[Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection without respiratory compromise]. / Encefalomielitis aguda diseminada asociada a infección por el SARS-CoV-2 sin afectación respiratoria.

INTRODUCTION: COVID-19, the disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), continues to grow all over the world since december of 2019. Although the main clinical manifestation is pulmonary disease, neurological manifestations are a prominent and increasingly recognized feature of the disease. The Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis (ADEM) is a rare autoimmune disorder, most commonly triggered by a viral infection. There are a few case reports of ADEM associated with COVID-19, almost all of them associated pulmonary disease. We report the case of a young patient with diagnosis of ADEM with SARS-CoV-2 infection without clinical respiratory symptoms. CASE REPORT: A 20-year-old woman with no relevant medical history was brought to the emergency department with a progressive confusional state lasted for 7 days. Family reported the development of smell and taste deficit since two weeks before the onset of neurological symptoms. There were no complaints of pulmonary symptoms. At admission, she was drowsy and disoriented. Left homonymous hemianopsia and an ipsilateral Babinski sign was identified. A brain magnetic resonance image was done showing multiple hyperintense bilateral, asymmetric patchy and poorly marginated lesions with gadolinium enhancement. She was SARS-CoV-2 PCR positive on nasopharyngeal swab. Intravenous high-dose glucocorticoids were administered with marked clinical improvement. CONCLUSION: ADEM is an extremely uncommon complication of SARS-CoV-2infection. Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis should be considered a potentially treatable cause of encephalopathy or multifocal neurological deficits in COVID-19 patients, even in the absence of respiratory symptoms.

TITLE: Encefalomielitis aguda diseminada asociada a infección por el SARS-CoV-2 sin afectación respiratoria.Introducción. COVID-19 (coronavirus disease-2019) es la enfermedad secundaria a la infección por el coronavirus de tipo 2 o SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2), que se ha constituido como pandemia desde diciembre de 2019. Si bien la afectación más frecuente y grave es la pulmonar, las complicaciones neurológicas secundarias a la COVID-19 son cada vez más reconocidas. La encefalomielitis aguda diseminada (EMAD) es una enfermedad autoinmune poco frecuente, clásicamente secundaria a una infección viral previa o concomitante. Existen informes de EMAD asociada a la COVID-19, casi todos con afectación respiratoria asociada. Presentamos el caso de una mujer joven diagnosticada con EMAD secundaria a la infección por el SARS-CoV-2 sin afectación respiratoria. Caso clínico. Mujer de 20 años que consultó por cuadro de desorientación y alteración conductual de una semana de evolución. Destaca en la historia la presencia de anosmia y sensación febril dos semanas antes del inicio de los síntomas neurológicos. En el examen físico destacó somnolencia, desorientación, hemianopsia homónima izquierda y síndrome piramidal ipsilateral. Se realizó una resonancia magnética encefálica que mostró múltiples lesiones inflamatorias desmielinizantes bihemisféricas de la sustancia blanca sugerentes de EMAD. La reacción en cadena de la polimerasa del SARS-CoV-2 en aspirado nasofaríngeo resultó positiva. Se descartaron otras causas de lesiones inflamatorias. Recibió esteroides con excelente respuesta. Conclusión. La EMAD es una complicación extremadamente rara en pacientes con COVID-19 que debe considerarse como una causa tratable de encefalopatía y/o déficits neurológicos multifocales en pacientes con infección activa o reciente por SARS-CoV-2 con o sin manifestaciones respiratorias.

Encefalomielitis aguda diseminada asociada a infección por el SARS-CoV-2 sin afectación respiratoria / Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection without respiratory compromise

Introducción: COVID-19 (coronavirus disease-2019) es la enfermedad secundaria a la infección por el coronavirus de tipo 2 o SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2), que se ha constituido como pandemia desde diciembre de 2019. Si bien la afectación más frecuente y grave es la pulmonar, las complicaciones neurológicas secundarias a la COVID-19 son cada vez más reconocidas. La encefalomielitis aguda diseminada (EMAD) es una enfermedad autoinmune poco frecuente, clásicamente secundaria a una infección viral previa o concomitante. Existen informes de EMAD asociada a la COVID-19, casi todos con afectación respiratoria asociada. Presentamos el caso de una mujer joven diagnosticada con EMAD secundaria a la infección por el SARS-CoV-2 sin afectación respiratoria. Caso clínico: Mujer de 20 años que consultó por cuadro de desorientación y alteración conductual de una semana de evolución. Destaca en la historia la presencia de anosmia y sensación febril dos semanas antes del inicio de los síntomas neurológicos. En el examen físico destacó somnolencia, desorientación, hemianopsia homónima izquierda y síndrome piramidal ipsilateral. Se realizó una resonancia magnética encefálica que mostró múltiples lesiones inflamatorias desmielinizantes bihemisféricas de la sustancia blanca sugerentes de EMAD. La reacción en cadena de la polimerasa del SARS-CoV-2 en aspirado nasofaríngeo resultó positiva. Se descartaron otras causas de lesiones inflamatorias. Recibió esteroides con excelente respuesta. Conclusión: La EMAD es una complicación extremadamente rara en pacientes con COVID-19 que debe considerarse como una causa tratable de encefalopatía y/o déficits neurológicos multifocales en pacientes con infección activa o reciente por SARS-CoV-2 con o sin manifestaciones respiratorias.(AU)

