תוצאת חיפוש

Hemato-Oncology Patients in Acute Respiratory Failure in the ICU

R. Ben-Abraham, E. Segal, I. Hardan, D. Shpilberg,S. Stemer, A. Shitrit, I. Ben-Bassat, A. Perel

Depts. of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, Hematology, Oncology and Clinical Epidemiology; Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer and Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University

Hemato-oncology patients needing mechanical ventilation for acute respiratory failure (ARF) have an extremely poor prognosis, with a mortality of more than 90%. Over an 18 month-period 17 such patients were admitted to our ICU. Diagnoses included leukemia (11 cases), lymphoma (1), and status post bone marrow transplantation for leukemia, lymphoma or breast cancer (5). Of 8 whose ARF was associated with septic complications due to neutropenia following chemotherapy, 6 survived. Of 9 who developed ARF due to toxic damage to vital organs following high-dose chemotherapy, 2 survived. Those who develop ARF during chemotherapy are expected to have an increase in granulocyte count within days, and have a surprisingly good prognosis. They should be admitted to the ICU and treated aggressively. Those who develop sepsis due their primary disease and whose general condition contraindicates chemotherapy, have an extremely grave prognosis and admission to the ICU may not be warranted.

Radical Retropubic Prostatectomy

Ran Katz, Amos Shapiro, Shimon Meretyk, Ezekiel H. Landau, Dov Pode

Urology Dept., Hadassah,University Hospital and Hebrew University,Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem

Radical prostatectomy may cure most patients in whom the malignant tumor has not invaded through the prostatic capsule. Advances in surgical technique and accumulation of experience have decreased the complication rate significantly. Long-term results of surgical treatment are now better than those of other forms of treatment; hence radical prostatectomy is now recommended for men with life expectancies longer than 10 years. Between 1988 and 1995, 164 men with clinical stages T1 or T2 adenocarcinoma were admitted for radical prostatectomy. Most were not offered a nerve-sparing procedure, so as to allow wider, more complete resection. Those who wanted preservation of sexual function underwent the nerve- preserving procedure. In 6 patients operation was discontinued when metastases to the iliac lymph nodes were detected and in 1 when invasion of the pelvic wall was found. 157 underwent radical prostatectomy. Preoperative biopsy revealed a low-grade lesion (Gleason 2-4) in 19.1%, intermediate grade (Gleason 5-6) in 61.8% and high-grade (Gleason 7-9) in 19.1%; however, pathologic grading revealed that only 7.0% had grade 2-4 tumor, 60.5% grade 5-6 and 32.5% grade 7-9. Pathologic staging revealed T2 tumor in 58%, T3 in 38.8% (including microscopic invasion of the capsule or seminal vesicles); microscopic lymph node metastases were found in 3.2%. Tumor invasion through the capsule was found in only 2 of 13 treated with neoadjuvant androgen blockade, compared with 40% in those who did not receive this treatment. There was no operative mortality and only 14.7% has complications. All had urinary incontinence immediately after operation, but regained continence after an average of 4-5 months. 24 were incontinent for more than 12 months, but most of them had only mild stress incontinence. Most patients were impotent after the procedure. There was tumor recurrence, diagnosed by rise in serum PSA, in 26 during an average follow-up of 26.4 months (range 3-93). Cure rate of prostatic cancer by radical prostatectomy may be increased by improved preoperative staging methods and better patient selection; long term follow up is required for determining cure rate.

Gynecologic Problems of the Lower Genital Tract in Children and Young Adolescents

Giulia Barda, Dino Bernstein, Sagit Arbel-Alon, Haim Zakut, Joseph Menczer

Dept of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Edith Wolfson Medical Center, Holon and Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University

Hospital records of 46 girls under the age of 17 years, hospitalized for lower genital tract problems in 1986-95 were reviewed. The most common conditions were results of unintentional injuries (43.5%), imperforate hymen (28.2%) and infections (19.6%). The median age for unintentional injuries was significantly lower than for other conditions (7.0 vs 11.4; p<0.001). Most injuries were external and occurred during outdoor activities. Mean volume of estimated bloody fluid drained in those with imperforate hymen was greater when the diagnosis was made after the age of 12 (783 vs 433; not significant). It has been suggested that hematocolpos and hematometra should be prevented, but the possible unfavorable sequelae have not been documented. The relative order of frequency of the various diagnostic groupings and the diagnoses of labial adhesions and imperforate hymen are specific for the age of the study group.

Surgical Approach to Benign Extradural Lesions of the Thoracic Spine

Ely Ashkenazi, Stephen T. Onesti, W.J. Michelsen

Depts. of Neurosurgery, Hadassah University Hospital, Jerusalem and Montefiore Medical Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, The Bronx, New York

A benign epidural lesion in the thoracic spine is rare, and usually the result of intervertebral disc herniation or infection. Not long ago patients were diagnosed late in the course of their disease and the surgical results of the standard laminectomy usually performed were grave. The development of newer imaging techniques (CT and MRI) has made diagnosis much easier, so diagnosis is often earlier, when neurological deficit is minimal. Newer neurosurgical techniques and approaches to the thoracic spoine have been developed to treat these lesions, which we describe. Clinical data on 16 patients operated from January 1996 to January 1997 are presented.

