Challenges in the diagnosis of Boerhaave syndrome: A case report.

RATIONALE: Acute chest pain remains one of the most challenging complaints of patients presenting to emergency departments (EDs). The diverse etiologies of chest pain frequently lead to diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. Esophageal perforation is a rare but potentially life-threatening disease. It results in delayed diagnosis and an estimated mortality risk of 20% to 40%. Prompt diagnosis and immediate therapeutic interventions are key factors for a good prognosis. PATIENT CONCERNS: Case 1 involved a 66-year-old man who presented to the ED with acute chest pain radiating to the back and hematemesis. Emergent contrast thoracic computerized tomography (CT) indicated the presence of a massive pneumothorax with pleural effusion. The continuous drainage of a dark-red bloody fluid following emergent thoracic intubation led to the discovery that the patient had experienced severe vomiting after whiskey consumption before admission to the hospital. Re-evaluation of the CT indicated spontaneous pneumomediastinum, whereas barium esophagography confirmed the presence of an esophageal perforation. Case 2 involved an 18-year-old Vietnamese man admitted to our ED with acute chest pain and swelling of the neck after vomiting due to beer consumption. A chest x-ray indicated diffuse subcutaneous emphysema of the neck and upper thorax. Contrast CT indicated pneumomediastinum with extensive emphysema and air in the paraspinal region and spinal canal. DIAGNOSES: Both of the 2 cases were diagnosed as spontaneous perforation of the esophagus (Boerhaave syndrome [BS]). INTERVENTIONS: Case 1 received surgical interventions, whereas case 2 decided not to avail our medical services. OUTCOMES: Case 1 was discharged after a good recovery. Case 2 lost to follow-up. LESSONS: We recommend all physicians in the ED to raise their index of suspicion for BS when dealing with patients having acute chest pain, dyspnea, confirmed pneumothorax, or newly-developed pleural effusion.

Organophosphate Poisoning and Subsequent Acute Kidney Injury Risk: A Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study.

Small numbers of the papers have studied the association between organophosphate (OP) poisoning and the subsequent acute kidney injury (AKI). Therefore, we used the National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) to study whether patients with OP poisoning are associated with a higher risk to have subsequent AKI.The retrospective cohort study comprised patients aged ≥20 years with OP poisoning and hospitalized diagnosis during 2000-2011 (N = 8924). Each OP poisoning patient was frequency-matched to 4 control patients based on age, sex, index year, and comorbidities of diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary artery disease, and stroke (N = 35,696). We conducted Cox proportional hazard regression analysis to estimate the effects of OP poisoning on AKI risk.The overall incidence of AKI was higher in the patients with OP poisoning than in the controls (4.85 vs 3.47/1000 person-years). After adjustment for age, sex, comorbidity, and interaction terms, patients with OP poisoning were associated with a 6.17-fold higher risk of AKI compared with the comparison cohort. Patients with highly severe OP poisoning were associated with a substantially increased risk of AKI.The study found OP poisoning is associated with increased risk of subsequent AKI. Future studies are encouraged to evaluate whether long-term effects exist and the best guideline to prevent the continuously impaired renal function.