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Biomedical subjects

C E Ekong

Publications and source records attributed to C E Ekong.

11 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1988

Spinal injuries due to front-end bale loaders.

Of 22 patients admitted to Plains Health Centre, Regina, from January 1979 to April 1986 with spinal injuries due to farming accidents, 7 had injuries related to tractor-mounted front-end bale loaders. In contrast, none of the 12 patients admitted with farm-related spinal injuries from 1974 through 1978 had injuries related to bale loaders. All seven injuries occurred when a front-end loader was used to move a large, round hay bale. In each case when the loader arms were raised past the horizontal plane the bale rolled back onto the unprotected tractor operator. There were five thoracic injuries, one cervical injury and one lumbar injury. All seven bony injuries healed. Four of the patients had permanent neurologic sequelae; two of the four had paraplegia. All seven patients suffered disability that impaired work performance; all five farmers suffered some loss of income. None of these injuries would have occurred if available safety equipment had been in place.

Accidents, Occupational↗
PubMed1985

Spinal cord injury in the work force.

Of 144 patients with spinal cord injury admitted to the Sunnybrook Medical Centre from 1974 to 1979, 25 (24 men) (17.4%) had sustained their injuries at work. The 25 patients ranged in age from 20 to 56 years, with more than half being in their third decade of life. Work-related spinal cord injury was more frequent in the thoracic region than spinal injuries from other causes. The injuries were generally severe, 24% of them being complete cord injuries (i.e., no sensory or motor function below the level of injury). The mean neurologic grade of these patients did not change substantially between the time of admission and discharge. The mortality was 8%. The pattern of spinal cord injury in this series was compared to that in the period 1948 to 1973, when 105 (29.3%) of 358 spinal cord injuries occurred at work, constituting the second most frequent cause of acute spinal cord injury, after traffic accidents. In the current series, only 17.4% sustained their injuries at work. This was the third most common cause of spinal injuries in this period after traffic accidents and sports-recreational injuries. Falls in industry were the most frequent mode of work injury from 1974 to 1979, compared with construction accidents in the earlier period. The number of work-related spinal cord injuries is still too high. Furthermore, the severe neurologic damage suffered and the lack of substantial improvement emphasize the importance of preventive efforts, especially in industry. The fact that work injuries now rank third as a relative cause of spinal injury may indicate an absolute decline in this type of injury, especially among construction workers.

Accidents, Occupational↗
PubMed1984

Spinal injuries due to hockey.

Although many types of sports and recreational activities have been identified as common causes of acute spinal cord injury, hockey has been a rare cause of acute cord injury in Canada or elsewhere. For example, from 1948 to 1973 there were no patients with cord injuries due to hockey in a series of 55 patients with acute cord injuries due to sports or other recreational activities admitted to two Toronto hospitals. In contrast, between 1974 and 1981, the Acute Spinal Cord Injury Unit, Sunnybrook Medical Centre treated six patients with cervical spinal injury due to hockey, five of whom were seen during a 13 month period from September, 1980 to October, 1981. Five of the six sustained a severe acute cervical spinal cord injury, and one a cervical root injury. The cord injury was complete in two cases, while three had complete motor loss but incomplete sensory loss below the level of the lesion. All were males aged 15 to 26 years. Of the players with cord injury, four struck the boards with the neck flexed, and one struck another player with the neck flexed. The one player without cord injury struck the boards with his neck extended. The commonest bony injury was a burst fracture of C5 or C6. One of the patients with a complete cord injury died three months later of a pulmonary embolus, and the other patients with cord injury showed some recovery of root function, but little or no cord recovery. The reasons for the increase in spinal injuries in hockey are unknown.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1980

Unusual head trauma by a rearview mirror.

An unusual case of penetrating head injury by rearview mirror is reported. The case demonstrates an important mechanical principle that when a relatively small impact is applied over a small area, it is converted to a large force with potential to cause substantial tissue damage. At 1-year followup the patient showed no complications, following craniotomy and removal of the foreign body.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed1979

Percutaneous transfemoral retrieval of the "runaway" ventriculoatrial shunt.

A 22-year-old man with a ventriculoatrial shunt was admitted to hospital for investigation of headache, nausea and vomiting. During a procedure done to convert the ventriculoatrial shunt to the ventriculoperitoneal type, the shunt tubing was inadvertently cut in the neck. The atrial end was found to have migrated into the right atrium. It was recovered by percutaneous cardiac catheterization through the femoral vein. The patient tolerated the procedure well. The authors believe that this method of retrieval is easier and carries less operative risk than previously reported methods.

Adult↗
PubMed1979

Formation of abdominal cyst secondary to ventriculoperitoneal shunting.

The formation of an abdominal cyst is an uncommon complication of ventriculoperitoneal shunts. Three cases are presented in this paper and 21 previously reported cases and reviewed. The authors believe that decreased absorptive power of the peritoneum as a result of adhesions from previous multiple abdominal procedures or infection (particularly by Staphylococcus epidermidis), or both, is of etiologic significance. The patients presented with abdominal swelling and tenderness due to a malfunctioning shunt. Early diagnosis is possible by roentgenography of the abdomen and radioisotope scanning of the shunt. Paracentesis with conversion of the shunt to a ventriculoatrial or ventriculocisternal type is the treatment of choice.

Abdomen↗
PubMed1978

Hydranencephaly in association with Roberts syndrome.

A clinicopathological study in a case of Roberts syndrome (tetraphocomelia, cleft lip and palate, and phallic hypertrophy) is reported. This patient had hydranencephaly and impeperforate anus, two additional congenital abnormalities so far not reported in this syndrome.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗
PubMed1978

Multiple meningiomas.

The authors report a patient with a right sphenoid wing meningioma 16 years after a left convexity meningioma was removed. She had no evidence of von Recklinghausen's disease. Both tumors were benign. The literature on multiple meningiomas is reviewed.

Female↗