Introduction: COVID-19, the disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), continues to grow all over the world since december of 2019. Although the main clinical manifestation is pulmonary disease, neurological manifestations are a prominent and increasingly recognized feature of the disease. The Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis (ADEM) is a rare autoimmune disorder, most commonly triggered by a viral infection. There are a few case reports of ADEM associated with COVID-19, almost all of them associated pulmonary disease. We report the case of a young patient with diagnosis of ADEM with SARS-CoV-2 infection without clinical respiratory symptoms. Case report: A 20-year-old woman with no relevant medical history was brought to the emergency department with a progressive confusional state lasted for 7 days. Family reported the development of smell and taste deficit since two weeks before the onset of neurological symptoms. There were no complaints of pulmonary symptoms. At admission, she was drowsy and disoriented. Left homonymous hemianopsia and an ipsilateral Babinski sign was identified. A brain magnetic resonance image was done showing multiple hyperintense bilateral, asymmetric patchy and poorly marginated lesions with gadolinium enhancement. She was SARS-CoV-2 PCR positive on nasopharyngeal swab. Intravenous high-dose glucocorticoids were administered with marked clinical improvement. Conclusion: ADEM is an extremely uncommon complication of SARS-CoV-2infection. Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis should be considered a potentially treatable cause of encephalopathy or multifocal neurological deficits in COVID-19 patients, even in the absence of respiratory symptoms.(AU)

Concomitant tuberculosis and lung cancer diagnosed by bronchoscopy.

SETTING: South Granada Health Area (SGHA), Spain. OBJECTIVE: To describe the characteristics of concomitant tuberculosis (TB) and lung cancer cases. DESIGN: A total of 319 TB cases diagnosed between January 2003 and December 2010 were evaluated and identified using a prospective database. During this period, samples of bronchial secretions were obtained from all patients who underwent fibreoptic bronchoscopy (FBS) as part of a TB screening programme. A descriptive study was conducted. RESULTS: Concomitant TB and lung cancer were diagnosed in 15 cases (4.7% of total TB cases). The most common radiographic finding was atelectasis (53.3%), and the most common histological type was epidermoid carcinoma (60%). Lung cancer stage was advanced (III-IV) in 60% of the cases. CONCLUSION: The association between TB and lung cancer found in the SGHA after implementing a TB screening programme was higher than in other studies. This suggests that it would be advisable to perform acid-fast bacilli smear and mycobacterial culture of bronchial aspirates in all patients with presumed lung cancer, particularly in high TB prevalence areas.

Neuro-otological findings in tinnitus patients with normal hearing.

INTRODUCTION: Tinnitus is usually associated with hearing loss, and patients with tinnitus and normal hearing are unusual. Neuro-otological findings have not previously been described in tinnitus patients with normal hearing. AIM: To analyse neuro-otological examination results from a group of tinnitus patients with normal hearing. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventeen normal-hearing tinnitus patients seen over a 10-year period were retrospectively evaluated. Their results were compared with those of a control group of 17 normal subjects without tinnitus. RESULTS: The main neuro-otological finding in the tinnitus patients was caloric test abnormality: a unilateral canal paresis was present in 15 of the 17 patients. Caloric tests were normal in 15 of the 17 control subjects. CONCLUSION: We may infer from these results that tinnitus could be the only clinical manifestation of a cochlear - and presumably cochleo-vestibular - lesion, and that unilateral canal paresis may be the only abnormal finding on neuro-otological examination.

Pharmacoeconomic assessment of propofol 2% used for prolonged sedation.

