Refractory Intracranial Hypertension due to Fentanyl Administration Following Closed Head Injury

BackgroundAlthough the effects of opioids on intracranial pressure have long been a subject of controversy, they are frequently administered to patients with severe head trauma. We present a patient with an uncommon paradoxical response to opioids.Case ReportA patient with refractory intracranial hypertension after closed head injury was managed with standard medical therapy with only transient decreases in the intracranial pressure. Only after discontinuation of opiates did the intracranial pressure become manageable without metabolic suppression and rescue osmotic therapy, implicating opiates as the etiology of refractory intracranial hypertension in this patient. ConclusionsClinicians should consider opioids as a contributing factor in malignant intracranial hypertension when findings on neuroimaging do not explain persistent and refractory intracranial hypertension

At the Intersection of Patient Experience Data, Outcomes Research, and Practice: Analysis of HCAHPS Scores in Neurology Patients

Objective: To assess variation in patient-reported experience in inpatient neurology patients. Patients and Methods: We retrospectively identified 1045 patients 18 years and older admitted to a neurology service and discharged from January 1, 2013, through September 30, 2016, who completed Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) surveys. Multivariable logistic regression evaluated the associations of patient factors with HCAHPS measures. Key driver analysis identified associations between HCAHPS measures and the Global score (combination of 0-10 hospital rating and likelihood to recommend). Multivariable logistic regression compared HCAHPS scores between neurology patients and those admitted to a neurosurgery (n=2190) or internal medicine (n=3401) service during the same period. Results: Among patients admitted to a neurology service, overall (summary) scores did not vary significantly by diagnosis after adjustment for age, education, and overall health, but patients with neurologic diagnoses other than stroke, epilepsy, and neurodegenerative disease were more likely to report lower Pain Management scores compared with patients with cancer. Key driver analysis showed Care Transition scores as drivers of the Global score. After adjustment, general internal medicine service patients were more likely to report low Summary scores and neurosurgery service patients were significantly less likely to report low Summary scores compared with neurology service patients. Conclusion: Efforts to improve how neurology patients experience their care should be aimed at targeting patients' perceptions of pain management, and improving care transitions is an important first-priority target for improvement. This analysis may help other institutions improve hospital rating, value-based payments, and patient-centered outcomes

Comparison of Ocular Ultrasonography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging for Detection of Increased Intracranial Pressure

Background/aimsTo evaluate and compare the performance of ocular ultrasonography (US) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for detecting increased intracranial pressure (ICP) in patients with idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH).MethodsTwenty-two patients with papilledema from IIH and 22 with pseudopapilledema were prospectively recruited based on funduscopic and clinical findings. Measurements of optic nerve sheath diameters (ONSDs) 3 mm behind the inner sclera were performed on B-scan US and axial T2-weighted MRI examinations. Pituitary-to-sella height ratio (pit/sella) was also calculated from sagittal T1-weighted MRI images. Lumbar puncture was performed in all patients with IIH and in five patients with pseudopapilledema.ResultsAverage US and MRI ONSD were 4.4 (SD ± 0.7) and 5.2 ± 1.4 mm for the pseudopapilledema group and 5.2 ± 0.6 and 7.2 ± 1.6 mm for the papilledema group (p < 0.001). Average MRI pit/sella ratio was 0.7 ± 0.3 for the pseudopapilledema group and 0.3 ± 0.2 for the papilledema group (p < 0.001). Based on receiver-operator curve analysis, the optimal thresholds for detecting papilledema are US ONSD > 4.8 mm, MRI ONSD > 6.0 mm, and MRI pit/sella < 0.5. Combining a dilated US ONSD or MRI ONSD with a below-threshold MRI pit/sella ratio yielded a sensitivity of 73% and specificity of 96% for detecting IIH. Adding the US ONSD to the MRI ONSD and pit/sella ratio only increased the sensitivity by 5% and did not change specificity.ConclusionUS and MRI provide measurements of ONSD that are well-correlated and sensitive markers for increased ICP. The combination of the ONSD and the pit/sella ratio can increase specificity for the diagnosis of IIH

Bilateral independent periodic discharges are associated with electrographic seizures and poor outcome: A case-control study

OBJECTIVE: To determine the clinical correlates bilateral independent periodic discharges (BIPDs) and their association with electrographic seizures and outcome. METHODS: Retrospective case-control study of patients with BIPDs compared to patients without periodic discharges ( No PDs ) and patients with lateralized periodic discharges ( LPDs ), matched for age, etiology and level of alertness. RESULTS: We included 85 cases and 85 controls in each group. The most frequent etiologies of BIPDs were stroke, CNS infections, and anoxic brain injury. Acute bilateral cerebral injury was more common in the BIPDs group than in the No PDs and LPDs groups (70% vs. 37% vs. 35%). Electrographic seizures were more common with BIPDs than in the absence of PDs (45% vs. 8%), but not than with LPDs (52%). Mortality was higher in the BIPDs group (36%) than in the No PDs group (18%), with fewer patients with BIPDs achieving good outcome (moderate disability or better; 18% vs. 36%), but not than in the LPDs group (24% mortality, 26% good outcome). In multivariate analyses, BIPDs remained associated with mortality (OR: 3.0 [1.4-6.4]) and poor outcome (OR: 2.9 [1.4-6.2]). CONCLUSION: BIPDs are caused by bilateral acute brain injury and are associated with a high risk of electrographic seizures and of poor outcome. SIGNIFICANCE: BIPDs are uncommon but their identification in critically ill patients has potential important implications, both in terms of clinical management and prognostication