Femoral shaft fractures in children and adolescents

Seventy one patients below the age of 16, with 72 shaft femur fractures occurred between January 1995 and December 1998, were evaluated. The purpose of the study was to understand the descriptive aspects of the fractures and appraise the employed treatment. Age was the key criterion for treatment choice, with those under 3 years old (Group I) being treated with immediate spica cast; those between 3 and 10 years (Group II) were treated with traction followed by spica cast, and those over 11 years old (Group III) with conservative or surgical therapy. Mean age was 6.3±3.8 years with a prevalence of males and closed fractures. Traffic accident was the most common injury cause. The fracture was in the middle third in 60.6% of the cases, in the proximal third in 23.9%, and in the distal third in 15.5%. Ninety three percent were simple trace fractures, 4.2% comminutive and 2.8% segmental. Associated injuries were identified in 35.2% of the patients. All fractures in Groups I, II and 60.0% of those in group III were treated conservatively. Complications seen until bone union were: discrepancy, infection at the wire path, vicious union and limited knee motion. The average time for union was 8.6±3.4 weeks, varying with age. We conclude that the studied fractures' characteristics were similar to those described by current literature and that the employed treatment showed good outcomes.Foram avaliados 71 pacientes com idade abaixo de 16 anos, portadores de 72 fraturas diafisárias do fêmur, ocorridas de 01/1995 a 12/1998. Os objetivos do estudo foram conhecer aspectos descritivos dessas fraturas e avaliar o tratamento empregado. A idade foi o principal critério para escolha do tratamento, sendo aqueles abaixo de 3 anos (Grupo I) tratados com gesso imediato, os de 3 a 10 anos (Grupo II) com gesso após tração e os acima de 11 anos (Grupo III) de modo conservador ou cirúrgico. A média de idade foi 6,3±3,8 anos, havendo predomínio do gênero masculino e de fraturas fechadas. Acidente de trânsito foi o mecanismo de lesão mais comum. A fratura localizou-se no terço médio, em 60,6% dos casos, no proximal em 23,9% e no distal em 15,5%. Noventa e três porcento eram fraturas de traço simples, 4,2% cominutivas e 2,8% segmentares. Lesões associadas foram identificadas em 35,2% dos pacientes. Todas fraturas nos Grupos I e II e 60% daquelas no Grupo III foram tratadas conservadoramente. As complicações observadas até a união óssea foram: discrepância, infecção no trajeto do fio, consolidação viciosa e limitação de movimento do joelho. O tempo médio de consolidação foi 8,6±3,4 semanas, variando com a idade. Concluiu-se que as características das fraturas estudadas foram semelhantes às citadas na literatura e que o tratamento empregado apresentou bom resultado.UNIFESPUFMG Departamento do Aparelho LocomotorHospital Maria Amélia Lins Núcleo de Ensino e PesquisaHospital da BaleiaHospital Maria Amélia LinsUNIFESPSciEL

Estudo comparativo da radiografia panorâmica digital e tomografia cone beam de alta resolução no rastreamento de lesões dos maxilares em mieloma múltiplo

Justificativa: O Mieloma Múltiplo (MM) é uma neoplasia hematológica maligna caracterizada pela proliferação de células plasmáticas anormais na medula óssea. A radiografia panorâmica digital e a tomografia cone beam de alta resolução são técnicas imaginológicas comumente utilizadas na avaliação de lesões ósseas maxilares. Objetivos: Avaliar a relação entre o tamanho das lesões ósseas e a sensibilidade das duas técnicas de imagem na detecção de lesões em pacientes com mieloma múltiplo. Metodologia: Estudo observacional, transversal e analítico. A amostra foi composta por 28 participantes, e os resultados foram descritos através de estatística descritivas e inferenciais, e o intervalo de confiança considerado foi de 95%. Resultados: Há diversos aspectos relevantes utilizando técnicas avançadas de diagnóstico. Um dos resultados foi a eficácia comparativa entre as técnicas empregadas, que evidenciou a superior precisão da tomografia na detecção de lesões ósseas dos maxilares (p=0,01; Mann-Whitney). Também um avanço significativo na capacidade de diagnóstico em detalhes, precoce e preciso que são estratégias fundamentais para o sucesso do tratamento. Conclusão: As técnicas de imagem para a abordagem do Mieloma Múltiplo têm melhor acurácia, sensibilidade e dimensão considerando-se a tomografia. Mas apesar das diferenças significativas deve-se analisar cada caso e técnica de forma mais holística e peculiar. Este trabalho não demonstra grandes diferenças entre os dados demográficos como faixas etárias e gênero, e a tomografia comparada à radiografia demonstra que apesar de apresentar uma pequena diferença significativa deve-se observar outros parâmetros na prática clínica

Rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART): Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background: Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is associated with high in-hospital mortality. Alveolar recruitment followed by ventilation at optimal titrated PEEP may reduce ventilator-induced lung injury and improve oxygenation in patients with ARDS, but the effects on mortality and other clinical outcomes remain unknown. This article reports the rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART). Methods/Design: ART is a pragmatic, multicenter, randomized (concealed), controlled trial, which aims to determine if maximum stepwise alveolar recruitment associated with PEEP titration is able to increase 28-day survival in patients with ARDS compared to conventional treatment (ARDSNet strategy). We will enroll adult patients with ARDS of less than 72 h duration. The intervention group will receive an alveolar recruitment maneuver, with stepwise increases of PEEP achieving 45 cmH(2)O and peak pressure of 60 cmH2O, followed by ventilation with optimal PEEP titrated according to the static compliance of the respiratory system. In the control group, mechanical ventilation will follow a conventional protocol (ARDSNet). In both groups, we will use controlled volume mode with low tidal volumes (4 to 6 mL/kg of predicted body weight) and targeting plateau pressure <= 30 cmH2O. The primary outcome is 28-day survival, and the secondary outcomes are: length of ICU stay; length of hospital stay; pneumothorax requiring chest tube during first 7 days; barotrauma during first 7 days; mechanical ventilation-free days from days 1 to 28; ICU, in-hospital, and 6-month survival. ART is an event-guided trial planned to last until 520 events (deaths within 28 days) are observed. These events allow detection of a hazard ratio of 0.75, with 90% power and two-tailed type I error of 5%. All analysis will follow the intention-to-treat principle. Discussion: If the ART strategy with maximum recruitment and PEEP titration improves 28-day survival, this will represent a notable advance to the care of ARDS patients. Conversely, if the ART strategy is similar or inferior to the current evidence-based strategy (ARDSNet), this should also change current practice as many institutions routinely employ recruitment maneuvers and set PEEP levels according to some titration method.Hospital do Coracao (HCor) as part of the Program 'Hospitais de Excelencia a Servico do SUS (PROADI-SUS)'Brazilian Ministry of Healt

Polypropylene prosthesis for the treatment of fingertip injuries. Description of surgical technique and results

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE: Report the results of treatment of fingertip injuries and describe this reproducible and low cost surgical technique, which utilizes a polypropylene prosthesis that temporarily replaces the nail and is placed on the area of injury, providing protection and encouragement for healing by secondary intention. METHOD: This study evaluated 22 patients with traumatic injuries of the fingertips in the period from January 2012 to December 2015. All procedures were performed by the same surgeon. The mean postoperative follow-up was 13 months, with a minimum follow-up of six months. For all statistical inferences, a p-value of 0.05 was considered. The software used was SPSS version 21.0 for Windows. RESULTS: There were no cases of complications related to the polypropylene device. There was no significant difference between static two-point discrimination and age, between discrimination and time between injury and surgery, or between discrimination and time to follow-up. The authors used a table of scores that includes three factors proposed by Jefferson for a better evaluation of the results. 72.7% (16 cases) of patients had good results, 22.7% (five cases) fair results, and only 4.5% (one case) poor result. CONCLUSION: This study presented a new technique for finger tip lesions, simple and easily reproducible, with satisfactory results and low complication rates

Surgery of the aortic root: Should we go for the valve-sparing root reconstruction or the composite graft-valve replacement is still the first choice of treatment for these patients?

AbstractObjective:To compare the results of the root reconstruction with the aortic valve-sparing operation versus composite graftvalve replacement.Methods:From January 2002 to October 2013, 324 patients underwent aortic root reconstruction. They were 263 composite graft-valve replacement and 61 aortic valve-sparing operation (43 reimplantation and 18 remodeling). Twenty-six percent of the patients were NYHA functional class III and IV; 9.6% had Marfan syndrome, and 12% had bicuspid aortic valve. There was a predominance of aneurysms over dissections (81% vs. 19%), with 7% being acute dissections. The complete follow-up of 100% of the patients was performed with median follow-up time of 902 days for patients undergoing composite graft-valve replacement and 1492 for those undergoing aortic valve-sparing operation.Results:In-hospital mortality was 6.7% and 4.9%, respectively for composite graft-valve replacement and aortic valve-sparing operation (ns). During the late follow-up period, there was 0% moderate and 15.4% severe aortic regurgitation, and NYHA functional class I and II were 89.4% and 94%, respectively for composite graft-valve replacement and aortic valve-sparing operation (ns). Root reconstruction with aortic valve-sparing operation showed lower late mortality (P=0.001) and lower bleeding complications (P=0.006). There was no difference for thromboembolism, endocarditis, and need of reoperation.Conclusion:The aortic root reconstruction with preservation of the valve should be the operation being performed for presenting lower late mortality and survival free of bleeding events