תוצאת חיפוש

Circadian Fluctuations of the Signal-Averaged ECG

Ehud Goldhammer, Edward Abinader

Cardiology Dept., Bnei-Zion Medical Center and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, The Technion, Haifa

Circadian periodicity for the time of onset of acute myocardial infarction has been shown; the early morning peak of infarction coincides with the onset of other related phenomena, including sudden cardiac death, ventricular arrhythmias, thrombotic stroke, etc. Late potentials detected by the signal-averaged ECG are considered to be independent markers of vulnerability to ventricular arrhythmias. The signal-averaged ECG enables the amplifying and recording of small bioelectric signals of cardiac origin, while eliminating extraneous electrical "noise." To determine whether late potentials are themselves subject to circadian influence, 31 patients (age range 41-79) who had had an old or recent myocardial infarction underwent late potential assessment by the signal-averaged ECG. 4 indices were studied: duration of late LPD potentials (LPD), total QRS duration (TQRS), and root mean square voltage of the last 40 msec, and of the last 50 msec (RMS 40 and RMS 50). These indices were assessed 3 times, during the early morning hours, at noon and during the evening. Morning LPD differed significantly from noon and evening LPD and the morning RMS 40 similarly differed from noon and evening values. TQRS and RMS 50, even though remaining in the normal range, also showed a tendency to abnormal values during morning hours. These findings could possibly be related to the early morning incidence peaks of severe ventricular arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death, since abnormal late potentials constitute the physiopathological basis for certain ventricular arrhythmias.

ATLS Course for Surgery Residents - Should it be Mandatory?

Ron Ben-Abraham, Michael Stein, Yoram Kluger, Gideon Paret, Avraham Rivkind, Joshua Shemer

Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces; Sourasky Medical Center and Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University; and Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem

Senior surgeons were asked about mandatory participation of general surgery residents in the advanced trauma life support (ATLS) course. Although trauma care in Israel is given by surgical residents, in the opinion of their senior mentors the course should continue to be mandatory for them.

Compulsory, Ambulatory Psychiatric Treatment

R. Durst, A. Teitelbaum, Y. Bar-El, M. Shlafman, Y. Ginath

Arie Jaros Jerusalem Mental Health Center and Talbieh Mental Health Center (Affiliated with the Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem) and Israel Ministry of Health, Jerusalem District

The Treatment of Mentally Sick Persons Law of 1955, was repealed and replaced by the Law of 1991. Under the latter, the Order for Compulsory Ambulatory Treatment (OCAT) was addressed for the first time (Section 11, a-d). According to this law, the district psychiatrist instead of issuing a hospitalization order, may issue an OCAT, under which the required treatment is given within the scope of a clinic which he designates, for up to 6 months and under conditions which he specifies. This is done on the basis of psychiatric examination, or an application in writing from the director of a hospital or clinic, when continued ambulatory treatment is needed after discharge from hospital or instead of compulsory hospitalization. The district psychiatrist may extend the period of treatment for further periods, none of which is to exceed 6 months. Compulsory ambulatory treatment is to enable patients to benefit from the positive aspects of living freely in the community, while receiving prompt treatment under compulsory conditions. The concept offers a partial solution, achieving a balance between civil liberties and clinical needs, between over-confinement and under-treatment which might be dangerous or neglectful. The clinical impression has been that the OCAT has not fulfilled expectations. The purpose of this study was to examine the topic in a systematic way in Jerusalem and the soutern districts for the 4 years since inception of the law. In 44.4% of cases OCAT was proven to be effective, while in 33.1% it was found to be ineffective and did not prevent compulsory hospitalization, one of its main goals. It was partially effective in the rest of the cases. It is recommended that suitable means for the enforcement of the law be allocated and that the subject of forceful hospitalization and OCAT be made a mandatory subject in the residency program of psychiatrists.

Postoperative Ulnar Nerve Palsy of the Elbow

Shalom Stahl, Doron Norman, Chaim Zinman

Hand Surgery Unit and Dept. of Orthopedic Surgery B, Rambam Medical Center and Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa

Ulnar nerve neuropathy of the elbow is a recognized complication of surgery involving general anesthesia. In 13 patients, aged 21-76 years, ulnar nerve palsy developed at various times and of varying degrees of severity during the postoperative period. Diagnosis was based on clinical and electrophysiological findings. 3 patients had subclinical entrapment of the ulnar nerve. All were treated conservatively by rest, splinting and physical therapy: 10 improved slowly with time and 3 were operated on, but only 1 recovered fully. Preventive measures, such as proper positioning on the operative table, use of elbow pads, avoiding adduction of the arm, pronation of the forearm and prolonged elbow flexion, may reduce the incidence of ulnar nerve palsy. Unfortunately, treatment of established lesions has yielded mixed results.

