BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to examine the efficacies of somatosensory evoked potential (SEP) and diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWI) in predicting the clinical prognosis of comatose patients following cardiac arrest. METHODS: Forty-one patients resuscitated from out-of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) were retrospectively studied. After return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), SEP was conducted between one and three days after resuscitation, and DWI was conducted within five days of resuscitation. SEP was classified into three grades: normal, delayed conduction or unilateral loss of the N20 peak, and bilateral loss of the N20 peak. Bilateral loss of the N20 peak was considered a predictor of poor prognosis. For DWI, diffuse signal intensity (SI) abnormality in the cerebral cortex or abnormality in other brain areas in addition to the bilateral cerebral cortex was taken as a predictor of poor prognosis. For patient clinical prognosis, the Glasgow-Pittsburgh Cerebral Performance Category (CPC) was used to evaluate neurological results at the time of discharge. Resulting CPC scores of 1 and 2 were considered as a favorable prognosis, and scores of 3, 4, and 5 were considered as a poor prognosis. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value for the prediction of poor prognosis were analyzed for each test individually and for the combination of the two tests. RESULTS: Among the 41 subject patients, 31 underwent SEP, 30 underwent DWI, and 20 underwent both tests. The prognosis predictor of SEP (bilateral loss of the N20 peak) predicted poor prognosis with 56.5% sensitivity, 100% specificity, 100% positive predictive value, and 44.4% negative predictive value. The prognosis predictor of DWI (diffuse SI abnormality in the cerebral cortex or abnormality in other brain areas in addition to the bilateral cerebral cortex) predicted poor prognosis with 85% sensitivity, 100% specificity, 100% predictive value, and 76.9% predictive value. For patients who underwent both tests, the sensitivity and negative predictive value for the prediction of poor prognosis increased to 92.3% and 87.5%, respectively, and the specificity and positive predictive value were maintained at 100%. CONCLUSIONS: The accuracy of poor prognosis prediction for patients in prolonged comas after resuscitation is enhanced by combining the results of SEP and DWI along with the individual results of each test.
Brain ; Cerebral Cortex ; Coma* ; Dinucleoside Phosphates ; Evoked Potentials, Somatosensory* ; Heart Arrest* ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Prognosis* ; Resuscitation ; Retrospective Studies ; Sensitivity and Specificity

BACKGROUND: Infectious complications commonly occur in the survivors of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. The aim of our study was to describe the incidence, associated factors and outcome of infectious complications of the survivors of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of 75 patients who survived out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. We collected the data on the demographics, the modes of cardiac arrest, the duration of CPR, the dose of epinephrine, the use of hypothermia, new infections, the duration of mechanical ventilation, the length of stay in the intensive care unit (ICU), recovery of consciousness and the mortality. RESULTS: New infections developed in 46.7% of the patients. Asystole was the most common rhythm (70.7%). The most common infectious complication was pneumonia (40.0%) urinary tract infection developed in 10 cases, vascular catheter local infection developed in 6 cases, primary blood stream infection developed in 3 cases, wound infection developed in 2 cases and pseudomembranous colitis developed in 1 case. The most common pathogens of pneumonia were Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus. Blood cultures were obtained in 36 patients during the first 24 hr and the pathogen was isolated in three. The patients with infection had a longer duration of mechanical ventilation and a longer stay in the ICU (p < 0.001, p = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Infectious complications are common in survivors of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and these infections are associated with a longer duration of mechanical ventilation and a longer stay in the ICU. The most common infectious complication was pneumonia and the pathogens of pneumonia were Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus.
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation ; Consciousness ; Demography ; Enterocolitis, Pseudomembranous ; Epinephrine ; Heart Arrest ; Humans ; Hypothermia ; Incidence ; Intensive Care Units ; Length of Stay ; Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest ; Pneumonia ; Pseudomonas aeruginosa ; Respiration, Artificial ; Retrospective Studies ; Rivers ; Staphylococcus ; Staphylococcus aureus ; Survivors ; Urinary Tract Infections ; Vascular Access Devices ; Wound Infection

