1/7. The risk of paraplegia through medical treatment.In the Orthopedic University Hospital of Heidelberg (section orthopedics II, treatment and rehabilitation of paraplegics), 21 patients with iatrogenic paraplegia were treated between 1968 and 1991. paraplegia occurred in nine cases after procedures close to the spinal cord. In 12 cases paraplegia complicated medical treatment. Procedures close to the spinal cord, such as laminectomy, vertebrotomy, spondylodesis, and peridural anaesthesia, involve the risk of mechanical damage to the spinal cord, the level of paraplegia depends on the area of treatment. Any previous damage to the spinal cord increases the risk of paraplegic complications. The main risks in procedures distant from the spinal cord, such as vascular surgery, angiography, radiotherapy, bronchial artery embolisation, and umbilical artery injection, are disturbances of the blood supply or toxic mechanisms. The ischaemic genesis of spinal cord damage is obvious in the case of vessel ligatures or cross-clamping of the aorta with resulting hypotonic discirculation. In radiomyelopathy as well, the damage to the spinal vessels outweighs the direct neuronal damage. Corresponding to the vascular cause, lesions are more likely to occur at the level of borderlines of blood supply in the middle thoracic cord or in the area of a non-anastomosed great radicular artery in the lumbar spinal cord. knowledge of the consequences and side effects of medical treatment is imperative. Knowing about the risk of a paraplegic lesion, we need a strict indication for diagnostic and therapeutic interventions. Due to progress in science some of the reasons of iatrogenic paraplegia have become manageable. Especially in radiotherapy, vascular surgery and angiography the risk of neurological complications has been lowered.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/7. Acute angle closure glaucoma precipitated by intranasal application of cocaine.We describe a patient who developed acute angle-closure glaucoma following the application of topical intranasal cocaine. A 46-year-old woman underwent an elective antral washout under general anaesthesia and with local application of 25 per cent cocaine paste to the nasal mucosa. Twenty-four hours post-operatively the patient developed sudden painful blindness which was found to be due to acute glaucoma. cocaine with its indirect sympathomimetic activity causes mydriasis, that can precipitate acute angle-closure glaucoma in predisposed individuals with a shallow anterior chamber. Although the incidence is rare, otolaryngologists need to be aware of this potential complication.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/7. Perioperative deaths: a further comparative review of coroner's autopsies with particular reference to the occurrence of fatal iatrogenic injury.INTRODUCTION: In previous triennial reviews of Coroner's perioperative autopsies conducted during the periods 1989 to 1991 and 1992 to 1994, it was observed that the necropsy incidence of such deaths rose from 2% to 2.6% (P < 0.05). Concurrently, the rate of iatrogenic deaths had nearly doubled from 15.2% to 28.8% (P < 0.02). These findings spurred a review of the subsequent triennium (1995 to 1997), in order to monitor the apparent rise in these trends and to study the frequency and occurrence of iatrogenic deaths in relation to the number of invasive procedures performed, as well as during emergency and elective procedures. MATERIALS AND methods: A retrospective (descriptive and comparative) study, comprising a clinico-pathological review of a series of 270 perioperative deaths (defined as deaths occurring during or after invasive therapeutic or diagnostic procedures, up to a week after discharge, and excluding cases of major trauma from suicides, homicides, as well as road and industrial accidents) reported to the Coroner, for which autopsies were conducted at the Department of forensic medicine from 1995 to 1997. RESULTS: The necropsy incidence of 4.4% (270/6074) represented a significant rise over the previous triennia (P < 0.01). As in previous years, there was a predominance of males (M:F = 1.65:1) and middle-aged to elderly patients (range 0 to 92 years, mean 55.8 years, median 63 years), most of whom had died after a variable, but usually brief, postoperative interval [0 to 97, 4.2, 1 day(s)] and a more variable period of hospitalisation (< 1 to 289, 12.6, 7 days). A total of 408 invasive procedures were performed, amounting to an average of 1.5 per patient; 101 patients (37.4%) underwent multiple (> 1) interventions, which were initially classified as elective procedures in 27 cases. There were 66 (24.4%) iatrogenic deaths, of which 2 (0.7%) were due to anaesthetic mishaps; 18/64 iatrogenic deaths, unrelated to anaesthesia, occurred after the first postoperative day. The proportions of such deaths