Sepsis during pregnancy: case report

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Sepsis during pregnancy is a rare complication. This potentially fatal disease often occurs due to maternal infectious and can lead to fetal loss. Therefore, any attempted treatment must be aimed at the mother s well being. As a matter of fact, there are few recent medical publications about sepsis in pregnancy. In spite of this, the treatment based on Surviving Sepsis Campaign seems suitable and practical. The aim of this article is making a case report highlighting a very well succeeded treatment of a pregnant woman with urinary sepsis. CASE REPORT: A 22 year old in her 27th week of pregnancy is hospitalized with pyelonefhritis. One day later, she begins presenting signs of sepsis and unresponsive hypoxemia, resulting in intubation. Afterwards, she evolved with persistent low blood pressure that was unresponsive to volume expansion and had to be put on vasopressor medication. She received intensive care support based on Surviving Sepsis Campaign. The patient evolved with an important improvement of her ventilatory stats and was extubated. After completing antibiotic treatment, she was discharged and delivered a healthy baby after 42 weeks pregnancy. CONCLUSIONS: Sepsis in pregnancy is a rare and potentially fatal complication. The main treatment is based on Surviving Sepsis Campaign. The patient had an outstanding improvement and overcame her condition after intensive care support.JUSTIFICATIVA E OBJETIVOS: A sepse durante a gestação é uma complicação rara. O comprometimento fetal resulta principalmente da descompensação materna, por conseguinte, o tratamento deve ser direcionado ao bem-estar da mãe. Poucas evidências permitem extrapolar o tratamento de pacientes não gestantes para as gestantes, porém, o tratamento baseado no Surviving Sepsis Campaing parece adequado e prático. O objetivo deste estudo foi rever o tratamento da sepse na gestação e relatar um caso de gestante com sepse grave que evoluiu favoravelmente. RELATO DO CASO: Paciente com 22 anos, primigesta, na 27ª semana de gestação foi internada com diagnóstico de pielonefrite aguda. Um dia após a internação apresentou quadro de sepse, com hipoxemia refratária às medidas não-invasivas necessitando de intubação traqueal. Após a intubação evoluiu com hipotensão refratária à expansão volêmica necessitando de fármaco vasoativo. Foi interrompido o uso de noradrenalina no mesmo dia e prescrito cefepima. Evoluiu com importante melhora dos padrões ventilatórios, sendo extubada e recebeu alta hospitalar logo após completar o tratamento com antibiótico. Ao completar a 42ª semana de gestação foi internada para indução do trabalho de parto, sendo realizado parto vaginal, sem intercorrências. CONCLUSÕES: A sepse na gestação, mesmo sendo rara é potencialmente fatal. O tratamento foi baseado no Surviving Sepsis Campaign e a paciente apresentou melhora significativa dos parâmetros de perfusão nas primeiras horas com ótima evolução, apesar da gravidade da doença.UNIFESP Clínica Médica da EPMUNIFESP Pronto Socorro da EPM Unidade de Terapia IntensivaUNIFESP, Clínica Médica da EPMUNIFESP, Pronto Socorro da EPM Unidade de Terapia IntensivaSciEL

The importance of HDL-C and CRP in cardiovascular risk evaluation in longevous elderly individuals

The association between total mortality, lipoproteinS, and inflammatory markers, and their implications with aging and longevity are often controversial. Among the most often studied markers are low HDL cholesterol and high C-reactive protein. Particularly in octogenarians, it is expected that the impact of the inclusion of HDL cholesterol and C-reactive protein will improve the stratification of absolute cardiovascular risk. In the present study, we performed a literature review in PubMed about the relation between HDL cholesterol, inflammation and longevity. Applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria adopted, we selected 30 studies, among which one systematic review on the relation between HDL cholesterol and stroke, one metaanalysis on the relation between total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol with mortality, 22 longitudinal studies, and six cross-sectional studies. The results show an inverse association between HDL cholesterol and total mortality, and between cardiovascular mortality and C-reactive protein, as well as a positive association between C-reactive protein and mortality in longevous individuals. C-reactive protein and HDL cholesterol displayed promising characteristics as predictors of cardiovascular mortality in longevous elderly persons

Scientific evidence for octogenarians and nonagenarians

OBJECTIVE: Evaluate the characteristics of scientific medical studies including patients over 80 years old, from january 2000 to october 2009. METHODS: We searched the eletronic database MEDLINE, and two regional databases (Scielo and Lilacs). We used search terms "octogenarians" or "nonagenarians" at the title, and filter to identify articles in english language, with abstracts and articles with patients over 80 years old. Data were extracted from articles and studies were classified according to level of evidence based on Oxford Center for Evidence-Based Medicine classification. RESULTS: Three hundred ninety-five studies were found at MEDLINE database, the number of studies increased fourfold from 2000 to 2008, 18 studies in 2000 and 63 studies in 2008. The majority of studies were classified as clinical research (291 studies, 73,7%), observational (339 studies, 85,8%) and retrospective (260 studies, 65,8%). Only 6 studies (1,5%) evaluate interventions. Cardiac surgery departments published more among the articles found (106 studies, 26,8%), followed by cardiology (62 studies, 15,7%). American studies wer the most common (128 studies, 32,4%). Only 6,7% were produced by Geriatric departments. CONCLUSION: The number of scientific evidence with very old patients increased in the last years. Clinical research, obsertational studies and retrospectives were the main characteristics found. The best level of evidence found was 1B. Cardiac surgery and cardiology produced more studies. In regional database we found more national studies.</p