PubMed HealthSearch

Biomedical subjects

T C Fabian

Publications and source records attributed to T C Fabian.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Enteral versus parenteral feeding. Effects on septic morbidity after blunt and penetrating abdominal trauma.

To investigate the importance of route of nutrient administration on septic complications after blunt and penetrating trauma, 98 patients with an abdominal trauma index of at least 15 were randomized to either enteral or parenteral feeding within 24 hours of injury. Septic morbidity was defined as pneumonia, intra-abdominal abscess, empyema, line sepsis, or fasciitis with wound dehiscence. Patients were fed formulas with almost identical amounts of fat, carbohydrate, and protein. Two patients died early in the study. The enteral group sustained significantly fewer pneumonias (11.8% versus total parenteral nutrition 31.%, p less than 0.02), intra-abdominal abscess (1.9% versus total parenteral nutrition 13.3%, p less than 0.04), and line sepsis (1.9% versus total parenteral nutrition 13.3%, p less than 0.04), and sustained significantly fewer infections per patient (p less than 0.03), as well as significantly fewer infections per infected patient (p less than 0.05). Although there were no differences in infection rates in patients with injury severity score less than 20 or abdominal trauma index less than or equal to 24, there were significantly fewer infections in patients with an injury severity score greater than 20 (p less than 0.002) and abdominal trauma index greater than 24 (p less than 0.005). Enteral feeding produced significantly fewer infections in the penetrating group (p less than 0.05) and barely missed the statistical significance in the blunt-injured patients (p = 0.08). In the subpopulation of patients requiring more than 20 units of blood, sustaining an abdominal trauma index greater than 40 or requiring reoperation within 72 hours, there were significantly fewer infections per patient (p = 0.03) and significantly fewer infections per infected patient (p less than 0.01). There is a significantly lower incidence of septic morbidity in patients fed enterally after blunt and penetrating trauma, with most of the significant changes occurring in the more severely injured patients. The authors recommend that the surgeon obtain enteral access at the time of initial celiotomy to assure an opportunity for enteral delivery of nutrients, particularly in the most severely injured patients.

Abdominal Injuries

Correlation of abdominal trauma index and injury severity score with abdominal septic complications in penetrating and blunt trauma.

The Abdominal Trauma Index (ATI) was designed to stratify patients with penetrating injuries, and has been used to classify patients with blunt trauma. The Injury Severity Score (ISS) was originally designed to stratify victims of blunt trauma, and it has also been used for victims of penetrating trauma. We attempted to validate the use of ISS and ATI for both penetrating and blunt trauma. A total of 592 penetrating and 334 blunt trauma patients who underwent laparotomy over a 5-year period were evaluated. The overall rate of abdominal sepsis was 7.5% for blunt trauma and 7.6% for penetrating trauma. Mortality (excluding deaths within 48 hours) was 7% for blunt trauma and 1% for penetrating trauma. In the penetrating injury population, an ATI value greater than 15 and an ATI value greater than 25 were significantly associated with abdominal septic complications (ASCs) (p less than 0.001, both comparisons). An ISS greater than or equal to 16 was also associated with ASCs (p less than 0.001). The ASC rate for gunshots was higher than that for stab wounds (11% vs. 2%; p less than 0.001). In the blunt group, an ATI value greater than 15 and an ATI value greater than 25 were associated with ASCs (p less than 0.01 and p less than 0.001, respectively). The association of ASCs and ISS was linear with increasing ISS in patients with blunt abdominal trauma.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Abdominal Injuries

Effect of isolated hepatic ischemia on organic anion clearance and oxidative metabolism.

Hepatic failure is frequently seen following severe hemorrhagic shock, sepsis, and trauma. Clearance of various drugs has been used to evaluate hepatocellular dysfunction, including indocyanine green (ICG), an organic anionic dye that is transported similarly to bilirubin, and antipyrine (AP), a marker of oxidative phosphorylation. Previous investigators have noted a decrease in ICG excretion following systemic hemorrhage. The effect of isolated hepatic ischemia on the clearances of ICG and AP was studied in 16 pigs after 90 minutes of vascular occlusion to the liver. Antipyrine clearance decreased almost 50% from baseline values at 24 and 72 hours after the ischemia procedure, indicating a significant depression in the cytochrome P-450 system. On the other hand, ICG clearance did not change significantly. In conclusion, ICG clearance is not depressed after isolated hepatic ischemia in pigs. Changes in organic anion clearance after systemic hemorrhage may be because of release of toxic products from ischemic peripheral tissue.

Animals

Aortoiliac reconstruction following penetrating injury.

