ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: To determine practices of Turkish anaesthesiologists with regard to withholding and withdrawal of life support from the critically ill. METHODS: An anonymous questionnaire consisting of 18 questions was mailed to 439 members of the Turkish Society of Anaesthesiology and Reanimation. RESULTS: Three hundred and 69 questionnaires were returned (84% response). Over 90% of the respondents indicated that they were Muslim. We found that 66% of respondents had initiated written or oral do-not-resuscitate orders, most frequently after discussion with colleagues (82%). CONCLUSIONS: While a number of similarities were found between Turkish anaesthesiologists and those from other countries, some specific differences could be identified, particularly related to consensus decision-making and sharing information with other providers and the value of Ethics Committees in the decision-making process.
Subject(s)
Anesthesiology/statistics & numerical data , Critical Illness/therapy , Euthanasia, Passive/statistics & numerical data , Life Support Care/statistics & numerical data , Practice Patterns, Physicians' , Withholding Treatment/statistics & numerical data , Adult , Aged , Decision Making , Ethics, Medical , Euthanasia, Passive/ethics , Euthanasia, Passive/legislation & jurisprudence , Female , Humans , Life Support Care/legislation & jurisprudence , Male , Middle Aged , Resuscitation Orders/ethics , Surveys and Questionnaires , Turkey , Withholding Treatment/ethics , Withholding Treatment/legislation & jurisprudenceABSTRACT
A 54-y-o woman presented to the Emergency Department with shortness of breath and sore throat after intranasal administration of Ecbalium elaterium as a folk remedy for her sinusitis. The patient's history included nasal aspiration of the juice of the squirting cucumber (Ecbalium elaterium) for acute maxillary sinusitis. An airway obstruction due to severe uvular angioedema was detected and confirmed by airway X-ray. The patient was treated with 100% oxygen with mask, 0.3 mg epinephrine s.c., and 80 mg prednisolone i.v. Renal and hepatic function tests were normal. After a 24-h observation, the patient was discharged in her previous state of health.
