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J I Ordia

Publications and source records attributed to J I Ordia.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

Chronic intrathecal delivery of baclofen by a programmable pump for the treatment of severe spasticity.

The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness of intrathecal baclofen delivered by a programmable pump for the chronic treatment of severe spasticity. Sixty-six patients with severe spasticity of spinal cord origin that was refractory to oral baclofen or who experienced intolerable side effects with this form of the drug were screened. The first nine participated in a double-blinded, randomized, placebo (normal saline)-controlled trial to determine response to a bolus dose of intrathecal baclofen. Subsequent patients were enrolled in an open-label treatment protocol without a placebo trial. All passed the screening, and the pump was implanted in 59 patients. Spasticity scores and medical costs before and after surgery were analyzed. In all patients, the mean Ashworth score for rigidity decreased from 4.3 preoperatively to 1.4 (p < 0.0005) with use of intrathecal baclofen. The spasm frequency score decreased from a mean of 3.6 to 0.5 (p < 0.0005). Activities of daily living, sleep, and skin integrity improved, and pain was eradicated in some. Constipation occurred in six patients. A reduction in dosage was necessitated by muscular hypotonia in three ambulatory patients, areflexic bladder and urinary retention in three others, and nausea, dizziness, and drowsiness in one. Catheter-related problems occurred 19 times in 15 patients. One pump was explanted because of infection in the pump pocket, and one was removed after it eroded through the skin. There were no pump failures. The use of intrathecal baclofen resulted in a decrease in the average length of subsequent hospitalizations. It is concluded that intrathecal baclofen delivered by an implanted programmable pump is a safe, effective, and cost-efficient method for treatment of severe intractable spinal spasticity.

Adolescent

Intracranial hemorrhage after use of tissue plasminogen activator for coronary thrombolysis.

Tissue plasminogen activator (tPA), an approved coronary thrombolytic agent, can cause serious bleeding. We report the cases of six patients with intracranial hemorrhage after tPA treatment for acute myocardial infarction. None of the patients were hypertensive at admission, and only one was hypertensive during therapy. Intravenous tPA, 100 mg, was followed by continuous intravenous heparin infusion; intracranial hemorrhage occurred between 2 and 14 hours after tPA infusion ended and between 3 and 17 hours after heparin therapy was started. The partial thromboplastin time (PTT) was excessively prolonged (from 81 s to more than 150 s) in all patients at onset of intracranial hemorrhage. The intracerebral hematomas were predominantly of lobar location, and two patients had multiple simultaneous hemorrhages. Four patients died from massive intracranial hemorrhage; the mechanism for these hemorrhages was unclear. Factors possibly related to hemorrhage include a systemic fibrinolytic state or a platelet anti-aggregant effect produced by tPA and enhanced hemorrhagic tendency caused by the combined effects of tPA and heparin. Local vascular changes at the bleeding site remain as potential contributing factors for isolated intracranial hemorrhage.

Aged

Neurologic function seven years after crowbar impalement of the brain.

The management of impalement injuries to the brain presents formidable problems. A 39-year-old man was impaled by a crowbar which penetrated the brain. The prompt rescue and resuscitation, thorough surgical debridement, control of intracranial pressure and rehabilitation are described.

Adult

Effect of high-frequency ventilation versus conventional mechanical ventilation on ICP in head-injured dogs.

Changes in intrathoracic pressure may influence intracranial pressure (ICP), presumably by affecting venous return. High-frequency ventilation (HFV) has been associated with lower intrapleural and airway pressures and has the potential to lower ICP. To evaluate the effects of HFV compared to conventional ventilation on ICP, normocarbia was maintained in nine dogs while alternating between conventional ventilation and HFV at 200 breaths/min. The mean ICP was raised from 6.3 +/- 6.1 to 24.7 +/- 1.04 mm Hg by inflation of Fogarty balloons implanted in the epidural space. The ICP peaks associated with positive inflation pressures were eliminated with HFV, but mean ICP was not significantly different between the two ventilatory modes (23.4 +/- 9.7 mm Hg for the conventional system versus 26.0 +/- 10.0 mm Hg for HFV). Four dogs exhibited neurogenic pulmonary edema: they developed elevated pulmonary artery and intrathoracic pressures and required increased inspiratory flow with HFV to maintain normocarbia. The authors conclude that, in this head-injury model, there did not seem to be an advantage of HFV over conventional ventilation.

Animals

Pyogenic sacroiliitis. An absolute indication for computerized tomographic scanning.

Pyogenic sacroiliitis (PSI) resulted from direct injection of a foreign substance, pumice, in a 32-year-old woman and was complicated by iliopsoas abscess. The symptoms of PSI are unspecific, and similar complaints may accompany such conditions as herniated disc and arthritis. Results of physical examination may be misleading, especially if movements that stress the sacroiliac joint are omitted. Early roentgenograms are normal and rarely aid in the diagnosis. Scintiscanning with gallium and technetium may indicate an inflammatory pelvic focus. These methods lack specificity, however, and may underestimate the extent of disease. The computerized tomographic (CT) scan was effective in detecting interosseous gas with an associated soft tissue abscess. It also proved invaluable in precisely delineating the location and extent of the lesion in and around the sacroiliac joint, facilitating use of the most expeditious surgical approach. Through follow-up CT studies the course and end results of therapy can be objectively determined.

Abscess

Epidural opioids during laminectomy surgery for postoperative pain.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine whether morphine applied directly to the dura during laminectomy surgery provides superior postoperative analgesia during the first 24 hours. DESIGN: Randomized, double-blind study. SETTING: A university-affiliated hospital. PATIENTS: Twenty ASA physical status I and II patients ages 18 to 60 years. INTERVENTIONS: Simultaneous topical dural application and intramuscular (IM) injection of unknown solutions of saline and morphine 3 mg. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Postoperative analgesia was assessed using the visual analog scale (VAS), a modified McGill-Melzack pain questionnaire, subjective nursing evaluations, and the amount of supplemental analgesic medication used. Patients were observed for complications and side effects. Compared with the patients who received epidural saline and IM morphine, the patients who received epidural morphine and IM saline had less postoperative pain as determined by VAS scores, nursing evaluations, and amount of supplemental opioid analgesic doses (1.6 +/- 1.2 vs. 4.1 +/- 1.2 analgesic doses per patient; p less than 0.05) required in the first 24 hours. Minor side effects were similar for the two groups. No patient developed respiratory depression. CONCLUSIONS: Morphine 3 mg applied topically to the dura at the end of laminectomy surgery is a simple, safe, and effective way of providing improved postoperative analgesia.

Adolescent

Acoustic neuromas in children.

Although unilateral acoustic neuromas in children are rare, they do occur. There is no gender predilection and the clinical symptoms and signs are similar to those seen in adults. They tend to occur in the absence of neurofibromatosis and are usually benign. Our patient is the youngest yet reported with documented unilateral acoustic neuroma; moreover; she is the first child in whom this tumor has been proven to be malignant both by histopathology and subsequent clinical behavior.

Female