Incidental finding of dextrocardia with situs inversus totalis in a day old neonate: Case report and review of the literature

Dextrocardia with situs inversus are rare congenital anomalies which can be asymptomatic and compatible with normal life. They are characterized by mirror images of all intra-thoracic and intra-abdominal viscera. Our aim isto report an incidental finding of dextrocardia with situs inversus in a neonate with neonatal sepsis. A day-old male term neonate presented with features of infection. Physical examination revealed cardiac apex on the 4th right   intercostal space, along the mid-clavicular line. Chest radiograph and  abdominal ultrasound confirmed the diagnosis of dextrocardia with situs inversus. Bilateral cervical ribs were also seen on chest radiograph. He was managed with antibiotics  and  discharged . Newborn babies should have a thorough physical examination after delivery before discharge to enable early diagnosis of congenital anomalies for appropriate referral.Key words: Dextrocardia, neonate, neonatal sepsis

An incidental finding of a unicornuate uterus with non-communicating rudimentary horn in a 30-year-old female with recurrent abortion

Unicornuate uterus is a form of uterine anomalies which arise from failure of development and fusion of the Mullerian ducts, and accounts for about 2.4-13% of all Mullerian anomalies. This is a 30-year-old housewife referred for hysterosalpingography (HSG) on account of secondary infertility. The patient also had history of recurrent abortion in the first trimester. The HSG showed an ellipsoidal or Banana shaped uterus in the left lateral pelvic cavity with prominent left fallopian tube that showed peri-fimbrial spillage of contrast medium with non-demonstration of a communicating rudimentary horn. She also had a pelvic ultrasound that showed an empty uterus with a right hypoechoic solid area most likely the right rudimentary horn. We report the radiologic features of Unicornuate uterus due to its rare nature and peculiar presentation

Lack of effective communication between communities and hospitals in Uganda: a qualitative exploration of missing links

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Community members are stakeholders in hospitals and have a right to participate in the improvement of quality of services rendered to them. Their views are important because they reflect the perspectives of the general public. This study explored how communities that live around hospitals pass on their views to and receive feedback from the hospitals' management and administration.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The study was conducted in eight hospitals and the communities around them. Four of the hospitals were from three districts from eastern Uganda and another four from two districts from western Uganda. Eight key informant interviews (KIIs) were conducted with medical superintendents of the hospitals. A member from each of three hospital management boards was also interviewed. Eight focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted with health workers from the hospitals. Another eight FGDs (four with men and four with women) were conducted with communities within a five km radius around the hospitals. Four of the FGDs (two with men and two with women) were done in western Uganda and the other four in eastern Uganda. The focus of the KIIs and FGDs was exploring how hospitals communicated with the communities around them. Analysis was by manifest content analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Whereas health unit management committees were supposed to have community representatives, the representatives never received views from the community nor gave them any feed back from the hospitals. Messages through the mass media like radio were seen to be non specific for action. Views sent through suggestion boxes were seen as individual needs rather than community concerns. Some community members perceived they would be harassed if they complained and had reached a state of resignation preferring instead to endure the problems quietly.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>There is still lack of effective communication between the communities and the hospitals that serve them in Uganda. This deprives the communities of the right to participate in the improvement of the services they receive, to assume their position as stakeholders. Various avenues could be instituted including using associations in communities, rapid appraisal methods and community meetings.</p

Global patient outcomes after elective surgery: prospective cohort study in 27 low-, middle- and high-income countries.

BACKGROUND: As global initiatives increase patient access to surgical treatments, there remains a need to understand the adverse effects of surgery and define appropriate levels of perioperative care. METHODS: We designed a prospective international 7-day cohort study of outcomes following elective adult inpatient surgery in 27 countries. The primary outcome was in-hospital complications. Secondary outcomes were death following a complication (failure to rescue) and death in hospital. Process measures were admission to critical care immediately after surgery or to treat a complication and duration of hospital stay. A single definition of critical care was used for all countries. RESULTS: A total of 474 hospitals in 19 high-, 7 middle- and 1 low-income country were included in the primary analysis. Data included 44 814 patients with a median hospital stay of 4 (range 2-7) days. A total of 7508 patients (16.8%) developed one or more postoperative complication and 207 died (0.5%). The overall mortality among patients who developed complications was 2.8%. Mortality following complications ranged from 2.4% for pulmonary embolism to 43.9% for cardiac arrest. A total of 4360 (9.7%) patients were admitted to a critical care unit as routine immediately after surgery, of whom 2198 (50.4%) developed a complication, with 105 (2.4%) deaths. A total of 1233 patients (16.4%) were admitted to a critical care unit to treat complications, with 119 (9.7%) deaths. Despite lower baseline risk, outcomes were similar in low- and middle-income compared with high-income countries. CONCLUSIONS: Poor patient outcomes are common after inpatient surgery. Global initiatives to increase access to surgical treatments should also address the need for safe perioperative care. STUDY REGISTRATION: ISRCTN5181700

Pseudomonas Septic Arthritis

BACKGROUND: Septic arthritis due to pseudomonas species is unusual and when it occurs, there is often an underlying cause like immune depression, intravenous drug abuse or a penetrating injury. PATIENT AND METHOD: We report a case of pseudomonas septic arthritis complicating cannulation of a leg vein following clinical sepsis and discuss its management. CONCLUSION: Pseudomonas infection is a common rasoconial infection and should be guarded against in common roofine hospital infections. Key words: septic arthritis, bacteria, pseudomonas species, clinical sepsis, cannula. Nigerian Journal of Orthopaedics and Trauma Vol.3(2) 2004: 202-20