Tidsskrift for den Norske lægeforening : tidsskrift for praktisk medicin, ny række
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Tidsskr. Nor. Laegeforen. · Feb 1993
[Prevention of aspiration--preoperative fasting. Time for reevaluation of old routines?].
The article reviews the epidemiology, pathophysiology and recent clinical research on aspiration prophylaxis and preoperative fasting before surgical procedures. Elective, pain-free patients should be allowed a glass of clear fluid up to two hours before start of anaesthesia. ⋯ Aspiration of gastric contents and/or prophylactic use of histamine H2 antagonist or sodium citrate may be considered. The use of prophylactic treatment should always be evaluated against the side-effects of such treatment and the very low occurrence of serious sequelae from aspiration of gastric contents into the lungs.
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Tidsskr. Nor. Laegeforen. · Feb 1993
Historical Article[Diagnostic imaging in sciatica. A short historical overview and current status].
Cotugno described the clinical entity of sciatica in 1764. However, the association between sciatica and compression of lumbar nerve roots was not realized until the 1920s. Back surgery for herniated nucleus pulposus then became fashionable, and plain radiography and myelography enabled preoperative mapping. ⋯ This has increased the knowledge of the etiology of lumbar root compressions, and invasive therapies for sciatica have become more diversified. It is easy to lose perspective among the available imaging procedures and therapeutic techniques. The aim of this paper is to present the current status from a historical point of view, with special emphasis on the most common imaging methods for the investigation of lumbosacral radiculopathies.
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Non-typhoid Salmonella enteritis may be complicated by aortitis. Three cases of Salmonella enteritidis aortitis are described. One patient, who survived, was operated with resection of the infected part of the aorta. ⋯ The two patients who died were only treated with antibiotics. Aortitis is diagnosed by means of blood-cultures and topographic examination of the aorta with CT-scanning, ultrasonography or angiography. The treatment of Salmonella aortitis is a combination of surgery and long-term administration of antibiotics.
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Tidsskr. Nor. Laegeforen. · Dec 1992
Historical Article[La pierre de la folie. The stone of madness].
During the 16th and 17th centuries the expression "to have a stone in the head" was synonymous with peculiar behaviour or mental symptoms. Many quacksalvers earned their living by treating such patients with a scalp incision, pretending to remove a stone. Some of the great painters from this period have used the subjects as models for their works of art. A series of paintings of this kind have been traced in different museums, catalogues and publications, and are described, followed by a short survey of popular beliefs and superstitions connected with stones.