The Role of Interventional Radiology in Treatment of Patients with Acute Trauma: A Pictorial Essay.

Acute trauma is a common cause of mortality in individuals aged < 40 years. As organ preservation has become important in treating trauma patients, the treatment is shifting from surgical management to non-operative management. A multidisciplinary team approach, including interventional radiology (IR), is essential for the optimal management of trauma patients, as IR plays an important role in injury evaluation and management. IR also contributes significantly to achieving the best clinical outcomes in critically ill trauma patients. This pictorial essay aims to present and summarize various interventional treatments in trauma patients requiring critical care.

[Multicentric Florid Cystic Endosalpingiosis in Different Anatomical Spaces: A Case Report]. / 서로 다른 í•´ë¶€í•™ì  공간에 발생한 다발성 개화성 낭성 ë‚´ë‚œê´€ì¢ : 증례 ë³´ê³ .

Endosalpingiosis is a condition that causes the non-neoplastic proliferation of ectopic tubal epithelium. Florid cystic endosalpingiosis is an atypical subtype that is very rarely reported. It presents as a mass-like feature and therefore needs to be differentiated from tumorous conditions. Here, we report the imaging findings of a case of multicentric florid cystic endosalpingiosis in the extraperitoneal pelvic cavity and the retroperitoneal spaces.

A tool to measure the impact of inaction toward elimination of hepatitis C: A case study in Korea.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) and its sequelae present a significant source of economic and societal burden. Introduction of highly effective curative therapies has made HCV elimination attainable. The study used a predictive model to assess the clinical and economic impact of implementing national screening and treatment policies toward HCV elimination in Korea. METHODS: A previously validated Markov disease progression model of HCV infection was employed to analyze the clinical and economic impact of various strategies for HCV diagnosis and treatment in Korea. In this analysis, the model compared the clinical and economic outcomes of current HCV-related interventions in Korea (7,000 patients treated and 4,200 patients newly diagnosed annually, starting in 2017) to four elimination scenarios: 1) initiating sufficient diagnosis and treatment interventions to meet the World Health Organization's GHSS elimination targets by 2030, 2) delaying initiation of interventions by one year, 3) delaying initiation of interventions by two years and 4) accelerating initiation of interventions to meet elimination targets by 2025. Modelled historical incidence of HCV was calibrated to match a viremic HCV prevalence of 0.44% in 2009. Elimination scenarios required 24,000 treatments and 34,000 newly diagnosed patients annually, starting in 2018, to reach the 2030 targets. RESULTS: Compared to current "status quo" interventions, elimination (or accelerated elimination by 2025) would avert 23,700 (27,000) incident cases of HCV, 1,300 (1,400) liver-related deaths (LRDs) and 2,900 (3,100) cases of end-stage liver disease (ESLD) over the 2017-2030 time period. Postponing interventions by one (or two) years would avert 21,100 (18,600) new HCV infections, 920 (660) LRDs and 2,000 (1,400) cases of ESLD by 2030. Following elimination or accelerated elimination strategies would save 860 million USD or 1.1 billion USD by 2030, respectively, compared to the status quo, requiring an up-front investment in prevention that decreases spending on liver-related complications and death. CONCLUSIONS: By projecting the impact of interventions and tracking progress toward GHSS elimination targets using modelling, we demonstrate that Korea can prevent significant morbidity, mortality and spending on HCV. Results should serve as the backbone for policy and decision-making, demonstrating how aggressive prevention measures are designed to reduce future costs and increase the health of the public.

Acute aortic dissection developed after cardiopulmonary resuscitation: transesophageal echocardiographic observations and proposed mechanism of injury.

There has been no report about aortic dissection due to cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). We present here a case of acute aortic dissection as a rare complication of CPR and propose the potential mechanism of injury on the basis of transesophageal echocardiographic observations. A 54-year-old man presented with cardiac arrest after choking and received 19 minutes of CPR in the emergency department. Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) during CPR revealed a focal separation of the intimal layer at the descending thoracic aorta without evidence of aortic dissection. After restoration of spontaneous circulation, hemorrhagic cardiac tamponade developed. Follow-up TEE to investigate the cause of cardiac tamponade revealed aortic dissection of the descending thoracic aorta. Hemorrhagic cardiac tamponade was thought to be caused by myocardial hemorrhage from CPR.

Clinical outcomes of adverse cardiovascular events in patients with acute dapsone poisoning.

