ABSTRACT
Objectives: To assess the blood transfusion support requirements in mass disaster and trauma situations
Study Design: Cross-sectional observational study
Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted at Combined Military Hospital Quetta from, Jan 2013 to Dec 2015
Material and Methods: Nature of injuries, triage details, details of surgical procedures and duration of hospital stay were noted. Data was analyzed with respect to cross match to transfusion ratio and the number of units of each component transfused. Patients requiring massive transfusion and any associated complications were also studied
Results: A total of 2228 casualties were received during the study period, of these, males were 18 [75 percent] and 6 [25 percent] were females. Mean age was29.7 years. 1636 [73.4 percent] casualties had sustained major injuries. Mean hospital stay was 6.31 days. Only 199 [12.2 percent] patients required blood transfusion with a mean of 2.9 units of RCC, 8.7 bags of FFP and 4.6 bags of platelets. Fifteen [7.5 percent] patients received massive transfusion. Following massive transfusion, one case of metabolic acidosis and two cases of coagulopathy were reported
Conclusion: Mass disasters and trauma casualties pose a serious challenge to any healthcare facility in general and the blood transfusion services in particular. Only a well-organized blood transfusion center and blood transfusion emergency preparedness can result in better patient care and outcome. Not all patients need transfusion and a delicate balance between demand and supply has to be maintained
ABSTRACT
True intramedullary spinal cord lipomas are extremely rare. Two cases of intramedullary spinal cord lipoma are presented. The patients did not exhibit any form of spinal dysraphism. The patients presented with gait difficulty, upper limb weakness, sphincter disturbance, dysesthesias and neck pain. The tumors were removed sub-totally and the neurological grade improved postoperatively in one of the patients