Embolic Splenic Infarction: A Rare Complication of Atrial Fibrillation

Doron Merims, Doron Zilberman, Liliana Lupu, Emanuel Sikuler

Depts. of Medicine B and Radiology, Soroka Medical Center and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheba

Splenic infarction is a rare disorder. The typical clinical presentation is sudden pain in the left upper quadrant of the abdomen, and awareness to this possibility is the major clue for diagnosis. We describe a 49-year-old man with chronic atrial fibrillation and splenomegaly who was treated with anticoagulants. Because of hematuria, the regular dose of anticoagulant therapy was reduced. The hematuria stopped but he complained of sudden onset of pain in the left upper quadrant. Computerized tomography and isotope scan of the spleen confirmed the clinical suspicion of splenic infarction. Treatment with anticoagulants and analgesics was followed by clinical improvement.

Red Cell Na+/H+ Exchange and Role of Protein Kinase C in its Stimu-Lation in Diabetes Mellitus, Essential Hypertension and Nephropathy

Wladimir Koren, Robert Koldanov, Edna Peleg, Eva Izsak, Meir Berezin, Talma Rosenthal

Dept. of Medicine C, Hypertension Unit and Endocrinology Institute, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer

Na+/H+ exchange (NHE) was measured as maximal initial velocity of pH-dependent H+ efflux from red cells into an alkaline medium containing Na+ in patients with insulin-dependent or noninsulin-dependent diabetes, with and without hypertension and in normoglycemic, essential hypertensives and normal controls (50 subjects in each subgroup). Maximal velocities of NHE were found in microalbuminuric patients in all subgroups, and NHE correlated with the rate of microalbuminuria (r=0.61, p=0.02). Daily insulin requirements were greater in those with elevated NHE (84±8 vs 42±4 U/day). There was no correlation between NHE and levels of plasma glucose, HbA1 and plasma aldosterone and lipid profile and PRA. NHE was correlated with plasma prolactin (r=0.51, p=0.02) and PTH r=0.24, p=0.05). In uremic patients, NHE was inversively correlated with creatinine clearance (r=-0.48, p=0.03). Since calphostin C, a selective inhibitor of protein kinase C, lowered increased NHE in vitro, the protein kinase C-dependent pathway of the exchanger regulation was concluded to be responsible for NHE activation in diabetes mellitus and essential hypertension.

Knowledge of Adolescents about the Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

Shoshana Weiss

Prevention Department, Israel Society for the Prevention of Alcoholism, Ramat Gan

The level of knowledge of the risks of drinking during pregnancy in 175, 17-18 year olds from kibbutzim in the eastern Upper Galilee was studied in January 1996. This population had the highest rate of involvement with alcohol in Israel and had been involved in alcohol education activities in previous years. About 53.71% of the sample believed that heavy drinking increases the risk of birth defects, but only 20.57% could correctly describe the fetal alcohol syndrome.

Between "Transparent Room" and "Sealed Room:" Professional Confidentiality and Therapeutic Judgement

Yuval Melamed, Ami Levy, Henry Szor

Abarbanel Mental Health Center, Bat Yam and Shalvata Mental Health Center, Hod HaSharon

Patients and therapists are concerned with the complexities of protecting medical confidentiality. The traditional perception of protection of patient confidentiality is that the individual's interest in protecting his confidentiality may conflict with the public's need for information, especially in cases involving possible danger. In fulfilling his dual role of representing both the patient and the public, the therapist acts according to existing laws and regulations. We describe 3 cases in which refraining from providing the Army with information in accordance with the law was recognized in retrospect as having caused the patient suffering, and even danger. It is recommended that the therapist's judgement be considered in addition to other legal criteria for determining whether or not to protect patient confidentiality.

Familial Adenomatous Polyposis: Establishing a Registry and Genetic and Molecular Analysis

R. Shomrat, R. Bruchim, Y. Galanty, Z. Samuel, C. Legum, M. Rabau, P. Rozen

Genetic Institute and Depts. of Gastroenterology and Surgery, Tel Aviv Medical Center and Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University

Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), a dominantly inherited disease, is caused by a mutation in the adenomatous polyposis coli gene in chromosome 5q21. The gene has 15 exons, a physical length of 10 Kb and an open reading frame of 8.5 Kb. Exon 15 codes 66% of the mRNA and has a mutation cluster region which accounts for over 50% of mutations. The disease usually leads to the appearance of hundreds of adenomatous polyps in the transverse and descending colon between puberty and age 20 years and to colon cancer before the age of 40. Early detection is essential to prevent the development of metastasizing cancer. Since 1994 we have recruited 23 families for genetic counseling. DNA was obtained from 19 unrelated FAP patients and 219 high risk relatives in 19 unrelated families following confirmation of the diagnosis. In addition to linkage studies, direct mutational analysis was performed using the protein truncation test for most of exon 15 and single strand conformation polymorphism analysis for the other exons. These exons account for most of the mutations identified to date. Of 19 unrelated probands, 14 had detectable mutations. Exon 15 accounted for 6 families, exons 5, 7 and 14 for 1 each, exon 9 for 3, and exon 8 for 2. Combined mutational and linkage analysis identified 18 presymptomatic carriers who received genetic and clinical counseling. Our FAP patients did not differ significantly from those of larger studies in other countries with regard to the distribution of the mutations, gender and genotype-phenotype correlation, or ethnic distribution.