Brit J Hosp Med
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Stridor is caused by turbulent flow through a narrow airway. Common causes of stridor are deep neck infection, malignancy, angioneurotic oedema, trauma and congenital anomalies like laryngomalacia. ⋯ These conditions are traditionally managed with one of the following techniques: inhalational induction, awake tracheostomy, awake fibreoptic intubation or blind nasal intubation. The success and safety of each of these techniques continues to be debated.
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An abdominal aortic aneurysm is a permanent localized dilatation which most commonly affects the infrarenal segment of the abdominal aorta. Rupture, the most common and most fatal complication of abdominal aortic aneurysm, is an acute vascular emergency that requires an immediate life-saving operation which has a high mortality rate. Approximately 30-50% of patients with ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm die before they reach the hospital, and 30-40% of those who reach the hospital alive die without surgical intervention (Bengtsson and Bergqvist, 1993). With an average mortality rate of 45% among patients who undergo emergency repair of ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm, the overall mortality rate is estimated at 80-90%.
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Back pain is a common complaint in the elderly population which is often attributed to osteoarthritis or vertebral collapse secondary to osteoporosis. The following case reports describe an easily-missed cause of back pain which is becoming increasingly important and thus should be actively sought.
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Biography Historical Article
Grantly Dick-Read (1890-1959): advocate of 'natural' childbirth.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the death of Grantly Dick-Read. Today he is almost forgotten, but when I was a young surgeon, his name was well known throughout the western world among doctors, midwives and, indeed, the lay public for his advanced, and at the time controversial, views on the management of pregnancy and labour.