In summary, there are several factors essential to successful treatment of major vascular abdominal injuries. Prompt resuscitation and abdominal exploration is paramount. Proximal control can quickly be obtained at the esophageal hiatus and adequate exposure of the retroperitoneum is mandatory. Most aortic injuries can be repaired primarily; however, if an arterial substitute is necessary, then PTFE is the substitute of choice. Reimplantation of the injured iliac artery to the contralateral iliac artery is an option for bifurcation injuries if that will not inordinately constrict the lumen. And finally, four-compartment fasciotomies will decompress the lower extremities and prevent ischemic muscle necrosis following reperfusion injury.

Adolescent

Duration of antibiotic therapy for penetrating abdominal trauma: a prospective trial.

BACKGROUND: The optimal duration of antibiotic use in penetrating abdominal trauma is incompletely defined. It is generally accepted that short-term antibiotics are appropriate for low-risk wounds. However, with colon injury and significant degree of injury, abdominal trauma index (ATI) more than 25, concern exists that short-term treatment is not adequate. METHODS: The study was a prospective double-blind trial of 24-hour treatment (cefoxitin or cefotetan) compared with 5-day treatment in 515 patients. Major abdominal infections (MAI) included abscess, necrotizing fasciitis, and diffuse peritonitis. RESULTS: MAI occurred in 8% of those patients with 1-day therapy and 10% with 5-day therapy. Subgroup analysis of high-risk groups (colon wounds and ATI of more than 25) showed the following MAI rates: colon, 1-day therapy, 14%; 5-day therapy, 15%; ATI of more than 25, 1-day therapy, 17%; 5-day therapy, 30%. CONCLUSIONS: Regardless of contamination and degree of injury, 24-hour antibiotic therapy is satisfactory for all penetrating abdominal trauma.

Abdominal Injuries

Laryngotracheal trauma.

Laryngotracheal trauma (LTT) is a rare but clinically important injury that may be missed without a high index of suspicion. Forty patients with LTT admitted to the University of Tennessee, Memphis from 1984 through 1989 were retrospectively reviewed. Twenty-six patients sustained penetrating (P)-LTT and 14 had blunt (B)-LTT. Three patients with P-LTT and one with B-LTT arrived in full arrest. Sixty-five per cent of blunt injuries, and 100 per cent of penetrating injuries had neck tenderness or overlying evidence of trauma. A combination of angiography, barium swallow, esophagoscopy, CT scan, bronchoscopy and/or laryngoscopy was used for evaluation, depending on the mechanism. Twenty-two of the 23 surviving P-LTT patients underwent surgery; 11 (50%) had concomitant esophageal injury. All patients with complications from P-LTT were in the group with esophageal injury. B-LTT was classified as either mild5, moderate3, or severe6; all 6 severely injured patients had preoperative airway compromise. All complications of B-LTT occurred in the severely injured group. The following conclusions were reached: LTT usually presents with symptoms and/or signs, but they may be minimal and nonspecific. Emergency tracheostomy should not be delayed if ventilation is compromised. Concomitant esophageal injuries are frequent in P-LTT and predispose the patient to postoperative complications. Airway compromise frequently correlates with severity of injury in B-LTT and these patients are also at high risk for complications.

Emergencies

Pancreatic pseudocyst: recommendations for operative and nonoperative management.

From 1983 to 1990, 76 patients with pancreatic pseudocyst (PP) were managed. Computed tomographic scan (CT) was the primary diagnostic tool (88%). Ethanol accounted for 71 per cent and biliary disease 6 per cent of the occurrence of PP. Thirty-eight patients required surgery and 37 were managed nonoperatively. Forty-four PP complications occurred in 29 patients (4 bleeding, 1 ruptured, 13 gastric outlet obstruction, 10 infected, 6 hyperbilirubinemia, 5 pancreatic ascites, 5 pulmonary insufficiency) at a range of 1 day to 5 weeks from diagnosis; all but one occurred during initial hospitalization. Indications for surgery included complications,12 nonresolution or persistence of symptoms,18 and expansion.9 Internal drainage was accomplished in 40 per cent, (half within 4 weeks of diagnosis), 40 per cent underwent distal resection, and 15 per cent external drainage. There were two deaths in the series. Chronic pancreatitis, gallstone etiology, and gastric outlet obstruction significantly correlated with surgical management of the PP. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) was helpful in planning the surgical procedure; 70 per cent of those undergoing ERCP had their operative plan altered. Percutaneous drainage failed in six of eight cases. The authors conclude that nonoperative management is safe and effective in 50 per cent of PP patients, if close radiographic follow-up is maintained until resolution.

Acute Disease

The effect of a trauma system on the outcome of patients with pancreatic trauma.

