Necrotic lesions of the hands

An 82-year-old man with a history of end-stage renal disease due to glomerulonephritis requiring haemodialysis, hepatitis C-related liver cirrhosis and hypertensive cardiomyopathy presented with painful and necrotic lesions of both his hands. He had no other symptoms. [...

Deep Vein Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism: Two Complications of COVID-19 Pneumonia?

Coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) is a worldwide infection which was recently declared a global health emergency by the WHO Emergency Committee. The most common symptoms are fever and cough, which can progress to pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and/or end-organ failure. Risk factors associated with ARDS and death are older age, comorbidities (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidaemia), neutrophilia, and organ and coagulation dysfunction. Disseminated intravascular coagulation and coagulopathy can contribute to death. Anticoagulant treatment is associated with decreased mortality in severe COVID-19 pneumonia. In this report we describe two patients with COVID-19 pneumonia who developed venous thromboembolism

Abdominal Pain: A Real Challenge in Novel COVID-19 Infection

COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 19) is an infectious disease caused by coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Since its detection in China at the end of 2019, the novel coronavirus has rapidly spread throughout the world and has caused an international public health emergency. The most common manifestation is flu-like symptoms. Mild infections usually improve within a few days, but COVID-19 can cause severe pneumonia with acute respiratory distress syndrome and death. Gastrointestinal symptoms are less common but possible and more difficult to recognize as part of a COVID-19 syndrome. In line with the current opinion of the WHO, we strongly believe that preventive measures and early diagnosis of COVID-19 are crucial to interrupt virus spread and avoid local outbreaks. We report the cases of COVID-19 patients admitted to our Emergency Department who complained of gastrointestinal symptoms at admission

COVID-19 and cutaneous manifestations: Two cases and a review of the literature

COVID-19 can affect multiple organs, including skin. A wide range of skin manifestations have been reported in literature. Six main phenotypes have been identified: i) urticarial rash, ii) confluent erythematous/maculopapular/morbilliform rash, iii) papulovesicular exanthem, iv) a chilblain-like acral pattern, v) a livedo reticularis/racemosa-like pattern, and vi) a purpuric vasculitic pattern. The pathogenetic mechanism is still not completely clear, but a role of hyperactive immune response, complement activation and microvascular injury have been postulated. The only correlation between the cutaneous phenotype and the severity of COVID-19 has been observed in the case of chilblain-like acral lesions, that is generally associated with the benign/subclinical course of COVID-19. Herein, we report two cases of SARS-CoV- 2 infection in patients who developed cutaneous manifestations that completely solved with systemic steroids and antihistamines. The first case is a female patient not vaccinated for SARS-CoV-2 with COVID-19 associated pneumonia, while the second case is a vaccinated female patient with only skin manifestations

Four good reasons to choose ketamine in the emergency department. A case series and literature review

Ketamine is a fast-acting N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist that can be used in a range of clinical scenarios in the pre-hospital setting and emergency department (ED). When compared with other anesthetic agents, ketamine has many unique properties, such as the ability to produce dose-dependent analgesic and anesthetic effects with a wide margin of safety. Ketamine may be used in the ED for sedation, pain management, and acute agitation treatment in the cases of benzodiazepine (BDZ)-resistant alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) and substance use disorder. To highlight the efficacy and safety of ketamine, we reviewed the literature, starting with a description of four different cases of patients who presented to our ED and were treated with ketamine

From cardiac output to blood flow auto-regulation in shock

Shock is defined as a state in which the circulation is unable to deliver sufficient oxygen to meet the demands ofthe tissues, resulting in cellular dysoxia and organ failure. In this process, the factors that govern the circulation ata haemodynamic level and oxygen delivery at a microcirculatory level play a major role. This manuscript aims toreview the blood flow regulation from macro- and micro-haemodynamic point of view and to discuss new potentialtherapeutic approaches for cardiovascular instability in patients in cardiovascular shock. Despite the recent advancesin haemodynamics, the mechanisms that control the vascular resistance and the venous return are not fully understoodin critically ill patients. The physical properties of the vascular wall, as well as the role of the mean systemicfilling pressure are topics that require further research. However, the haemodynamics do not totally explain thephysiopathology of cellular dysoxia, and several factors such as inflammatory changes at the microcirculatory levelcan modify vascular resistance and tissue perfusion. Cellular vasoactive mediators and endothelial and glucocalixdamage are also involved in microcirculatory impairment. All the levels of the circulatory system must be taken intoaccount. Evaluation of microcirculation may help one to detect under-diagnosed shock, and together with classichaemodynamics, guide one towards the appropriate therapy. Restoration of classic haemodynamic parameters isessential but not sufficient to detect and treat patients in cardiovascular shock.Shock is defined as a state in which the circulation is unable to deliver sufficient oxygen to meet the demands ofthe tissues, resulting in cellular dysoxia and organ failure. In this process, the factors that govern the circulation ata haemodynamic level and oxygen delivery at a microcirculatory level play a major role. This manuscript aims toreview the blood flow regulation from macro- and micro-haemodynamic point of view and to discuss new potentialtherapeutic approaches for cardiovascular instability in patients in cardiovascular shock. Despite the recent advancesin haemodynamics, the mechanisms that control the vascular resistance and the venous return are not fully understoodin critically ill patients. The physical properties of the vascular wall, as well as the role of the mean systemicfilling pressure are topics that require further research. However, the haemodynamics do not totally explain thephysiopathology of cellular dysoxia, and several factors such as inflammatory changes at the microcirculatory levelcan modify vascular resistance and tissue perfusion. Cellular vasoactive mediators and endothelial and glucocalixdamage are also involved in microcirculatory impairment. All the levels of the circulatory system must be taken intoaccount. Evaluation of microcirculation may help one to detect under-diagnosed shock, and together with classichaemodynamics, guide one towards the appropriate therapy. Restoration of classic haemodynamic parameters isessential but not sufficient to detect and treat patients in cardiovascular shock

