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Biomedical subjects

L Brinquin

Publications and source records attributed to L Brinquin.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

[Peripheral polyneuropathy after heat stroke].

The authors report the case of a woman who developed a peripheral polyneuropathy after heat stroke. All the classical aetiologies of neuropathy were excluded. The final diagnostic was residual peripheral neuropathy provoked by heat stroke. The sequella of heat stroke are dominated by cerebellar compromise, but this case shows that peripheral polyneuropathies exist even if they are rare. They raise the issue of care because of severe neurological sequella.

Bipolar Disorder↗
PubMed2004

[Black oesophagus, a rare event in intensive care unit].

We report a new case of acute necrotizing oesophagitis, diagnosing on a patient hospitalised in intensive care unit. This pathology is still a rare event; the definition excludes patients with a history of recent caustic ingestion. Oesophageal necrosis can be diagnosed at endoscopy by the presence of black necroting appearing oesophagus. Contrary to the caustic oesophagitis whose treatment is often surgical, treatment of the acute necrotizing oesophagitis is primarily medical. The prognosis for patients who develop acute necrotizing oesophagitis is generally poor, even if one can hope for the cure without after-effect of it.

Abdominal Neoplasms↗
PubMed2002

[Diagnosis of ventilator-associated pneumonia: a prospective comparison of the telescoping plugged catheter with the endotracheal aspirate].

OBJECTIVE: Quantitative culture of endotracheal aspirates (EA) is widely accepted for the diagnosis of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). The aim of the study was to compare the diagnostic accuracy of the EA with the blinded plugged telescoping catheter (PTC) in patients suspected of VAP. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective non-randomised observational study. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 31 patients suspected of having VAP underwent 46 bronchial samplings. An EA and a blinded PTC were performed successively in each case; the PTC result was taken as the reference standard. The EA and PTC cultures were defined positive if the result of bacterial cultures yielding were > or = 10(5) cfu.mL-1 and > or = 10(3) cfu.mL-1 respectively. RESULTS: The diagnosis of VAP could be established in 19 cases when PTC was taking as gold test. The overall agreement between the two techniques was 76%. EA had a sensitivity of 89.5%, a specificity of 66.7%, a negative predictive value of 90% and a positive predictive value of 65.4%. CONCLUSION: EA is a good diagnostic test when a non-invasive test has been chosen. The diagnosis of VAP could be excluded in 90% of cases when the EA cultures yielding were < 10(5) cfu.mL-1. His low specificity could drive in an over treatment of bronchopulmonar bacterial colonization. The accuracy of the EA compares well with that of the TPC for the diagnostic of VAP.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

[Severe pneumococcal meningitis and ceftriaxone allergy].

We report the case of a 51-year-old man with an allergy to amoxicillin/acid clavulanique who presented with Streptococcus pneumoniae meningitis. Initial treatment consisted of an association of antibiotics including ceftriaxone. Six days after treatment was initiated the patient developed skin reaction and the diagnosis of allergy to ceftriaxone was established by the dosage of specific IgE. Typically Streptococcus pneumoniae meningitis is treated with vancomycin and a third-generation cephalosporin. This association had to be modified because cross allergy to cephalosporins could have developed in this patient who had previously reacted to penicillins.

Ceftriaxone↗
PubMed2002

[Paraplegia and the sitting position].

The sitting position in neurosurgery may lead to complications such as air embolism and neurological complications. We report the case of a 16-year-old male who suffered from post-operation paraplegia after surgery for Arnold Chiari disease. This patient had several risk factors and serious morphological spinal abnormalities. We propose to include monitoring of somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEP) during this surgery in order to detect this type of devastating incident.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

[Early rupture of a cryopreserved arterial allograft].

Cryopreserved arterial allografts are used in vascular surgery to treat infected arterial prosthesis. This treatment reduces mortality and morbidity compared to conventional surgery. We observed a case of early rupture of the allograft with the death of the patient due to a misdiagnosis. Recent findings show that cases of rupture have been described, and that current cryopreservation protocols may be the cause of degeneration. To avoid a sudden death for the patient, this complication must be known to diagnose quickly and treat surgically before a final haemorrhagic shock.

Arteries↗
PubMed2001

[BIS monitoring may allow the detection of severe cerebral ischemia].

