A & A case reports
-
A 72-year-old patient with an acute traumatic Type III odontoid fracture presented to the operating room for an urgent orthopedic procedure with a history of uncontrolled gastroesophageal reflux, a full stomach, and active vomiting. Rather than fiberoptic intubation, a rapid sequence intubation with manual inline stabilization was performed using a videolaryngoscope. A lateral cervical spine radiograph immediately after intubation showed no change in alignment of the fracture of C1-C2. In the presence of cervical spine instability, a postintubation radiograph provides assurance that the cervical spine is appropriately aligned during subsequent surgery.
-
An 81-year-old man with a history of villous adenoma of the duodenum was admitted with new-onset jaundice, abdominal pain, and pruritus, which raised concerns about disease progression and hepatobiliary obstruction. The patient had refused surgical resection of tumor on initial diagnosis 2 years earlier and opted out of it again at the current presentation because of his significant comorbidities. While discussing treatment options with his family, he developed symptoms suggesting myocardial infarction. Therefore, before anesthetizing this patient with escalating cardiac enzyme levels for an urgent noncardiac procedure, it was important to attend to the dynamics of the decision-making process.
-
The presentation, evaluation, management, and outcome of a case of type A circumferential dissection involving repeated retrograde intussusception of the intimal flap through the aortic valve is described in this case report. Fewer than 20 intimo-intimal intussusception cases have been described since the first report was published by Hufnagel in 1962, and outcomes have typically been poor because of delays in diagnosis. This case shows the potential for a positive outcome when the diagnosis of intimo-intimal intussusception is entertained and confirmed early in the course of treatment. Preoperative computed tomography and intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography were essential in diagnosis and operative planning.
-
Perioperative hypoglycemia has been associated with adverse outcomes. Consequently, perioperative monitoring of blood glucose using convenient point-of-care (POC) monitors is frequently used. ⋯ We describe a case of pseudohypoglycemia using such testing. This case highlights the importance of individualizing perioperative glucose management to venous or arterial rather than capillary sampling in certain clinical situations.