Patients suffering pancreatic trauma before and after the creation of a regional trauma center were analyzed. Between 1975 and 1982, before the trauma system was established, 80 patients (10 per year) with pancreatic injury were treated. From 1984 to 1987 (after trauma system implementation), 58 patients (19 per year) with pancreatic injury were treated. There were no significant differences in demographics, mechanisms of injury, types of pancreatic wound, or associated injuries. Sixteen (20%) patients with pancreatic injury during the study period died before the trauma center was established. Of these, 13 (81%) died of hemorrhage. In contrast, five (9%) patients with pancreatic injury who were treated after the trauma center was operational died. Only one death was due to hemorrhage. By relative risk, a patient was 2.67 times more likely to die and 17 times more likely to die of hemorrhage before the presence of the trauma center than after (P less than .03). In this study of a patient population suffering severe intra-abdominal injuries, Organ Injury Outcome Analysis demonstrates that development of a trauma system significantly improves outcome.

Adolescent

Inversion-ligation appendectomy for incidental appendectomy.

Inversion-ligation appendectomy involves the following steps: (1) skeletonizing the appendix from its mesentery; (2) inverting the appendix via a blunt probe into the cecal lumen; (3) ligating the remaining nubbin of tissue; and (4) inverting the nubbin with a purse-string stitch. This procedure allows the surgeon to perform incidental appendectomy while avoiding transection of the appendiceal lumen with its attendant risk of enteric bacterial contamination.

Appendectomy

Effect of neurotrauma on hepatic drug clearance.

Lorazepam, antipyrine, and indocyanine green were administered to 10 patients with severe head injuries as marker substrates of hepatic glucuronidation, oxidation, and hepatic blood flow, respectively. Pharmacokinetic parameter estimates were determined at baseline (20 to 80 hours after injury) and up to three additional times thereafter (study days 4, 7, and 14). Antipyrine clearance was increased significantly from baseline (0.50 +/- 0.31 ml/min/kg) on study days 4, 7, and 14 (p less than 0.0001). Increases in antipyrine clearance from baseline to the last study day were observed in all study patients ranging from 14% to 207%. A significant increase was also observed in lorazepam clearance on study day 14 relative to baseline (1.39 +/- 0.56 ml/min/kg) (p less than 0.005). Increases in lorazepam clearance occurred in seven of nine patients over time ranging from 9% to 130%. The unbound fraction of lorazepam did not change significantly over the study period. Likewise, no significant change was observed in the clearance of indocyanine green over time. Antipyrine clearance and alpha 1-acid glycoprotein (r = 0.41), and lorazepam clearance and C-reactive protein (r = -0.38) were significantly correlated (p less than 0.05). Similarly, antipyrine and lorazepam clearances were significantly correlated with injury severity based on the Acute Physiologic and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE II) score (r = -0.43 and r = -0.37, respectively). These findings suggest that hepatic oxidative and conjugative metabolism increase significantly over time in patients after acute head injury. An awareness of the potential for pharmacokinetic alterations in similarly metabolized drugs used for patients with severe head injuries is recommended.

Adult

Factors affecting morbidity following hepatic trauma. A prospective analysis of 482 injuries.

During a 5-year period, 482 patients with liver injuries were studied prospectively: 65% resulted from penetrating and 35% from blunt injuries. The injuries were graded by the hepatic injury scale (grades I to VI); transfusion requirements and perihepatic abscesses correlated with increasing scores. Minor surgical techniques were needed in 338 patients and 144 patients required major techniques. Omental packing was used in 60% of the major injuries and yielded 7% mortality and 8% abscess rates. Gauze packs were used for management of 10% of major injuries and yielded 29% mortality and 30% abscess rates. The patients were randomized to no drain, closed suction, or sump drainage and respective perihepatic abscess rates were 6.7%, 3.5%, and 13% (p less than 0.03; suction compared to closed suction). Multivariate analysis demonstrated increasing abdominal trauma indices and transfusion requirements as well as sump drainage to be associated independently with perihepatic infection.

Adolescent

Microcirculatory flow changes after initial resuscitation of hemorrhagic shock with 7.5% hypertonic saline/6% dextran 70.

In rabbits, laser Doppler flow probes were placed in the jejunum and on the renal cortex. Pulsed Doppler probes were implanted on the abdominal aorta and superior mesenteric and femoral arteries for measuring blood flow velocity. Cardiac output was measured by thermal dilution. Either 30% or 40% of the calculated blood volume was withdrawn through a carotid catheter. After 30 or 60 minutes, an initial bolus of either lactated Ringer's (LR, 16 ml/kg) or 7.5% hypertonic saline/6% dextran 70 (HSD; 4 ml/kg) IV was followed by unlimited IV LR (administered as rapidly as possible) to restore systemic arterial blood pressure to the prehemorrhage levels. With HSD, arterial pressure corrected more rapidly (p less than 0.05), and the initial hemodilution was greater (p less than 0.05), but there were no differences by two hours. With HSD, cardiac output (90%-100% vs. 130%-160% of control; p less than 0.05), plasma Na+ (139-140 mM vs. 146-148 mM; p less than 0.05) and plasma osmolarity (292-295 mOsm vs. 308-310 mOsm; p less than 0.05) were all significantly higher than the values with LR, but there was no effect on blood flow velocities through the infrarenal aorta, femoral artery, or superior mesenteric artery. Renal cortical perfusion (56% vs. 97% of control; p less than 0.05) and jejunal mucosal perfusion (83% vs. 162% of control; p less than 0.05) were significantly higher with HSD. HSD had no detectable effect on bacterial translocation at 24 hours. Thus: 1) HSD restores blood flow more rapidly to the gut mucosal and kidney microcirculations than initial resuscitation with LR; 2) the mechanism could be associated with a transient hemodilution and persistent increases in plasma Na and osmolarity, which reduce hemorrhage-induced cell swelling and blood viscosity changes; and 3) laser Doppler analysis could aid in the diagnosis of reperfusion injury after shock.