Preliminary Experience with Laparoscopic Repair of Inguinal Hernias

Herbert R. Freund, Dan Seror, Dan Eimerl, Oded Zamir

Surgery and Anesthesiology Depts., Hadassah-University Hospital, Mount Scopus, Jerusalem

During 1992-1996 we performed 163 laparoscopic hernia repairs in 100 men and 2 women. The mean age was 50.6; and in 61 the operation was bilateral. 66 were by transabdominal preperitoneal approach and 36 btotal extra-peritoneal approach. There were only a few minor complications and total recurrence rate was only 4.3%, partly attributable to our learning curve. Laparoscopic inguinal herniorrhaphy reduces postoperative incisional and muscular pain and causes less disruption in the postoperative period than open repair. Return to normal activity and work is faster for laparoscopic than for open repair, but operating room costs are higher (time and equipment). However, economic advantages for the national economy should be considered.

Central Cord Syndrome in the Elderly Who Fall: a Diagnostic Trap

A. Adunsky, H. Semo, S. Levenkrohn

Geriatric Rehabilitation Dept., Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer

Acute post-traumatic spinal injury is common and usually poses no diagnostic difficulties. Following a low-energy fall, the onset of acute central cord syndrome in the elderly is not common and is frequently misdiagnosed. Men aged 60 and 81, and a woman aged 75 are described, in whom central cord syndrome was overlooked. Awareness of this condition is important to avoid incorrect diagnosis and hazardous management.

Surgical Approach to Benign Cecal Ulcer

J. Haik, A. Judich, I. Barshack, M. Ben-Haim, M. Shabtai, A. Ayalon

Dept. of Surgery B and Pathology Institute, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer and Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University

Benign cecal ulcer is a rare lesion, usually diagnosed during operation for suspected acute appendicitis or peritonitis of unknown origin. In the past, right hemicolectomy was recommended as the treatment of choice because of the difficulty in differentiating malignant lesions from benign cecal ulcers. However, in recent reports a more conservative approach has been suggested, consisting of selective colectomy followed by frozen section biopsy. This approach is aimed at preventing unnecessary excision of the colon and conserving the ileocecal valve. We present a 47-year-old woman operated for right lower quadrant peritonitis, believed to be due to acute appendicitis. On exploration, a biopsy-proven benign cecal ulcer was found and resected.

Traumatic Hyphema*

Tamar Talmon, Itzchak Beiran, Benjamin Miller

Dept. of Ophthalmology, Rambam Medical Center and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa

Traumatic hyphema usually occurs in young men at the rate of 17-20/1000,000. Major complications include secondary hemorrhage, glaucoma, corneal staining and disturbances in visual acuity. Final visual acuity is predominantly the outcome of all the ocular injuries occurring during the trauma, mainly to the posterior segment of the eye. We describe all cases of traumatic hyphema treated in our department over a period of 3.5 years. Antifibrinolytic treatment is recommended in the literature in traumatic hyphema to prevent secondary hemorrhage. Our findings differ from those in the literature in that they show a lower prevalence of more severe hemorrhages and of secondary hemorrhage. In light of these differences, and with regard to possible side effects of such treatment, we suggest that antifibrinolytic treatment not be used in our population. We recommend that treatment for traumatic hyphema should include restricted activity, local corticosteroidal preparations, frequent follow-up visits and vigorous diagnostic work-up in order to find any additional eye damage. We strongly recommend the use of preventive measures (eye-shields) in high risk activities such as sports, house-hold work and military training.

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* Based on work submitted to the Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, by Tamar Talmon in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the MD degree.

Identification of Sentinel and Axillary Node Involvement in Breast Cancer

M.Z. Papa, D. Bersuk, M. Koler, E. Klein, M. Sareli, G. Ben-Ari

Dept. of Surgical Oncology and Breast Unit, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer

Axillary node dissection for breast cancer is important for staging and prognosis. "Sentinel nodes" are the first nodes into which primary cancer drains. Identification, removal and pathological examination of those nodes indicates whether completion of axillary lymphadenectomy is required. The sentinel nodes are identified using a vital dye injected at the primary tumor site. With this technique we were able to identify sentinel nodes in 46 of 48 (95%) women examined. An average of 2.7‏1.2 nodes were identified as sentinel nodes. In 81% of cases there was a correlation between involvement of sentinel nodes and of other axillary nodes as well. In 10% of patients sentinel nodes were involved with tumor while other axillary nodes were negative. The major problem in routine application of this is relationship in surgical decisions is reliable real time pathological identification of lymph node involvement by tumor.

Penetrating Ocular Injuries: a Retrospective Study

M. Schneck, S. Weitzman, T. Lifshitz, B. Biedner

Dept. of Ophthalmology, and Epidemiology and Health Services Evaluation Unit, Soroka Medical Center and Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheba

Penetrating injuries of the eye are an important cause of unilateral visual loss. We studied a series of 82 cases of penetrating injuries treated here from 1987 through 1993. The injuries were caused by sharp objects in 66% and blunt trauma in 6%. The prognosis after a penetrating injury is greatly influenced by the nature of the injury and the extent of the initial drainage. Among factors associated with an unfavorable visual outcome were diminished preoperative visual acuity and scleral wounds with dense vitreous hemorrhage.

Carnitine Deficiency in Inborn Errors of Metabolism

B.-A. Sela, T. Lerman-Sagie, M. Berkovitz

Institute of Chemical Pathology, Chaim Sheba Medical Center and Section of Clinical Biochemistry, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University; Pediatric Neurology Unit, Wolfsohn Medical Center, Holon; and Children's Ambulatory Clinic, Assaf Harofeh Medical Center, Zrifin

Several conditions, considered as inborn errors of metabolism, involve severe deficiencies in carnitine in both plasma and muscle. In the absence of evidence suggesting primary carnitine deficiency due to a biosynthetic enzymatic defect in the liver, the various diseases with carnitine deficiency are related to genetic defects in organic acid metabolism leading to blocked mitochondrial b oxidation. We describe a 4.5-year-old boy and 2 female infants with glutaric aciduria type I, isovaleric acidemia, and long-chain acid dehydrogenase deficiency, in whom severe carnitine deficiency was apparent. In all 3, long-term carnitine treatment proved to be vital and eliminated most of the symptoms.

Limited Axillary Thoracotomy for Recurrent Spontaneous Pneumothorax

I. Bar, M. Simha, A. Nissan, Y. Shargal, M. Kramer, G. Merin

Depts. of Cardiothoracic Surgery and of Surgery, and Pulmonary Institute, Hadassah--University Hospital, Ein Karem; and Dept. of Surgery, Hadassah--University Hospital, Mt. Scopus, Jerusalem

Recurrent spontaneous pneumothorax often requires surgical intervention. Recently, less invasive thoracic surgical techniques, such as video-assisted thoracoscopy (VAT) and limited axillary thoracotomy (LAT), have been developed and used for different thoracic procedures. We describe our results with limited axillary thoracotomy, as compared with those of video-assisted thoracoscopy as reported in the literature. From October 1994 to May 1996, 14 patients with recurrent spontaneous pneumothorax, aged 16-33 years, underwent limited axillary thoracotomy, resection of blebs and apical pleurectomy, using multifire GIA 80 staplers (Auto Suture Inc.). There were no complications or recurrences during 5-17 months of follow-up. Mean operative time was 52.2 minutes and mean hospital stay 2.3 days postoperatively. Full activity was regained within 12.1 days. In comparison with over 75 cases of VAT from the literature, LAT is safe and offers the potential benefits of decreased operative time, hospital stay and cost.

Blunt Trauma causing Emboli from Friable Atherosclerotic Plaques

Selma Moses, Michael Motro, Yehuda Shoenfeld

Medical Dept. B and Cardiac Rehabilitation Institute, Chaim Sheba Medical Center and Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University

We present a 55-year-old woman who developed a shower of emboli following a car accident. Such events may have medicolegal implications as well as preventive considerations.

Participation of Patients with Uret-Eral Calculi in Clinical Decision Making, and Level of Anxiety

Ilana Margalith, Amos Shapiro

Hadassah-Hebrew University School of Nursing, and Dept. of Urology, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem

In a study examining the relationship between patient participation in clinical decision making and levels of anxiety, patients were offered a choice of treatment for ureteral calculus. 42 received information about 2 treatment options, ultrasound fragmentation of the stone through a ureteroscope and extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL), and were asked to choose the method that they preferred. 54 received treatment decided on by the physician without their participation in the decision making process. Anxiety was measured before meeting with the physician, immediately after the meeting and on hospitalization for treatment. The contribution of the patient's perception of participation in the decision- making process and level of education was also examined. There was a decrease in level of anxiety after meeting with the physician only among those who did not actually participate in the decision-making process (p<0.05). There was no change in the level of anxiety among those offered choice of treatment. However, a decrease in anxiety was evident among patients who perceived that they had received information about their illness and its treatment (p<0.01). This was not the case for patients who perceived themselves as participants in decision making unless they had a relatively high-level of education (p=0.05).

Consanguinity among Arabs in Israel

Lutfi Jaber, Orli Romano, Mordechai Shohat

Bridge to Peace Community, Taiba Pediatric Center; Schneider Children's Medical Center (Beilinson Campus), Petah Tikva and Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University

In a previous nationwide study, we examined the rate of consanguineous matings in the Israeli Arab community. The average inbreeding coefficient was 0.0192, much higher than that reported for the general population of Israel, 0.0038 in 1956-7. The inbreeding coefficients of 69 Arab villages, towns and cities (excluding the Bedouin in the South) were determined. Knowledge of the inbreeding coefficients of the various local populations is of value for geneticists, pediatricians and gynecologists and for planning suitable health programs.