Tedium vitae in stroke survivors: a comparative cross-sectional study

Objectives: Suicide is best studied by deconstructing the psychological experiences preceding suicidal death. We assessed the characteristics of tedium vitae (feeling tired of life) after first ever stroke in Nigerian survivors.

Methods: Using the Schedule for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry, tedium vitae was assessed in 130 stroke survivors attending rehabilitation in a large Nigerian university hospital. Global cognitive and executive dysfunctions were evaluated, respectively, using the Mini Mental State Examination and the modi?ed Indiana University Token test. All participants had their index stroke 3 to 24 months before recruitment into the study. We also examined a comparative group of 130 age, gender, and education matched apparently normal persons who were unrelated to the stroke survivors. Associations were explored using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses.

Results: Tedium vitae was experienced by 16 (12.3%) stroke survivors compared with 5 (3.9%) in the comparative group (O. R = 3.5, 95% C. I = 1.3–9.9, p = 0.018). Among stroke survivors, those who were retired were more likely to experience tedium vitae (56.2%, p = 0.045). In analyses adjusting for the effect of systemic hypertension, cognitive dysfunction, retirement and marital separation, there was a 3.5-fold increase in the odds of experiencing tedium vitae after surviving a stroke (O. R = 3.5, 95% C. I = 1.1–11.6, p = 0.042).

Conclusions: Tedium vitae is a common suicidal experience after stroke and may be among the earliest perceptible pointer to impending poststroke suicide. It is easy to assess and may be less costly to obtain an adequate sample size in studies aiming to understand the phenomenon of suicide in the stroke population.     

“Obesity paradox” in coronary artery disease

Obesity used to be among the more neglected public health problems, but has unfolded as a growing medical and socioeconomic burden of epidemic proportions. Morbid obesity is linked to traditional cardiovascular risk factors like, hypertension, hyperlipidemia and diabetes, and suspected to incur increased morbidity and mortality in the Western and even third world populations. This patient cohort is also at greater risk to develop coronary artery disease. Recent population-based registries revealed that 43% and 24% of all cases of coronary revascularization were carried out in overweight and obese patients, respectively. However, despite evidence of a positive correlation between obesity and increased cardiovascular morbidity, some authors have described a better clinical outcome in overweight and obese patients, a phenomenon they coined “obesity paradoxon”. Thus, there is an ongoing debate in light of conflicting data and the possibility of confounding bias causing misconception and challenging the “obesity paradox”. In this review article we present the current evidence and throughly discuss the validity of the “obesity paradoxon” in a variety of clinical settings.     

Acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis due to ceftriaxone: Report of a pediatric case with recurrence after positive patch test

Acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP) is seen uncommonly in children and sometimes shows atypical clinical features in this population. Patch testing can be used effectively in children for the confirmation of the culprit drug in cases of multiple drug use. Here, we report a rare, pediatric case of ceftriaxone‐induced AGEP confirmed by patch testing with subsequent recurrence of the skin eruption.     

Liver Transplantation Following Life-threatening Abdominal Trauma: A Case Series of 5 Patients at a Single Institution

Managing traumatic liver injury (TLI) is always challenging and demands precise clinical judgment. Currently, treatment of TLI in most circumstances is non-operative; however, surgical therapy might be required for severe TLI, particularly those that result in extensive blood loss. In the current institutional study carried out from June 1995 to April 2017, we describe our experience with 5 patients who received an orthotopic liver transplant for severe TLI. One patient passed away postoperatively from cerebral edema; 1 patient died of renal failure 4 years after the liver transplantation, and 3 patients are still alive. Based on our experience, we conclude that in patients with TLI, especially those with uncontrollable bleeding or those who develop liver failure, liver transplantation should be taken into consideration.     

Is it possible that direct rigid laryngoscope-related ischemia–reperfusion injury occurs in the tongue during suspension laryngoscopy as detected by ultrasonography: a prospective controlled study

Abstract

Background: Tongue-related complications can be seen in suspension laryngoscopy (SL) procedures.

Aims/objectives: This study aimed to detect tongue edema associated with the pressure exerted by a rigid direct laryngoscope by measuring the tongue area using ultrasonography (USG) in patients undergoing SL procedures.

Material and methods: The study group included 31 patients and the control group consisted of 33 patients. Submental USG examinations of the tongue in the coronal plane were performed. In the study and control groups, the first examination (TA¹) was done immediately after intubation and the second examination (TA²) was done after the surgery procedure but before extubation. The USG results regarding tongue area for both the groups were compared.

Results: The study and control groups significantly differed in terms of the postoperative tongue area measurements (TA²), as well as tongue edema (based on the TA²???TA¹) values.

Conclusions and significance: Direct rigid laryngoscopes may cause tongue edema in SL procedures which was demonstrated by the USG. This tongue edema can be a result of ischemia–reperfusion injury in the tongue due to the pressure exerted by a direct rigid laryngoscope. This study is the first to demonstrate the possible role of USG examination in determining the side effects of SL procedures on the tongue.

Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04205253     

Alteration of Auto-CPAP requirements in obstructive sleep apnea patients with COVID-19 history

BackgroundCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease that leads to critical respiratory problems.Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most common sleep-associated breathing disease and is represented by repetitive experiences of constraint of the respiratory tract prompting to reduced or deficient breathing during sleep.Auto-Continuous positive airway pressure (Auto-CPAP) is a modality of respiratory ventilation used as gold standart in the treatment of OSA.ObjectiveThis study was performed to conclude the alteration of Auto-CPAP levels in OSA patients who had COVID-19 history.MethodsNineteen OSA patients who had cured COVID-19 and used Auto-CPAP were included in this study. Nightly Auto-CPAP 95th percentile pressure (95thpp), median CPAP pressure and AHI before COVID-19 disease and one month after COVID therapy were recorded from electronic cards of Auto-CPAP devices.ResultsBefore COVID infection, average Auto-CPAP 95thpp was 8.56 ± 0.17 cm H₂O. One month after COVID-19, average Auto-CPAP 95thpp was 9.78 ± 0.21 cm H₂O (P < 0.01). While Median CPAP pressure was 7.49 ± 0.16 cm H₂O before COVID, it was found to be 8.15 ± 0.19 cm H₂O after the disease (P < 0.01).ConclusionsThe increase in need of average Auto-CPAP 95thpp and median CPAP pressure in OSA patients who have had COVID-19 disease and use Auto-CPAP shows that this disease causes problems in both the lower and upper airways.