Southern medical journal
-
Southern medical journal · Jul 1989
Historical ArticleEvolution of civil aeromedical helicopter aviation.
The rapid increase in the use of helicopters for hospital transport during the 1980s is the culmination of several hundred years of military medical innovation. Mass battefield casualties spurred both technologic and medical changes necessary for today's sophisticated helicopter systems in use worldwide, particularly in the United States. The Napoleonic Era and the American Civil War provided the framework for the evolution of today's state-of-the-art emergency medical techniques. ⋯ Any skepticism about the efficacy of helicopter medical evacuation was erased during the Vietnam conflict. As an integral part of the modern battlefield, these specialized aircraft became a necessity. The observations and experience of American servicemen and medical personnel in Vietnam established the foundation for the acceptance of helicopter transport in modern hospital systems.
-
Southern medical journal · Jul 1989
Case ReportsPulmonary embolism masquerading as pulmonary arteriovenous malformation on computerized tomography.
A 57-year-old man with massive hemoptysis was thought to have a pulmonary arteriovenous malformation (PAVM) on the basis of computerized tomography of the chest. Angiography, however, revealed a pulmonary artery embolus as the case of the hemoptysis; the tomographic appearance of PAVM had been mimicked by the delay of contrast material within the involved pulmonary artery proximal to the occluding embolus. This finding suggests caution in the use of CT to diagnose PAVM, especially in clinical situations compatible with other diagnoses, and confirms the importance of pulmonary angiography in the definitive evaluation of suspected PAVM.