Articles: cations.
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Early reports of late outcomes among survivors of ARDS indicated that most patients improved dramatically after their intensive care unit stay, and few lived with residua of their once-severe pulmonary injury. Over the last decade, a collection of new studies with improved methodology and novel questions has improved our understanding of life after ARDS. After reviewing these newer investigations in the context of previously published literature, we have drawn several preliminary conclusions: (1) Long-term survival after hospital discharge is unaffected by ARDS, but is strongly affected by ARDS risk factor and comorbidities. (2) Respiratory symptoms after ARDS are more prevalent than previously indicated, but improve over the first 12 months of recovery. (3) Pulmonary function testing reveals marked impairment soon after ARDS. ⋯ A small group of patients have severe impairment without improvement. (4) Quality of life, functional independence, and cognitive function are severely affected by ARDS, with dramatic improvement over the first year. Quality of life is lower than in matched critically ill controls. (5) Significant numbers of ARDS survivors suffer from posttraumatic stress syndrome. This is an exciting time for research in long-term outcomes of ARDS, with potential for future studies that validate these single-center hypotheses, explore their ramifications, and investigate the impacts of changing practices in the intensive care unit in the acute phase of ARDS.
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La ventilation non invasive est probablement un des progrès majeurs des dix dernières années dans le traitement de l'insuffisance respiratoire aiguë aux soins intensifs. Son efficacité a été démontrée dans plusieurs indications. ⋯ Comme il demeure toujours possible d'intuber le patient en cas d'échec, la VNI peut être tentée dans plusieurs situations cliniques. Finalement, les succès de la VNI dépendent de l'intérêt et de l'expérience de l'équipe soignante.
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Anion gap (AG) is a calculated value commonly used in clinical practice. It approximates the difference between the concentration of unmeasured anions (UA) and unmeasured cations (UC) in serum. At present, the reference range of anion gap has been lowered from 8-16 to 3-11 mmol/l because of the changes in technique for measuring electrolyte. ⋯ If one finds high incidence of increased anion gap (>24 mmol/l) or decreased anion gap (<2 mmol/l), one should check the quality control of electrolyte and whether the patients were hypoalbuminemia or hyperglobulinemia. An anion gap exceeding 24 mmol/l will suggest the presence of metabolic acidosis. It is very rare to find anion gap with the negative sign.
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Skull Base Interd Ap · May 2001
Infrasellar craniopharyngiomas: case report and review of the literature.
Although craniopharyngiomas account for a large percentage of pediatric intracranial tumors, there is a bimodal age distribution. Most of these neoplasms are suprasellar or sellar in location. In this report we describe an unusual case of an infrasellar craniopharyngioma in a child. ⋯ This case illustrates a rare and unusual location for a craniopharyngioma. Craniopharyngiomas should be considered in the differential diagnosis of infrasellar neoplasms. Infrasellar craniopharyngiomas compromise part of the spectrum of tumors originating from enamel-forming neural crest cells.
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Internal jugular vein cannulation has become a routine and clinically important aspect of medical care in hemodialysis patients. Mismanagement in the location of a central venous catheter may occur in up to 20% of cases. The aim of the study was to evaluate the utility of endocavitary electrocardiography in right internal jugu-lar vein placement of central venous catheters. ⋯ In 6 catheterizations, no atrial trace was obtained due to atrial fibrillation in 4 cases, and in 2 cases technical error and guide-wire looping into a right jugular vein. Complications as a direct result of guide-wire or catheter placement were not observed. In our opinion this method can be used safely and makes radiological control usually unnecessary. (The Journal of Vascular Access 2001; 2: 45-50).