OBJECTIVE: Adverse cardiovascular events (ACVEs) account for a large proportion of the morbidities and mortalities associated with drug overdose emergencies. However, there are no published reports regarding outcomes of ACVEs associated with acute dapsone poisoning. Here, the authors retrospectively analyzed ACVEs reported within 48 hours of treatment in patients with acute dapsone poisoning and assessed the significance of ACVEs as early predictors of mortality. METHODS: Sixty-one consecutive cases of acute dapsone poisoning that were diagnosed and treated at a regional emergency center between 2006 and 2014 were included in the study. An ACVE was defined as myocardial injury, shock, ventricular dysrhythmia, cardiac arrest, or any combination of these occurring within the first 48 hours of treatment for acute dapsone poisoning. RESULTS: Nineteen patients (31.1%) had evidence of myocardial injury (elevation of serum troponin-I level or electrocardiography signs of ischemia) after dapsone overdose, and there were a total of 19 ACVEs (31.1%), including one case of shock (1.6%). Fourteen patients (23.0%) died from pneumonia or multiple organ failure, and the incidence of ACVEs was significantly higher among non-survivors than among survivors (64.3% vs. 21.3%, P=0.006). ACVE was a significant predictor of mortality (odds ratio, 5.690; 95% confidence interval, 1.428 to 22.675; P=0.014). CONCLUSION: The incidence of ACVE was significantly higher among patients who died after acute dapsone poisoning. ACVE is a significant predictor of mortality after dapsone overdose, and evidence of ACVE should be carefully sought in these patients.

The Usefulness of the Delta Neutrophil Index for Predicting Superimposed Pneumonia in Patients with Acute Decompensated Heart Failure in the Emergency Department.

BACKGROUND: Although respiratory infections, such as pneumonia, have long been recognized as precipitators of exacerbation in patients with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF), identifying signs of concomitant pneumonia in ADHF is a clinical diagnostic challenge. We evaluated the predictive value of the delta neutrophil index (DNI), a new indicator for immature granulocytes, for diagnosing superimposed pneumonia in patients presenting with ADHF in the emergency department (ED). METHODS: This was a retrospective and observational study of consecutive patients (>18 years old) diagnosed with an ADHF in the ED over a 7-month period. Patients were categorized into either the ADHF group or the ADHF with pneumonia group. DNI, serum white blood cell (WBC), C-reactive protein (CRP), and ß-natriuretic peptide (BNP) were measured upon ED arrival. RESULTS: The ADHF with pneumonia group included 30 patients (20.4%). Median initial DNI, WBC, and CRP were significantly higher in the ADHF with pneumonia group [0% vs. 1.8%, p<0.001, 8,200 cells/mL vs. 10,470 cells/mL, p<0.001, and 0.56 mg/dL vs. 6.10 mg/dL, p<0.001]. Multiple logistic regression analyses showed that only initial DNI significantly predicted the presence of superimposed pneumonia in patients with ADHF. In the receiver operating characteristic curves for initial DNI, WBC, and CRP for differentiating superimposed pneumonia in ADHF patients, the area under curve (AUC) of DNI (0.916 [95% confidence interval 0.859-0.955]) was good. AUC of DNI was significantly higher than AUC of CRP and WBC [0.828 and 0.715] (DNI vs. CRP, p = 0.047 and DNI vs. WBC, p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Initial DNI, which was measured upon ED arrival, was significantly higher in the ADHF with pneumonia group than in the ADHF group. The initial DNI's ability of prediction for ADHF with superimposed pneumonia in the ED was good and it was better than those of serum WBC and CRP. Therefore, DNI may serve as a convenient and useful marker for early diagnosis of superimposed pneumonia in patients with ADHF in the ED.

A case of life-threatening acute kidney injury with toxic encephalopathy caused by Dioscorea quinqueloba.

Some herbal medications induce acute kidney injury. The acute kidney injuries caused by herbal medications are mild and commonly treated by palliative care. A 51-years-old man who drank the juice squeezed from the raw tubers of Dioscorea quinqueloba (D. quinqueloba) was admitted with nausea, vomiting and chilling. He developed a seizure with decreased level of consciousness. He was diagnosed with acute kidney injury, which was cured by continuous venovenous hemodialfiltration. Non-detoxified D. quinqueloba can cause severe acute kidney injury with toxic encephalopathy. It is critical to inform possible adverse effects of the medicinal herbs and to implement more strict regulation of these products.

Carrier-envelope-phase-dependent above-threshold ionization of xenon observed with multi-cycle laser pulses.

Carrier-envelope-phase (CEP)-dependent modulation was measured in above-threshold ionization of xenon driven with 30-fs laser pulses. We showed the dependence from the asymmetry map obtained using a velocity map imaging spectrometer, up to 17 eV in photoelectron energy. The dependence appeared to be linear with a slope of one photon energy increase per CEP change of 2π and did not rely on the sign or the amount of laser chirp. Our results indicated the existence of the quantum interference between different multiphoton ionization paths.

Self-compression of attosecond high-order harmonic pulses.

Self-compression of attosecond high-order harmonic pulses in the harmonic generation medium itself has been demonstrated. The attosecond pulses were generated in an argon-filled gas cell and compressed by exploiting the dispersion characteristics of argon. Since the harmonic generation medium itself was used as the compression medium, continuous chirp control was easily achieved by adjusting the gas pressure. The optimized attosecond pulse was also the most intense, and its duration of 206 as was very close to the transform-limited value of 200 as.