Arch Surg Chicago
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To determine whether referral of potential organ donors is affected by race of the patient. ⋯ Before and after controlling for cause of death, the risk that African-American donors would not be identified was more than 2.4 times greater than for whites (P < .01). No significant racial differences were noted in requests for suicide and homicide victims; for accident victims, significantly fewer requests were made of African-Americans. Efforts must be made to determine the dynamics of interaction between staff and donor families and to enhance health-care team members' abilities to identify donors and request donations from both races in stress-provoking situations.
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Patients with early stage breast cancer are being treated with adjuvant systemic therapy with increasing frequency regardless of the pathological status of the axillary lymph nodes. The purpose of this study was to determine the outcome for local regional control in patients treated with radiation therapy to the intact breast and regional lymph nodes without axillary dissection. ⋯ For selected patients undergoing breast preservation therapy, lumpectomy alone without axillary dissection followed by radiation therapy to the intact breast and regional lymph nodes results in a high rate of local regional control. Selected patients in whom the results of the axillary lymph node dissection will not influence decisions regarding systemic therapy are candidates for this approach.
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Review Case Reports
Neurologic degeneration associated with nitrous oxide anesthesia in patients with vitamin B12 deficiency.
Vitamin B12 (cyanocobalamin) is an integral component of two biochemical reactions in man: the conversion of L-methylmalonyl coenzyme A into succinyl coenzyme A and the formation of methionine by methylation of homocysteine. The transmethylation reaction is essential to DNA synthesis and to the maintenance of the myelin sheath by the methylation of myelin basic protein. Active vitamin B12 contains cobalt in its reduced form (Co+). ⋯ Five cases (four from the literature and one new case) are presented in which patients unsuspected of having vitamin B12 deficiency developed subacute combined degeneration of the spinal cord following nitrous oxide anesthesia. Patients with vitamin B12 deficiency are exceedingly sensitive to neurologic deterioration following nitrous oxide anesthesia. If unrecognized, the neurologic deterioration becomes irreversible and may result in death.
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Comparative Study
The success of duplex ultrasonographic scanning in diagnosis of extremity vascular proximity trauma.
To determine if duplex ultrasonographic scanning is diagnostically equivalent to arteriography and/or operative exploration in the diagnosis of extremity vascular proximity trauma. ⋯ Duplex scanning is a noninvasive, safe, effective method for the initial evaluation of potential extremity vascular proximity injury. It has replaced arteriography in the initial diagnosis of extremity vascular proximity trauma by our trauma service.
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Arginine, glutamine, the long chain polyunsaturated omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, and, to a lesser extent, ribonucleic acid and the vitamins E, C, and A have pharmacologic effects when given in amounts in excess of what is needed to prevent nutritional deficiency. These effects are exerted primarily via the immune system, and immunoenhancing diets that embody the recently developed principles of nutritional pharmacology have been shown to reduce infectious complications by approximately 75% in surgical patients and hospital stay by more than 20% in surgical patients and patients in the intensive care unit in three independent, prospective, randomized studies, two of which were double-blinded. These findings suggest that specialized diets can be designed that will be of benefit to patients with cancer, atherosclerosis, intestinal diseases, autoimmune diseases, infections, and trauma. However, the interaction of these nutrients in pharmacologic amounts with standard pharmacologic drugs is largely unknown, as are the effects of long-term administration of specialized diets to treat these conditions.