Nigerian medical journal : journal of the Nigeria Medical Association
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Sarcoidosis is a systemic multi-organ granulomatous disease of unknown etiology that is characterized by the presence of granuloma in various organs. The clinical features of sarcoidosis are heterogeneous but pulmonary involvement is cardinal manifestations. The aim of this study was to determine radiologic, clinical and laboratory findings of patients with sarcoidosis. ⋯ Pulmonary involvements are both fibrosis and granulomatosis and the most common manifestations are parenchymal nodules, bronchiectasia and high-grade fibrosis. The most common extra-pulmonary involvement is arthritis. Lab tests are non-specific and have no correlation with duration or severity of disease.
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Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is one the most commonly performed procedures in the intensive care unit (ICU). However, success rate of CPR vary widely from 3.1% to 16.5%. ⋯ There is an urgent need to constitute a cardiac arrest team (CAT) which will be available at all times for improved successful outcome after cardiac arrest in our ICU.
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Rapid and proper diagnosis of sepsis is one of the daily challenges of emergency department (ED) and intensive care units. The general aim of the present study was to determine the efficacy of measuring procalcitonin levels in the early diagnosis of bacterial resistance to antibiotics administered empirically in patients with sepsis. ⋯ It is suggested that procalcitonin be used for the diagnosis of sepsis or SIRS resulting from an infectious disease, for follow-up of treatment and for evaluation of response to treatment.
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Post-operative fever is a common complication of cardiac operations, which is known to be correlated with a greater degree of cognitive dysfunction 6 weeks after cardiac surgery. The aim of the present study was to examine efficacy and safety of single dose intravenous Paracetamol in treatment of post-operative fever in children undergoing cardiac surgery. ⋯ This study suggests that single dose administration of intravenous Paracetamol before paediatric cardiac surgeries using cardiopulmonary bypass; reduce mean body temperature in the first 24 h after operation.
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Preeclampsia is a pregnancy-specific disease associated with significant maternal and perinatal mortality and morbidity. Lipid abnormality and elevated serum uric acid have been reported as early features of the disease. We aimed to detect the level of serum lipid profile and uric acid abnormalities in severe preeclamptics in Benin City and to measure their clinical significance. ⋯ Abnormality of serum uric acid in preeclampsia was significantly associated with increased frequency of complications but lipid profile abnormalities were not shown in the subjects studied. We recommend a larger scale study to determine lipid profile in normal and complicated pregnancies in our environment.