The Journal of neuroscience nursing : journal of the American Association of Neuroscience Nurses
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The purpose of this study was to determine the difference in rates of pulmonary complications (e.g., aspiration, pneumonia) in head-injured patients with and without concomitant alcohol intoxication. The records of 98 consecutive patients admitted over a 1-year period to a Level I Trauma Center were reviewed. The patients were grouped into three subsets: acutely intoxicated (n = 26), acutely intoxicated with a diagnosis of chronic alcoholism (n = 14), and non-intoxicated (n = 58). ⋯ We found that our strict exclusion criteria (no concomitant chest, abdominal, or pelvic trauma) limited the sample to only those patients without significant intracranial bleeding, whereas most complications in blood alcohol neuroscience research have been associated with much larger mass lesions (e.g., epidural or subdural hematomas). In addition, we found the characterizations of patients as chronically alcoholic were cumbersome and inaccurate in many cases. Future research should allow for a greater range of concomitant injuries that might suggest a positive or negative relationship to acute intoxication.
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Chiari malformations are cerebellar anomalies. The four types of Chiari malformations, as described more than 100 years ago by Dr. Hans Chiari, have neither anatomic nor embryologic correlation. ⋯ Of all Chiari I patients, 15%-20% will have hydrocephalus. For some of them, the hydrocephalus will resolve with ventriculoperitoneal shunting, alleviating the need for a Chiari decompression. Long-term prognosis for patients with symptomatic Chiari type I malformations who undergo surgical treatment is variable, based on the patients' presenting symptoms and spinal cord cyst response.
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Secondary brain injury results in increased morbidity and mortality in the traumatically brain-injured (TBI) patient. Research has shown that prevention of secondary brain injury, as characterized by cerebral ischemia and edema, can improve neurologic outcomes. ⋯ Scientifically, brain tissue oxygenation can be directly measured via the partial pressure of oxygen in brain tissue (PbO2) probe. This provides a rapid, potentially more accurate indicator of cerebral oxygenation, thereby allowing for earlier intervention into the prevention of secondary brain injury.
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Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) are the most common disabling injuries in the United States, accounting for 44% of all deaths due to trauma. Once inflicted, primary cerebral injury is immutable and irreversible. ⋯ Relationships exist between therapeutic positioning, multisystemic stability, and prevention of secondary cerebral injury in severe TBI. A critical review and synthesis of current research literature on multisystem responses to positioning led to development of clinical recommendations based on currently available evidence and generated best practices for positioning patients with severe TBI.
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Review Case Reports
Herbs and the brain: friend or foe? The effects of ginkgo and garlic on warfarin use.
In the quest for longevity and as an alternative to Western medicine, there has been a resurgence in traditional remedies. However, several concerns have been raised about the increased use of herbal remedies, including potential interactions with "Western" medicines, the lack of quality control, the assessment of herbal clinical trials, and the adulteration of herbal remedies by traditional prescribers. ⋯ In the cerebrovascular and cardiac settings, it is particularly important to gain such a history and to educate patients and family members about the potential interactions of herbal remedies with anticoagulants. Two herbal supplements in particular, ginkgo biloba and garlic, have demonstrated effects on warfarin.