From the Triage to the Intermediate Area: A Simple and Fast Model for COVID-19 in the Emergency Department

Introduction: The early identification of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection is still a real challenge for emergency departments (ED). First, we aimed to develop a score, based on the use of the lung ultrasonography (LUS), in addition to the pre-triage interview, to correctly address patients; second, we aimed to prove the usefulness of a three-path organization (COVID-19, not-COVID-19 and intermediate) compared to a two-path organization (COVID-19, non-COVID-19). Methods: We retrospectively analysed 292 patients admitted to our ED from 10 April to 15 April 2020, with a definite diagnosis of positivity (93 COVID-19 patients) or negativity (179 not-COVID-19 patients) for SARS-COV-2 infection. Using a logistic regression, we found a set of predictors for infection selected from the pre-triage interview items and the LUS findings, which contribute with a different weight to the final score. Then, we compared the organization of two different pathways. Results: The most informative factors for classifying the patient are known nasopharyngeal swab positivity, close contact with a COVID-19 patient, fever associated with respiratory symptoms, respiratory failure, anosmia or dysgeusia, and the ultrasound criteria of diffuse alveolar interstitial syndrome, absence of B-lines and presence of pleural effusion. Their sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and AUC-ROC are, respectively, 0.83, 0.81, 0.82 and 0.81. The most significant difference between the two pathways is the percentage of not-COVID-19 patients assigned to the COVID-19 area, that is, 10.6% (19/179) in the three-path organization, and 18.9% (34/179) in the two-path organization (p = 0.037). Conclusions: Our study suggests the possibility to use a score based on the pre-triage interview and the LUS findings to correctly manage the patients admitted to the ED, and the importance of an intermediate area to limit the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the ED and, as a consequence, in the hospital

Bulgarien : politik der nostalgie

Published on Oct 5, 201

Application of The Sepsis-3 Consensus Criteria in a Geriatric Acute Care Unit: A Prospective Study

The prognostic value of quick Sepsis-related Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) score in geriatric patients is uncertain. We aimed to compare qSOFA vs. Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS) criteria for mortality prediction in older multimorbid subjects, admitted for suspected sepsis in a geriatric ward. We prospectively enrolled 272 patients (aged 83.7 ± 7.4). At admission, qSOFA and SIRS scores were calculated. Mortality was assessed during hospital stay and three months after discharge. The predictive capacity of qSOFA and SIRS was assessed by calculating the Area Under the Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve (AUROC), through pairwise AUROC comparison, and multivariable logistic regression analysis. Both qSOFA and SIRS exhibited a poor prognostic performance (AUROCs 0.676, 95% CI 0.609–0.738, and 0.626, 95% CI 0.558–0.691 for in-hospital mortality; 0.684, 95% CI 0.614–0.748, and 0.596, 95% CI 0.558–0.691 for pooled three-month mortality, respectively). The predictive capacity of qSOFA showed no difference to that of SIRS for in-hospital mortality (difference between AUROCs 0.05, 95% CI −0.05 to 0.14, p = 0.31), but was superior for pooled three-month mortality (difference between AUROCs 0.09, 95% CI 0.01–0.17, p = 0.029). Multivariable logistic regression analysis, accounting for possible confounders, including frailty, showed that both scores were not associated with in-hospital mortality, although qSOFA, unlike SIRS, was associated with pooled three-month mortality. In conclusion, neither qSOFA nor SIRS at admission were strong predictors of mortality in a geriatric acute-care setting. Traditional geriatric measures of frailty may be more useful for predicting adverse outcomes in this setting