Medicine
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Although the elicited responses of motor evoked potential (MEP) monitoring are very sensitive to suppression by anesthetic agents and muscle relaxants, the use of neuromuscular blockade (NMB) during MEP monitoring is still controversial because of serious safety concerns and diagnostic accuracy. Here, we evaluated the incidence of unacceptable movement and compared false-negative MEP results between no and partial NMB during cerebral aneurysm clipping surgery. We reviewed patient medical records for demographic data, anesthesia regimen, neurophysiology event logs, MEP results, and clinical outcomes. ⋯ No spontaneous movement or spontaneous respiration was observed in either group. Propofol/remifentanil-based anesthesia without NMB decreases the stimulation intensity of MEPs, which may reduce the false-negative ratio of MEP monitoring during cerebral aneurysm surgery. Our anesthetic protocol enabled reliable intraoperative MEP recording and patient immobilization during cerebral aneurysm clipping surgery.
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The aim of this study is to evaluate the hematological differences between septic and traumatic disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) using the rotational thromboelastometry (ROTEM). This retrospective study includes all sepsis or severe trauma patients transported to our emergency department who underwent ROTEM from 2013 to 2014. All patients were divided into 2 groups based on the presence of DIC diagnosed by the Japanese Association for Acute Medicine (JAAM) DIC score. ⋯ ROTEM findings showed that the A10, A20, and MCF in the FIBTEM test were significantly higher in the S-DIC group. However, no statistical differences were confirmed in the LI30, LI45, and ML in EXTEM test. The plasma fibrinogen level and fibrinogen based clot firmness in whole-blood test revealed statistical significance between septic and traumatic DIC patients.
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Observational Study
Safety and feasibility of the RhinoChill immediate transnasal evaporative cooling device during out-of-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation: A single-center, observational study.
We investigated feasibility and safety of the RhinoChill (RC) transnasal cooling system initiated before achieving a protected airway during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in a prehospital setting. In out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA), transnasal evaporative cooling was initiated during CPR, before a protected airway was established and continued until either the patient was declared dead, standard institutional systemic cooling methods were implemented or cooling supply was empty. Patients were monitored throughout the hypothermia period until either death or hospital discharge. ⋯ According to the field reports of the emergency medical services (EMS) personnel, no severe technical problems occurred by using the RC device that led to a delay or the impairment of quality of the CPR. Early application of the RC device, during OHCA is feasible, safe, easy to handle, and does not delay or hinder CPR, or establishment of a secure intubation. For efficacy and further safety data additional studies will be needed.
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Observational Study
The outcomes of patients with severe dengue admitted to intensive care units.
Outcomes of adult patients with dengue infections requiring intensive care unit (ICU) admissions remain unclear. We assessed the clinical manifestations and prognostic factors of patients critically ill with severe dengue. This retrospective study was done in a tertiary referral hospital with 96 adult ICU beds. ⋯ The number of severe dengue patients who require ICU admission remains high. The mortality rate was associated with lower GCS scores, lower platelet counts, and more organ failures. In addition, more than half of the critically ill dengue patients had comorbid bacterial infections.
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B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) exhibits phenotypes reminiscent of normal stages of B-cell development. As demonstrated by flow cytometry, the immunophenotypes are able to determine the stages of B cell development. Multicolor flow cytometry (MFC) is more accurate at identifying cell populations. ⋯ New subpopulations were detected in 22 of 23 patients and were primarily located in the CD34CD10 populations. Subpopulations of clonal evolution were heterogeneous after induction therapy. Our results suggest that the subpopulations in B-ALL patients should be dynamically monitored by development-associated immunophenotyping before, during, and after induction therapy and to predict the prognosis of the disease.