We experienced a case of thoracic aortic aneurysm combined with coronary artery disease. A 68-year-old man complained of anginal pain in the left anterior chest and nonspecific pain in the posterior chest. The aneurysm was extending from left subclavian artery to the diaphragm and sign of impending rupture was noted in the chest CT. Coronary angiograms revealed significant obstruction of left circumflex coronary artery(>95%) and left anterior descending artery(>50%). Exposure was obtained through the left posterolateral thoracotomy incision in the 4th intercostal space and then partial femoro-femoral cardio- pulmonary bypass was established. After aortic cross clamping, the aneurysmal sac was opened and repaired with interposition of 26 mm Hemashield graft. Under the beating heart with femoro-femoral cardiopulmonary bypass, aorto-left circumflex coronary bypass with autogenous saphenous vein used as conduit was performed. Postoperatively multiple cerebral infarction ensued due to intraoperative hypovolemic shock and hypoxic brain damage during cardiopulmonary bypass. Currently, the patient's mental status is drowsy and in an improving state.
Aged ; Aneurysm ; Aneurysm, Dissecting ; Aortic Aneurysm, Thoracic* ; Cardiopulmonary Bypass ; Cerebral Infarction ; Constriction ; Coronary Artery Bypass ; Coronary Artery Disease* ; Coronary Vessels* ; Diaphragm ; Heart ; Humans ; Hypoxia, Brain ; Rupture ; Saphenous Vein ; Shock ; Subclavian Artery ; Thoracotomy ; Thorax ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Transplants

Tuberculous lymphadenitis is easily mistaken for an infection by only mycobacterium tuberculosis. However, many cases reveal atypical mycobacterium. Treatment of atypical mycobacterium differs from that of M. tuberculosis and M. bovis. Usual anti-tuberculous medication is the response to M. tuberculosis and M. bovis, but not to atypical mycobacterium. Excision and antibiotic therapy is the known treatment of choice for atypical mycobacterium. We used the polymerase chain reaction(PCR) for differential diagnosis of tuberculosis from lymphadenitis, and by using PCR we were able to differentiate the infecting organism as typical or atypical mycobacterium. We excised 50 case of cervical lymphadenitis, and PCR was done with Primer I(IS6110), which is specific for M. tuberculosis and M. bovis, and with Primer II(65 KDa Ag), which covers all mycobacterium species. The results obtained by PCR were compared with the pathologic results(control): sensitivity 81.8%, specificity 88.9%, false positive ratio 11.1%, false negative ratio 18.2%, typical mycobacterium 45.5%, and atypical mycobacterium 45.5%. These findings suggest that PCR is a good diagnostic tool for the early detection of tuberculous lymphadenitis and for differentiation of mycobacteria in cervical lymphadenitis.
Diagnosis, Differential ; Lymphadenitis ; Mycobacterium ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; Nontuberculous Mycobacteria* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Tuberculosis ; Tuberculosis, Lymph Node*

PURPOSE: Pneumonia is a serious and relatively common complication among submersion victims without out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). The purpose of this study was to investigate the risk factors of pneumonia among adult submersion victims without OHCA. METHODS: All adult submersion victims without OHCA who visited our hospital between 2004 and 2013 were included. This study was conducted retrospectively, with collection of data by review of medical records. Among total submersion victims (310 patients), 191 patients did not suffer OHCA. We investigated the characteristics of the patients and classified them according to two groups based on the presence of pneumonia. We then compared clinical variables between the two groups. RESULTS: A total of 191 adult submersion patients without OHCA; 157 patients did not have pneumonia during their hospital stay; 34 patients had pneumonia. In respective analysis, alert mentality, pH and core temperature showed correlation with pneumonia. However, in logistic regression analysis with these 3 variables, only pH was a risk factor of pneumonia. All patients with pneumonia except one were discharged with full recovery. CONCLUSION: The risk of pneumonia among adult submersion victims without OHCA is higher when the lower pH is checked. Further studies are needed in order to evaluate the other risk factors of pneumonia for early prediction and proper management.
Adult* ; Heart Arrest ; Humans ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Immersion* ; Length of Stay ; Logistic Models ; Medical Records ; Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest* ; Pneumonia* ; Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Adult ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors

PURPOSE: Rapid multidisciplinary trauma care by trauma team is essential for severely injured patients. Different protocols for trauma team activation are used in each hospital. Correct trauma triage is needed to ensure appropriate use of medical resources. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of our modified protocol for trauma team activation. METHODS: This is an observational, retrospective cohort study. Injured patients with trauma team activation (TTA) or who had been admitted to a surgical intensive care unit were investigated from 1st March 2010 to 31st May 2012. The TTA protocol was analyzed with respect to sensitivity, positive predictive value (PPV), and overtriage (1-PPV). Undertriage (1-sensitivity) was defined as no TTA despite severe injury (Injury Severity Score (ISS) >15). RESULTS: A total of 229 patients were included. There were 201 patients with TTA and 28 patients without TTA. Of the 201 patients with TTA, 104 were identified as severely injured (ISS>15), yielding sensitivity of 79%, PPV of 51%, and overtriage of 49%. Undertriage was 21% (n=28) when considering all severely injured patients (n=132). Among 12 criteria of our TTA protocol, 'injury in two or more body regions' accounted for 85.6% of the overtriage. Of the patients with undertriage, 75% represented isolated head injury and 28.5% from interhospital transfer. CONCLUSION: The rate of overtriage of TTA protocol in our hospital is appropriate, but the rate of undertriage is relatively high. We believe, to decrease the overtriage of all and undertriage in patients with injury in an isolated specific body region, more research for evaluation of effects of protocol excluding the criteria of 'injury in two or more body regions' is needed.
Body Regions ; Cohort Studies ; Craniocerebral Trauma ; Emergency Service, Hospital* ; Humans ; Critical Care ; Retrospective Studies ; Triage