PURPOSE: To show that the bispectral index (BIS) is not only a monitor of the depth of anesthesia but that acute decreases of the index may be related to severe cerebral ischemia. CLINICAL FEATURES: Several clinical observations suggest that an unexplained fall of the BIS may be the result of cerebral ischemia. Somatosensory evoked potentials decreased in parallel to the decrease in BIS during carotid clamping in a 58-yr-old patient undergoing carotid endarterectomy. In a 62-yr-old patient undergoing resection of an aortic aneurysm, the BIS decreased from 40-50% to 8% as the cardiac index and central venous O(2) saturation decreased. The BIS returned to normal values when the low cardiac output was corrected pharmacologically. CONCLUSION: While the BIS is a well accepted monitor of the depth of anesthesia, several factors, unrelated to anesthesia, can modify the index. Thus, to adjust the level of anesthesia based solely on the BIS could be inappropriate. While the sensitivity and specificity of the BIS for this indication have not been determined, we suggest that the BIS may be useful to detect severe cerebral ischemia.

Brain Ischemia↗
PubMed2001

[Febrile coma and multiple organ failure: suspected hemoglobinopathy SC].

We report the case of febrile fatal coma in a 51-year-old man from Burkina Faso. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) shows cerebral fat embolism. Haemoglobin electrophoresis shows probably haemoglobinopathy SC. A short review of the literature demonstrate the need to consider this complication in patients with neurological or respiratory disorders, in areas where this disease is highly prevalent, irrespective of age. It also emphasizes the diagnostic contribution of MRI and discusses the mechanism, the diagnosis as well as the difficulty of choosing the appropriate therapeutic course.

Anemia, Sickle Cell↗
PubMed2001

[Obesity, diabetes mellitus, and gas gangrene: a major therapeutic challenge].

Soft tissue infections are uncommon but prognosis is severe (20 to 50%). Management consists in surgical debridement, antibiotic therapy against anaerobic and aerobic bacteria, and appropriate intensive care. When available, hyperbaric oxygen therapy is an integral part of the treatment. We report the case of 56-year-old female patient with diabetes (150 kg) was hospitalized in our unit a few days after surgical treatment of a buttocks abscess for clinical signs of peripheral gas gangrene. Surgical exploration showed necrotizing soft tissue infection with fasciitis. Adequate therapy using antibiotics, surgery daily and hyperbaric oxygen was given. Therapy had to be adapted to the patient's obesity. Outcome was good with recovery and few sequelae, allowing transfer to a medical ward.

Abscess↗
PubMed2000

[Acute neurotoxic organophosphate poisoning: insecticides and chemical weapons].

OBJECTIVE: To review clinical and therapeutic bases of an organophosphate poisoning, either with insecticide or nerve agent. DATA SOURCES: References were obtained from computerized bibliographic research (Medline), from personal data (academic memoir, documents under approbation of the National Defense Office), from Internet's data. DATA SYNTHESIS: Generally, organophosphate poisoning occurs during accidental exposure with agricultural insecticide or suicide. The effects of organophosphate compounds are due to the inhibition of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase. The intoxication symptoms can be divided into muscarine-like, nicotine-like effects, effects on the central nervous system and symptoms related to the dysfunction of the neuromuscular junction. The interest of biological acetylcholinesterase's measuring is minimal because it is weakly specific or sensitive. The immediate severity is due to hypoxia. Respiratory failure results from the lack of central drive inflated with excessive bronchial secretions, bronchospasm and respiratory muscles paralysis. The secondary complications are early myopathies whose gravity is correlated with the decrease of acetylcholinesterases, or later neuropathies induced by a different mechanism. Beside the symptomatic measures, atropine is the specific anticholinergic treatment. When promptly used, oximes can regenerate cholinesterases. The attempted effects of the treatment are mouth dryness, pupilar dilatation and flushing of the skin. Nerve agents are lethal toxics which have a short onset time and produce severe neurological pathology. In a terrorist incident, it is as important to identify rapidly the toxic agent and provide emergency decontamination as to manage medical care. An effective response must be multidisciplinary, involving clinicians, toxicologists, Emergency Medical Service and public's health personnel.

Agrochemicals↗