amongst patients subjected to multiple interventions, or initial elective procedures, were more than twice as high as amongst those undergoing single procedures, and those initially classified as emergencies (35.6% versus 16.6% and 33.3% versus 13.2%, respectively; P < 0.01). Only 51/66 (77.3%) iatrogenic deaths received Coroner's verdicts of misadventure; no verdict of criminal negligence was recorded during the period in question. CONCLUSIONS: There appears to have been a steady increase in the number of perioperative deaths reported to the Coroner over the previous triennia (1989 to 1997) for which autopsies were conducted. While this observation may not denote an increase in perioperative morality rates per se, it may be indicative of an increasingly "aggressive" or defensive approach to the clinical management of seriously ill patients, particularly over the past decade. Although the rate of iatrogenic deaths appears to have stabilised, it is too early to say whether this apparent trend will persist in the future. It is perhaps not surprising that the risk of iatrogenic injury appears to increase with the number of interventions performed; however, it is not clear why initial, supposedly elective, interventions should be associated with an apparently greater risk of iatrogenic injury than those classified as emergency procedures. The substantial divergence between the autopsy finding of an iatrogenic death and the corresponding Coroner's verdict of misadventure may be comforting to clinicians, but certainly warrants further examination.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/7. Iatrogenic meningitis: an increasing role for resistant viridans streptococci? Case report and review of the last 20 years.Iatrogenic meningitis following lumbar puncture is a rare event. We present a 52-y-old man who developed symptoms of meningitis within 12 h after spinal anaesthesia. cerebrospinal fluid cultures grew streptococcus salivarius partially resistant to penicillin and ceftriaxone. The patient was successfully treated with ceftriaxone and vancomycin and left the hospital with minor sequelae. A literature review of 60 cases revealed the median age of the patients to be 44 y. The median incubation period was 24 h. Most cases occurred after spinal anaesthesia (n = 27), myelography (n = 20) and diagnostic lumbar puncture (n = 5). Organisms were isolated in 52 cases, and streptococcal species were responsible for 33 (63%) of them. An upward trend in resistance of S. viridans isolates is cause for concern and may change empirical treatment strategies. death was reported in 3 cases (5%) and was associated with pseudomonas and staphylococcal isolates. The recognition of this entity and the importance of proper infection control measures are underlined.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/7. Inadvertent extra-arachnoid (subdural) injection of a local anaesthetic agent during epidural anaesthesia. A case report.Profound hypotension occurring in a patient 2 hours after initiation of combined general and epidural anaesthesia for a myocutaneous free-flap graft was found to be attributable to subdural/extra-arachnoid injection of 0.5% bupivacaine. The initial diagnosis was based on a negative aspiration test, a delayed widespread sensory and sympathetic block, and the absence of any other obvious cause for the hypotension. This was confirmed by myelography, which demonstrated an extension of the contrast medium predominantly posteriorly in the spinal canal with excessive spread along the nerve roots. posture and coughing did not affect the spread.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 5keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/7. Iatrogenic spinal subdural haematoma.Spinal subdural haematoma is a rare condition, usually seen in association with lumbar puncture or a bleeding disorder. It carries a high morbidity and mortality, and successful treatment requires prompt surgical intervention. We present a case of mixed spinal subarachnoid and subdural haemorrhage complicating failed spinal anaesthesia combined with anti-coagulation in an elderly woman, together with a review of the literature.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/7. Clinics in diagnostic imaging (12). Iatrogenic pneumothorax.A 28-year-old Chinese man was resuscitated following fractures to his left humerus and pelvis. Multiple attempts at internal jugular central venous catheterisation resulted in an undetected pneumothorax, which became clinically apparent during induction of general anaesthesia. The pneumothorax was treated promptly and the patient made a successful recovery post-surgery. The mechanisms, causes, clinical and radiological features of pneumothorax are discussed, with emphasis on anesthetically-related iatrogenic pneumothorax.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |