Spinal anesthesia for cesarean section in a patient with achondroplasia: case report / Anestesia espinal para cesárea segmentaria en paciente con acondroplasia: reporte de caso

Abstract Introduction: The perioperative management of achondroplastic pregnant patients that will undergo lower segment cesarean section represents a clinical challenge to the anesthesiologist. Objective: To describe the anesthetic management of a pregnant patient with achondroplasia, programed for lower segment cesarean section using single-dose regional subarachnoid anesthesia, and to review the general guidelines for anesthetic management emphasizing the role of anesthesia in these patients. Methods: Case report and subject review. Results: The case of a first pregnancy in an achondroplastic, 117-cm tall patient and 38.5 weeks of gestation, programed for lower segment cesarean section is discussed. The patient received single-dose subarachnoid regional anesthesia and adjuvant opioids, with satisfactory results. Conclusion: The ideal anesthetic technique is controversial and the decision shall be based on the individual patient characteristics. The spinal technique, as the anesthetic approach to lower segment cesarean section, was satisfactory and safe in this particular patient.

Resumen Introducción: El manejo perioperatorio de pacientes acondroplásicas embarazadas que van ser llevadas a cesárea segmentaria representa un reto clínico para el anestesiólogo. Objetivo: Describir el manejo anestésico de una paciente gestante con acondroplasia programada para cesárea segmentaria utilizando anestesia regional subaracnoidea con dosis unica y realizar una revisión acerca de las pautas generales del manejo anestésico destacando el papel de la anestesia regional en este tipo de pacientes. Métodos: Reporte de caso y revisión de tema. Resultados: Presentamos el caso de una primigestante acondroplásica de 38.5 semanas y altura de 117 cm programada para cesárea segmentaria a la que se realizó una técnica anestésica regional tipo subaracnoidea con dosis única de anestésico local más coadyuvante opioide con resultados satisfactorios. Conclusiones: La técnica anestésica ideal para emplear es controversial y debe ser decidido con base en las características individuales de cada paciente. La técnica espinal fue satisfactoria y segura en esta paciente en particular como técnica anestésica para cesárea segmentaría.

Identification of Entamoeba moshkovskii in Treated Waste Water Used for Agriculture.

We conducted an observational study to determine the prevalence of Entamoeba spp., in samples collected in a waste water treatment plant that provides water for agricultural irrigation. Samples were collected weekly over a period of 10 weeks at representative contamination stages from within the treatment plant. Protozoan identification was performed via light microscopy and culture. PCR amplification of small subunit rRNA gene sequences of E. histolytica/dispar/moshkovskii was performed in culture positive samples. Light microscopy revealed the presence of Entamoeba spp., in 70% (14/20) of the raw waste water samples and in 80% (8/10) of the treated water samples. PCR amplification after culture at both 24 and 37°C revealed that 100% (29/29) of the raw waste water samples and 78.6% (11/14) of the treated waste water were positive for E. moshkovskii. We report the first isolation of E. moshkovskii in Colombia, confirmed by PCR. Recent reports of E. moshkovskii pathogenic potential suggest this finding could constitute a public health risk for people exposed to this water.

Molecular diagnosis and genotype analysis of Giardia duodenalis in asymptomatic children from a rural area in central Colombia.

Giardiasis is a parasitic infection that affects around 200 million people worldwide. This parasite presents a remarkable genetic variability observed in 8 genetic clusters named as 'assemblages' (A-H). These assemblages are host restricted and could be zoonotic where A and B infect humans and animals around the globe. The knowledge of the molecular epidemiology of human giardiasis in South-America is scarce and also the usefulness of PCR to detect this pathogen in fecal samples remains controversial. The aim of this study was to conduct a cross-sectional study to compare the molecular targets employed for the molecular diagnosis of Giardia DNA and to discriminate the parasite assemblages circulating in the studied population. We analyzed 181 fecal samples from Children at La Virgen, Cundinamarca, Colombia that were DNA-extracted and analyzed by SSU rDNA, tpi and gdh loci. We observed positivity by microscopy of 13% and by PCR around 76-80% depending on the molecular marker. Additionally, a lack of statistical concordance between microscopy and PCR was detected. Regarding the genetic assemblages, we detected assemblage A (3%), assemblage B (90%) and mixed infections assemblages A+B (7%). Hence, the sub-assemblages were typed as AI, AII, BIII and BIV across the population. This study represents a reliable attempt to understand the molecular epidemiology of giardiasis in Colombia and the use of PCR to detect cryptic infections. The epidemiological implications are herein discussed.

Entamoeba moshkovskii perspectives of a new agent to be considered in the diagnosis of amebiasis.

During the last decade Entamoeba moshkovskii has become relevant given its capacity to infect humans, especially when considering that it is morphologically indistinguishable from E. histolytica. For a long time, E. moshkovskii was considered as a free living amoeba, but in the last decade it has been demonstrated that E. moshkovskii can infect humans and can be found more frequently in regions where amebiasis shows high prevalence values, becoming a challenge to differentiate it from the E. histolytica/E. dispar complex. Recently there have been studies that raise the possibility that E. moshkovskii could be a pathogenic species, as there are reports in different countries that associated this infection with gastrointestinal symptoms even though others have described it as a non pathogenic species. For this reasons, both clinical and epidemiological studies are required.