The Tokai journal of experimental and clinical medicine
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Tokai J. Exp. Clin. Med. · Oct 2003
Review Case ReportsA successfully treated case of severe necrotizing fasciitis caused by acute appendicitis: a case report.
We successfully saved a patient with appendicitis followed by necrotizing fascitis. A 77-year-old man with a history of ambulatory treatment for depression underwent an emergency operation because of severe abdominal pain. Laparotomy demonstrated that necrotizing appendicitis was massively extending over the abdominal cavity, involving the right paracolic sulcus and Douglas pouch and posterior surface of the right kidney. ⋯ Necrotizing fasciitis is an extremely rare complication of appendicitis, and there were only 10 cases documented. Once necrotizing fasciitis occurs, the mortality rate is high, so that correct diagnosis and prompt debridement are mandatory. Particularly for elderly patients with appendicitis, rapid and accurate diagnosis and treatment are required.
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Hypocitraturia, or low urinary citrate excretion is known as a risk for nephrolithiasis. Though urinary citrate excretion is basically determined by acid-base balance, metabolic acidosis is not always manifest in urinary stone patients with hypocitraturia. From our stone clinic data, we estimated the incidence of hypocitraturia and addressed its causes in the absence of obvious acid-base imbalance. ⋯ It was suggested that defective gastrointestinal alkali absorption may be involved in hypocitraturia of calcium stone patients.
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Tokai J. Exp. Clin. Med. · Apr 2002
Case ReportsDifficult placement of Univent tube blocker due to aberrant right subclavian artery aneurysm.
There have been few reports on aneurysms of the anomalous branch of the aortic arch. We present a rare case in which correct placement of the movable blocker of a Univent tube was difficult due to an aberrant right subclavian artery aneurysm. A 72-year-old man with a history of hypertension had manifested coughing and wheezing for four months prior to admission to our hospital. ⋯ Several methods of blocker placement, including those recommended in the manual attached to the product, were attempted without success. Finally, the trachea was intubated again using a Univent tube with the blocker tip bent manually, which permitted entrance of the blocker into the bronchus. Blocker placement should be modified to suit patients with a problem in the trachea or bronchi.
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Tokai J. Exp. Clin. Med. · Oct 2001
Influence of body fat on the onset of vecuronium induced neuromuscular blockade.
The onset time of vecuronium, a muscle relaxant, was measured after a bolus intravenous injection of 0.15 mg kg(-1) of vecuronium into 40 surgical patients aged 59-64 years. The onset time was then compared between male and female patients and the relationship between onset time and body fat (% of body weight) was analyzed. Arterial plasma concentrations of vecuronium were measured at 75, 195, and 375 sec after administration of vecuronium to 8 patients. ⋯ Except in the patient with the highest body fat, plasma concentrations at 195 and 375 sec significantly increased with increasing body fat. We concluded that the higher body fat in females is largely responsible for the faster onset of vecuronium action in females. A smaller distribution volume of vecuronium may also be one of the reasons for the faster onset of vecuronium in females.
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Tokai J. Exp. Clin. Med. · Oct 2001
Valsalva maneuver prevents guide wire trouble associated with 22-gauge safe guide.
The Safe guide is a central venous puncture needle that serves as both a pilot needle and as an introducer. A guide wire can be inserted into a vein through the side port at the hub of the 22-gauge Safe guides needle initially inserted as a pilot needle. However, guide wire insertion may fail due to kinking or locking at the side port. Increasing airway pressure to 20 cm H2O by squeezing a respiratory bag during insertion of the guide wire together with venous puncture was attempted to determine if would decrease guide wire trouble. ⋯ The application of positive airway pressure using the Valsalva maneuver may prevent the guide wire trouble associated with the 22-gauge Safe guide.