We report the case of 60-yr-old female in which therapeutic hypothermia (TH) was successfully induced maintaining the target temperature of 34degrees C for 12 hr despite a risk of hypothermia-induced coagulation abnormalities following an emergent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) due to failed percutaneous coronary intervention, who suffered a cardiac arrest. Emergent CABG may be a relative contraindication for TH in post-cardiac arrest patients because hypothermia may increase the risk of infection and bleeding. However, the possibility of an improved neurologic outcome outweighs the risk of bleeding, although major surgery may be a relative contraindication for TH.
Body Temperature ; Coma/complications ; *Coronary Artery Bypass ; Electrocardiography ; Female ; Heart Arrest/complications/*diagnosis/therapy ; Humans ; *Hypothermia, Induced ; Intensive Care Units ; Middle Aged ; Percutaneous Coronary Intervention ; Treatment Outcome

Pulmonary aspergilloma is potentially a life threatening disease resulting from the colonization of lung cavities by Aspergillus fumigatus. A case is reported: a 43-year-old man with symtomatic cavitary aspergilloma presenting with severe productive coughing, hemoptysis, occasional fever, and chilling. On preoperative plain chest radiograph and CT scan, we could find a rounded irregular opacity in a large pulmonary cavity. He received 2 separate operations for therapeutic need. At the first opertion, we performed cavernostomy and thoracoplasty because of severe pleural adhesions, tearing of cavity wall, and high risk of respiratory insufficiency. At the second operation, we performed myoplasty and omentoplasty for closure of remaining air space and complete wrapping of the BPF site. All symptoms of dyspnea and hemoptysis have since resolved. We believed that in the high risk patients who have severe respiratory symptoms, such as in aspergilloma and open cavity with a risk of respiratory insufficiency, cavernostomy followed by myoplasty or omentoplasty should be recommended.
Adult ; Aspergillus fumigatus ; Colon ; Cough ; Dyspnea ; Fever ; Hemoptysis ; Humans ; Lung ; Pulmonary Aspergillosis ; Radiography, Thoracic ; Respiratory Insufficiency ; Surgical Flaps ; Thoracoplasty ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

A 50-year-old male patient was admitted due to right ventricular and aortic foreign bodies with ascending aortic pseudoaneurysm. The patient had a history of Kirschner wire fixation of right sternoclavicular joint 3 months ago. Under cardiopulmonary bypass, two K-wires were removed and injured pulmonary valve leaflet and aortic wall were repaired successfully. The postoperative course was uneventful and the patient was discharged on the 14th postoperative day.
Aneurysm, False ; Cardiopulmonary Bypass ; Foreign Bodies* ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pulmonary Valve ; Sternoclavicular Joint

PURPOSE: Historically, acute respiratory failure is the most common cause of death in drowning patients. However, there are an increasing number of severe drowning cases where patients die of circulatory failure or cardiovascular collapse. The aim of this study was to analyze the causes of death in severe drowning patients and evaluate the data in terms of survival curves in order to propose a treatment plan for severe drowning patients in the future. METHODS: The subjects were 58 patients that visited St. Mary's Hospital from January 2000 to September 2006 who had drowned and required CPR and mechanical ventilation. Univariate analysis was performed to evaluate factors known to be predictive of severity. Survival analysis was done to determine the degrees of correlation with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and refractory shock. RESULTS: Thirty-nine out of 58 severely drowning patients expired in all, with most deaths occurring in the early stages - 45% expired on the first day, 55% on the second day, and 60% on the third day. Cause of death analysis yielded the following results: the correlation coefficient for the existence of ARDS was 2.96 (p=0.086), which did not achieve statistical significance, but, the coefficient for refractory shock was 9.23 (p=0.002) and was statistically significant. CONCLUSION: Most severe drowning patients expired in the first three days after drowning, and refractory shock was a more significant contributor to patients death than ARDS. This result underscores the need for treatment protocols that includes active management of hemodynamic instability combined with mechanical ventilatory management in the initial stages of treatment.
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation ; Cause of Death ; Clinical Protocols ; Drowning* ; Hemodynamics ; Humans ; Mortality ; Respiration, Artificial ; Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Adult ; Respiratory Insufficiency ; Shock