Animals

Analysis of septic morbidity following gunshot wounds to the colon: the missile is an adjuvant for abscess.

Over a 7-year period, 151 patients with gunshot wounds to the colon surviving beyond 24 hours were managed. The bullet was retained in the body in 66% and exited in 34%. Thirty-four (23%) developed major septic complications (diffuse peritonitis, 21%; intraperitoneal abscesses 24%; and extraperitoneal abdominal abscesses, 56%). The septic complication rate was 26% in the bullet-present group compared with 16% in the remainder (p less than 0.15). The increased septic rate in those with bullets present was the result of abscesses developing around the retained missile. That group with missile abscesses had a lesser degree of injury as measured by the abdominal trauma index compared with the other patients with septic complications (p less than 0.001). Fifteen (79%) of the 19 patients with missile and missile track abscesses had them develop in the psoas muscle. These abscesses occur by fecal contamination of the muscle following inoculation by the bullet, which passes through the large bowel. Computed tomography-guided and operative drainage tend to fail if the foreign body is not removed. Computed tomography-guided or operative drainage should be successful in draining missile track abscesses when the bullet has exited the patient.

Abdominal Muscles

A prospective evaluation of myocardial contusion: correlation of significant arrhythmias and cardiac output with CPK-MB measurements.

Over a nine-month period, patients with chest trauma were prospectively evaluated for myocardial contusion. Ninety-two patients with evidence of anterior chest trauma were entered into the study and had 1) an ECG on admission and daily for three days; 2) monitoring of the myocardial band fraction of creatine phosphokinase (CPK-MB) on admission and every eight hours for 24 hours; 3) continuous electrocardiographic Holter monitoring for three to five days; and 4) noninvasive pulsed-Doppler cardiac output measurements daily for three days. Twenty-three patients developed 25 significant arrhythmias (SARRs): 1 atrial fibrillation, 1 AV dissociation, 5 supraventricular tachycardias, and 18 paroxysmal ventricular tachycardias. Cardiac outputs were significantly higher in those patients without SARRs. The CPK-MB levels correlated with the SARRs but were neither sensitive nor specific. No patients required specific therapy and none developed adverse sequelae of the SARRs. We conclude that 1) CPK-MB monitoring should not be routinely used for screening and diagnosis; 2) continuous arrhythmia monitoring deserves further clinical investigation but not routine application; 3) stable patients at risk for myocardial contusion should be monitored for 24 hours; and 4) the Abbreviated Injury Score for "minor" myocardial contusion should be deleted for purposes of ISS tabulation.

Adolescent

Anatomy of the accident scene: a prospective study of injury and mortality.

This study of the accident scene focuses on the effects of vehicular deformity and restraint devices on occupant injury. In 500 patients evaluated in a Level I trauma center, seatbelts significantly reduced the likelihood of individuals' requiring the trauma center (P less than 0.0001). Seatbelts also significantly reduced the mortality rate of those who were transported to the trauma center (P less than 0.04). Dashboard intrusion correlated with pelvic (P less than 0.001) and femur (P less than 0.03) fractures, closed head injuries (P less than 0.001), and intraabdominal injuries (P less than 0.02). Steering wheel deformity correlated with pelvic fractures (P less than 0.001) and closed head injuries (P less than 0.005). Windshield violation correlated with closed head injuries (P less than 0.014) and spinal fractures (P less than 0.03). Irreparable vehicles correlated with pelvic (P less than 0.0001) and femur fractures (P less than 0.01), closed head injuries (P less than 0.0001) and intra-abdominal injuries (P less than 0.0001). The authors conclude that a careful examination of the accident scene for specific mechanisms of injury can lead to better prehospital care, more rapid and consistent diagnosis of injury, and improved patient outcome. Further prospective studies should accumulate data that will improve prehospital care, alert physicians to possible injury, increase community awareness of injury prevention, and improve vehicle construction.

Accidents, Traffic