an unusual presentation of a spinal cord injection during an ic-ESI procedure.
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A survey on teaching ultrasound-guided chronic pain procedures in pain medicine fellowship programs.
Over the last decade ultrasound guidance (USG) has been utilized very successfully in acute pain procedures to confirm nerves' anatomic location and obtain live images. Not only the utilization, but the teaching, of USG has become an essential part of anesthesiology residency training. Prior to the introduction of USG, chronic pain procedures were always done either under fluoroscopy or blindly. USG offers advantages over fluoroscopy for completion of chronic pain procedures. USG decreases radiation exposure and the expenses associated with operating a fluoroscopy machine and allows live visualization of soft tissues and blood flow, a feature that fluoroscopy does not directly offer. Even today, the utilization and teaching of the technique for chronic pain procedures has not been as widely accepted as in acute pain management. ⋯ The teaching of ultrasound guided chronic pain procedures varies significantly between individual programs. Though many program directors do require that fellows demonstrate competency in the technique before graduation, as of today there is no ACGME guideline regarding this. The advancement in ultrasound technology and the increase in number of trained faculty may significantly impact the use of USG in training fellows to perform chronic pain procedures.