OBJECTIVE: To demonstrate that the use of propofol 2% is comparable to propofol 1% in effectiveness and in the wake-up time used for prolonged sedation. DESIGN: Open-label, case cohort study with a cohort of historical controls, phase IV clinical trial. SETTING: Medical and surgical intensive care unit (ICU) in a community hospital. PATIENTS: Fifty-one consecutive patients (medical, surgical, and trauma) admitted to our ICU requiring mechanical ventilation for >24 hrs. METHODS: All patients received propofol 2% (1-6 mg.kg-1.hr-1, starting with the lowest dose) and morphine chloride (0.5 mg.kg-1.24 hrs-1). A 4-5 level of sedation (Ramsay scale) was recommended. When weaning was indicated clinically, sedation and analgesia were interrupted abruptly, mechanical ventilation was discontinued, and the patient was connected to a T-bridge. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: Inability to attain the desired level of sedation with the highest dose rate of proposal, and hypertriglyceridemia >500 mg/dL, were considered therapeutic failure. The time between discontinuation of mechanical ventilation and extubation was measured. Those variables, as well as different items related to ICU cost, were compared between the study group and two historical groups sedated with propofol 1% and midazolam. RESULTS: The duration of sedation was 122.4 +/- 89.2 (sd) hrs for the propofol 2% group. The frequency of hypertriglyceridemia was 3.9% and 20.4% for the propofol 2% and the propofol 1% groups, respectively (p =.016). Therapeutic failure rates were 19.6% and 33.4% for the propofol 2% and propofol 1% groups, respectively (p =.127). The lower frequency of hypertriglyceridemia was associated with a higher number of patients reaching weaning. Weaning time was similar in the two propofol groups, 32.3 hrs ($1,744) for the propofol 2% group vs. 97.9 hrs ($5,287) for the midazolam group. Cost of sedation was $2.68 per hour for the midazolam group and $7.69 per hour for the propofol group. There was a favorable cost-benefit ratio for the propofol group, attributable to the shorter weaning time, although benefit was less than expected because higher doses of propofol 2% than propofol 1% were required during the first 48 hrs (p <.05). CONCLUSIONS: The new propofol 2% preparation is an effective sedative agent and is safe because of the low frequency of associated hypertriglyceridemia. The shorter weaning time associated with the use of propofol 2% as compared with midazolam compensates for its elevated cost. The economic benefit of propofol 2% is less than expected because higher doses of propofol 2% than propofol 1% are required over the first 48 hrs.

Prolonged sedation of critically ill patients with midazolam or propofol: impact on weaning and costs.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effectiveness of sedation, the time required for weaning, and the costs of prolonged sedation of critically ill mechanically ventilated patients with midazolam and propofol. DESIGN: Open-label, randomized, prospective, phase IV clinical trial. SETTING: Medical and surgical intensive care unit (ICU) in a community hospital. PATIENTS: All ICU admissions (medical, surgical and trauma) requiring mechanical ventilation for > 24 hrs. A total of 108 patients were included in the study. INTERVENTIONS: Patients were randomized to receive midazolam or propofol. The dose range allowed for each drug was 0.1 to 0.5 mg/kg/hr for midazolam and 1 to 6 mg/kg/hr for propofol. The lowest dose that achieved an adequate patient-ventilator synchrony was infused. All patients received 0.5 mg/kg/24 hrs of morphine chloride. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The level of sedation was quantified by the Ramsay scale every 2 hrs until weaning from mechanical ventilation was started. If sedation could not be achieved by infusing the highest dose of midazolam or propofol, the case was recorded as a therapeutic failure. In the propofol group, serum triglycerides were determined every 72 hrs. Concentrations of > 500 mg/dL were also recorded as a therapeutic failure. When the patient was ready for weaning according to defined criteria, sedation was interrupted abruptly and the time from interruption of sedation to the first T-bridge trial and to extubation was measured. Cost analysis was performed based on the cost of intensive care in our unit ($54/hr). In the midazolam group (n = 54), 15 (27.8%) patients died; 11 (20.4%) patients had therapeutic failure; and 28 (51.8%) patients were subjected to a T-bridge trial. In the propofol group (n = 54), these proportions were 11 (20.4%), 18 (33.4% [including seven due to inadequate sedation, and 11 due to hypertriglyceridemia]), and 25 (46.2%), respectively. None of these values was significantly different between the two groups. Duration of sedation was 141.7 +/- 89.4 (SD) hrs and 139.7 +/- 84.7 hrs (p = NS), and cost (US dollars) attributed to sedation was $378 +/- 342 and $1,047 +/- 794 (p = .0001) for the midazolam and propofol groups, respectively. In the midazolam group, time from discontinuation of the drug infusion to extubation was 97.9 +/- 54.6 hrs (48.9 +/- 47.2 hrs to the first disconnection, and 49.0 +/- 23.7 hrs to extubation). In the propofol group, time from discontinuation of the drug infusion to extubation was 34.8 +/- 29.4 hrs (4.0 +/- 3.9 hrs to the first disconnection, and 30.8 +/- 29.2 hrs to extubation). The difference between the two groups in the weaning time was 63.1 +/- 12.5 (SEM) hrs (p < .0001). Cost per patient in the midazolam group (including ICU therapy and sedation with midazolam) was $10,828 +/- 5,734. Cost per patient in the propofol group was $9,466 +/- 5,820, $1,362 less than in the midazolam group. CONCLUSIONS: In our population of critically ill patients sedated with midazolam or propofol over prolonged periods, midazolam and propofol were equally effective as sedative agents. However, despite remarkable differences in the cost of sedation with these two agents, the economic profile is more favorable for propofol than for midazolam due to a shorter weaning time associated with propofol administration.

