No absteact available.
Resuscitation*

BACKGROUND: There was a powerful earthquaken(Richter Scale 7.6) in Tiawan, on Sep. 21, 1999. we supported the organized medical services in that area during 5 days. METHODS: We made the protocol and analyzed the results prospecitively. RESULTS: We took care of a total of 708 patients from sep. 23 to sep. 27. Traumatized patients related to the earthquake were 245(34.6%), and most of them had minor injuries. Two hundred thirty-nine(239, 33.8%) patients visited us for medical disease related to living in a group. There were 29(4.1%) patients who complained of neuropsychiatric problems due to the post-earthquake stress. Because the condition of the patients was so bad, 18(2.5%) were transferred to receive more medical services. CONCLUSION: In disaster area, organized medical services have two different roles, especially in the subacute stage. One is responsibility for real emergency medical care, and the other is medical care of non-emergency patients.
Disasters* ; Earthquakes* ; Emergencies ; Humans ; Taiwan*

Hypertension is a risk factor for developing fatal aortic dissection. Aortic dissection occurs 2~3 times as often in men than in women between ages of 50~70 years old. Among other risk factors, aortic dissection occurs especially in women below the age of 40 years old in pregnancy-related cases. In pregnancy-related cases, aortic dissection occurs in the third trimester and in puerperium, as well as in multiparous women. The writers experienced an aortic dissection related pregnancy. The patient was 32 years old, diagnosis of dissection occurred in the postpartum period. Although, aortic dissection is a rare complication of pregnancy, the knowledge of this may assist the emergency physician save the lives of patients.
Adult ; Diagnosis ; Emergencies ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Male ; Postpartum Period ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Trimester, Third ; Risk Factors

From Feb. 1. 1997 to Mar. 1. 1999, Samsung Medical Center EMS Helicopter was used for air evacuation of the organ donors and the transportation of havested organs. These data were analyzed prospectively. A total of 29 times flight was confirmed. 12 flights were for the transportation of the harvested organs and the transported organs were the liver (4), the heart valve (2), the heart (1), the kidney (1), the cornea (1). The mean flight time was 59.5 minutes. There were 17 cases organ donors. The mean flight time was 66.9 minutes and the mean age was 18.2 years. The most common cause of the brain death was the trauma resulting in MVA (58.8%). For the transportation of the donors, portable ventilator, EKG mornitor, non-invasive BP monitor, non-invasive oxygen saturation monitor were utilized. There was only one cardiac arrest during the transportation.
Aircraft* ; Brain Death ; Cornea ; Electrocardiography ; Heart ; Heart Arrest ; Heart Valves ; Humans ; Kidney ; Liver ; Organ Transplantation* ; Oxygen ; Prospective Studies ; Tissue Donors ; Transplants* ; Transportation ; Ventilators, Mechanical