Chang Gung medical journal
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Rapid-sequence induction with cricoid pressure is a standard procedure for inducing anesthesia in patients with a potentially full stomach. During the induction period, if the patient develops generalized movements of the body, the pressure level of the cricoid may change unexpectedly. As a result, the increase in intragastric pressure may cause gastric regurgitation and consequent pulmonary aspiration. ⋯ However, most patients who received rocuronium complained of severe burning pain in their arm during intravenous injection. Even after the administration of the induction agents, rocuronium injection can also cause withdrawal of the hand or other generalized movements of the body. We describe a case of gastric regurgitation with pulmonary aspiration following generalized spontaneous movements associated with rocuronium injection in a girl who received pediatric emergent surgery.
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Secondary aortoenteric fistula (SAF) is now recognized as an uncommon but exceedingly important complication of abdominal aortic reconstruction. The complication often occurs months to years after the original surgery. The main clinical manifestation of the disease is always upper gastrointestinal bleeding. ⋯ Even immediate exploratory laparotomy was performed, the patient died 48 hrs after the surgical management. Because of the increasing number of elective aortic aneurysm repairs in the aging population, it is likely that more patients with SAF will present to the clinical physicians in the future. So, a high index of suspicion is necessary for prompt diagnosis and treatment of this actually life-threatening event.