Overall view and rationale for surgical alternatives for incapacitating peripheral vertigo.

This article describes an overall view and the rationale for the different surgical alternatives available for treating incapacitating peripheral vertigo. The authors emphasize that the number of patients requiring surgery is very small, and that the surgical procedures available do not provide 100% relief nor are they free of risks. A need for individualized attention to patients and a careful selection of the most appropriate surgical procedure for each particular case are strongly stressed.

[Quantification of the stress reactivity in psychiatric patients admitted to an acute care unit]. / Cuantificación de la reactividad al estrés en pacientes psiquiátricos ingresados en una unidad de agudos.

We studied stress reactivity in a sample of 48 psychiatric acute inpatients of a psychiatric ward in a general hospital. Stress Reactivity Questionnaire (IRE-32 items) was used, this instrument supplies an index of the subject's individual response to stressful situations. The mean Stress Reactivity Index of the sample was 13.02 (s.d. 6.31), which is significantly higher than that found by us in general population--9.67 (s.d. 5.47)--and similar to the score obtained by psychiatric outpatients in our Department--13.30 (s.d. 6.07). According to gender, women reached the highest score (13.76). The various scores obtained in the Stress Reactivity Index by the different diagnosis are outlined.

Lesión vestibular periférica secundaria al traumatismo encéfalo craneal / Peripheral vestibular lesion after head trauma

La sintomatología otoneurológica se aprecia frecuentemente en el síndrome postcontusional encefálico, predominando síntomas en forma de vértigo postural, desequilibrio corporal, tinnitus e hipoacusia. La actual experiencia clínica y experimental sugiere una clara relación entre la cuantía del traumatismo encéfalo craneal y el grado de secuela vestíbulo-coclear. El análisis de dos grupos de pacientes con síndrome vestíbulo-craneal post-traumatismo encéfalo craneal diferenciados por su perfil evolutivo temporal entrega indicios de que la persistencia de la lesión laberíntica no compensada a nivel de los núcleos vestibulares centrales participa en la génesis del síndrome post contusional mediante la distorsión de los reflejos vestíbulo-ocular y vestíbulo-espinal. El hallazgo de alteraciones concomitantes en dos reflejos de seguimiento ocular (interacción visual-vestibular-oculomotora) en forma de nistagmus optokinético y seguimiento visual pendular reafirman estos supuestos. Paralelamente se analizan la influencia del cerebelo, interacción visual-vestibular y retículo-espinal en el proceso de la compensación vestibular central

Clinical significance of rebound nystagmus in neuro-otological diagnosis.

The present study is concerned with a clinical analysis of 17 patients with "rebound nystagmus" examined over a period of three years. All of them have shown a short duration second degree nystagmus evoked by changes in the direction of fixation, from the lateral to straight ahead gaze. This nystagmus was a fixation nystagmus, that is to say, it was enhanced in the presence of active optic fixation and inhibited in its absence. Almost all the patients (16 out of 17) had cerebellar signs on neurological examination (in one subject rebound nystagmus was the first sign suggesting cerebellar involvement and appeared several months before any other cerebellar sign was present). Rebound nystagmus was far more common than the other neuro-otological signs suggesting cerebellar dysfunction (vestibular hyperexcitability, dysrhythmia in postcaloric nystagmus and ocular dysmetria). In three out of four patients with unilateral lesions rebound nystagmus was ipsilateral with respect to the side of the lesion. Postmortem studies were carried out upon five cases and showed either pathological changes in the cerebellum or a lesion involving the cerebellar peduncles in the brain stem.