Biomedical subjects

M H Craig

Publications and source records attributed to M H Craig.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1995

Pancreatic injuries from blunt trauma.

Pancreatic injuries from blunt trauma are infrequent, and their diagnosis and management can be extremely difficult. Over the past 10 years we treated 13 patients with major pancreatic injuries from blunt trauma. Twelve had been involved in motor vehicle collisions, none of whom were wearing seat belts. One patient was injured in an assault. Only five patients had physical findings suggesting intra-abdominal injury. Serum amylase levels were elevated in seven of the nine patients (78%) in whom this test was obtained. Computed tomography scans demonstrated pancreatic injury in three of the four patients in whom it was performed. The five patients in whom peritoneal lavage was performed had free intraperitoneal blood from injuries to other abdominal viscera. One injury was diagnosed by ultrasound. Injuries were equally distributed throughout the pancreas, with two injuries in the head, three in the body, five in the tail, and three with injuries in both the head and the body. Five patients had ductal injuries. All patients underwent celiotomy. Eight patients required no operative management of their pancreatic injuries other than drainage. Injury Severity Score averaged 28.5 +/- 2.6 (mean +/- standard error), and mean hospital stay was 31 +/- 9.8 days. One patient with delayed diagnosis of a pancreatic injury developed a pseudocyst, but all other complications and prolonged hospitalizations were due to injuries to the head, chest, other abdominal organs, or extremities. All patients survived. The diagnosis of blunt pancreatic injury requires a high index of suspicion, and diagnostic studies may demonstrate only subtle signs of injury. Most injuries can be managed by localized resection and/or drainage.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Abdominal Injuries↗

PubMed1995

Postsurgical gout.

Although catabolic events are known to precipitate gout, postsurgical gout has rarely been reported. We identified the charts of 302 patients treated over a 10-year period in a university center who carried the diagnosis of gout and who also had a surgical procedure. Fifty-two patients (42 male, 10 female) were found to have had a postsurgical episode of gouty arthritis. Ages ranged from 20 to 82 years (mean 60.1 +/- 2.1). Forty-five patients had a history of gout, 22 of whom were receiving medication and 23 who were not receiving chronic therapy. In seven patients the postsurgical event was their first attack. Attacks occurred 1-17 days (mean 4.2 +/- 0.5 [SE]) after surgical admission. Most attacks were in the lower extremity, but classic podagra was uncommon. Essentially all patients were febrile (100.7 +/- 0.2 degrees F) compared with admission (99.0 +/- 0.1 degree) (P < 0.001). There was a trend toward leukocytosis in the group as a whole, but the relationship of leukocytosis to the gout attack was most clearly seen in patients admitted for noninflammatory conditions (9.4 +/- 0.7 versus 12.8 +/- 0.8 x 1000 WBC/mm3, P < 0.001). Uric acid levels were elevated but did not follow the course of the attack. Most patients underwent a variety of tests and consultative evaluations because of their undiagnosed febrile episode. Once the diagnosis was established, all patients responded quickly to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or colchicine. Despite evidence of a significant inflammatory response, no patient proved to have a suppurative focus as the source of their febrile episode.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Acute Disease↗

PubMed1995

Major gastroenteric injuries from blunt trauma.

Hollow visceral injuries are far less common in blunt abdominal trauma than in penetrating abdominal trauma. From 1982 through 1993 we treated 50 patients with 57 major blunt injuries to the gut, defined as perforation, transection, or devascularization. Thirty-two patients (64%) were injured in motor vehicle collisions. Of these, 29 wore no restraints; three were wearing lap belts (none wore lap-shoulder restraints). Mean injury Severity Score (ISS) in patients wearing lap belts was 13.3, compared with 28.6 in the 29 patients who were not using restraint devices (P < 0.01). Small bowel perforations were the most frequent injuries, followed by devascularization of the small bowel, colorectal injuries, duodenal, and gastric perforations. ISS and mortality rates were lowest in small bowel injuries and higher in the less common colonic and gastroduodenal injuries. Except for those patients with perforations of the small bowel, most patients had associated injuries to the head, chest, or abdominal solid organs that were largely responsible for morbidity and mortality. Injuries to the abdominal hollow viscera are unusual following blunt trauma, but are the result of very high energy truncal trauma, and are associated with multiple additional injuries. Most alert patients had physical findings suggestive of peritoneal irritation, but when diagnostic testing was necessary, peritoneal lavage was superior to computed tomography scanning (false negatives = 6.7% versus 36%, respectively; P < 0.05). A high index of suspicion is necessary to avoid diagnostic delays that can lead to severe complications and death.

Accidents, Traffic↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Comparative evaluation of four techniques for the diagnosis of Plasmodium falciparum infections.

Four diagnostic techniques for Plasmodium falciparum infection were evaluated against serial parasite dilutions and on identical field samples. These were (i) Giemsa-stained thick blood films (GTF), (ii) acridine orange-stained thick (AOTF) and thin (AOTnF) blood films, (iii) the quantitative buffy coat technique (QBC); and (iv) the ParaSight-F dipstick test (PS). PS had a consistently higher sensitivity and speed, was easiest to learn, and required no laboratory facility. The 100% sensitivity cut-off points against known parasite densities (per mm3) were: PS, 30; GTF, 84; QBC, 84; AOTnF, 84; AOTF, 149. In the field study, test sensitivities compared with examination of 800 microscope fields of a Giemsa-stained thin blood film were PS, 96.6%; AOTF, 93.1%; GTF, 91.4%; QBC, 89.7%; AOTnF, 82.8%. In the dilution study, one false positive result was recorded with QBC; in the field study there was one false positive each with PS, AOTnF and AOTF. When a newly trained microscopist examined samples of the parasite dilutions, the 100% sensitivity cut-off points were AOTF, 84; GTF, 140; QBC, 390. Total handling time was shortest with PS regardless of whether samples were processed individually or in batches of 10 or 100. The ParaSight-F test is recommended as the diagnostic tool for the future.

Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay↗