Acute limb ischemia due to abdominal compartment syndrome

Acute limb ischemia (ALI) is caused by embolisms or progressive atherosclerosis. We report the case of a 68‐year‐old female who presented with acute total occlusion of left iliac artery due to remarkably massive ascites from pancreatic cancer. To our knowledge, no other case reports of ALI caused by acute compartment syndrome have been published. We treated our case successfully by draining the ascites fluid without any balloon angioplasty or stent implantation. The removal of extrinsic compression may be the best treatment for cases of this type. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Late traumatic rupture of the chordae tendineae

A rare case of traumatic rupture of chordae tendineae with tricuspid regurgitation is described. The rupture occurred later trauma, with an unusual mechanism, in fact it has been produced by the strangling of valvular apparatus. This strangling occurred because heart's displacement in left thorax trough a pleural-pericardial window caused by trauma.     

Spleen rupture secondary to anticonvulsant hypersensitivity syndrome

Anticonvulsant hypersensitivity syndrome (AHS) is a rare complication associated with the use of anti-epileptic medications. The syndrome's main symptoms are cutaneous eruptions, fever, hepatitis, and lymphadenopathy. We describe a 23-year-old woman who developed AHS 2 months after starting phenytoin therapy. She presented with fever, orofacial edema, skin rash, and lymphadenopathy. Four days after admission, she developed agonizing epigastric pain with diffuse epigastric tenderness. An abdominal CT scan demonstrated splenomegaly with a large, hypodense area involving the upper half of the spleen, consistent with splenic rupture. She was managed medically in an effort to avoid splenectomy. There are no other documented cases of spleen rupture linked to AHS. A possible mechanism is the alteration of lymphocytic function due to the accumulation of cytotoxic metabolites and infiltration of the spleen with lymphocytic cells, distending the capsule and predisposing it for rupture. We believe that the case presented here should increase awareness of the potentially life-threatening complications associated with AHS.     

Late bronchoplasty for missed traumatic rupture of bronchus

Two patients of traumatic rupture of main bronchus are reported here. One patient presented 2 years after blunt chest trauma while the other patient presented 9 weeks after trauma. Lesion in both patients were missed in the immediate post-trauma period. In both patients pulmonary angiogram demonstrated normal vasculature in the atelectatic lung, while intraoperatively good compliance and elasticity were found. Bronchoplasty done in both patients had good postoperative results.     

Gluteal compartment syndrome after abdominal aortic aneurysm repair

A 66-year-old man underwent emergency surgery for a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm associated with right common and internal iliac aneurysms. Postoperatively, his right buttock was distended and tender to compression. A CT scan revealed an extremely swollen right gluteus maximus with decreased density. Macromyoglobinuria was noted, and creatine kinase and myoglobin were elevated: 87,800 IU/l and 144,300 ng/ml, respectively. Renal function had deteriorated and he was treated with hemodialysis until the 15th postoperative day. The patient recovered without any discomfort to the buttock or intermittent claudication. To our knowledge this is the first documented case of gluteal compartment syndrome after the repair of an abdominal aortic aneurysm.     

Chronic exertional compartment syndrome of the forearms secondary to weight training

SIR, Compartment syndrome (CS) occurs when the interstitialpressure in a closed fascial compartment increases to such adegree that local blood flow is compromised, resulting in tissueischaemia. CS usually presents acutely, most commonly as a resultof fractures, muscle rupture or intracompartmental vascularinjury [1], and generally requires immediate surgical treatment[2]. The most common sites involved are the thigh, calf andforearm. Chronic exertional compartment syndromes (CECS) aremuch less common and usually occur in the     

The abdominal compartment syndrome - widely unknown in gastroenterology

A sustained increase in intra-abdominal pressure may derange cardiovascular haemodynamics, respiratory and renal functions and finally lead to multi-organ failure. It is primarily seen in surgical intensive care units and is most frequently associated with small and large bowel surgery, vascular surgery, and abdominal trauma. An expert panel has defined elevated intra-abdominal pressure > 20 mmHg in conjunction with newly occurring organ dysfunction as "abdominal compartment syndrome" (ACS). This entity is not well recognised in gastroenterology, although ACS may occur as a complication of endoscopic perforation resulting in tension pneumoperitoneum. With the propagation of laparoscopic procedures it may be appropriate to emphasise the importance of intra-abdominal pressure monitoring in order to avoid this potentially lethal complication.     

Anterior tibial compartment syndrome following rupture of a popliteal cyst

 A ruptured popliteal cyst usually results in calf pain and swelling. We report the case of a patient with rheumatoid arthritis who developed anterior compartment syndrome of the leg following rupture of a popliteal cyst. Since acute compartment syndrome requires prompt treatment, clinicians should be aware of this rare complication. Received: May 17, 2002 / Accepted: August 9, 2002     

Thoracic compartment syndrome secondary to a thoracic procedure: a case report

Prolonged open sternotomy is a well-known phenomenon in the pediatric and adult cardiac surgery literature. It is usually an adjuvant in the treatment of a severely compromised heart. We present a case of thoracic compartment syndrome that developed postoperatively from a noncardiac thoracic procedure. Management, diagnosis, and literature review are presented.     

Delayed rupture of the middle colic artery secondary to blunt abdominal trauma.

The case of a 46-year-old man complaining of acute abdominal discomfort is presented. The patient fell 3 ft and injured his abdomen in the right upper quadrant four days before his emergency department visit. The complete workup revealed an acutely ruptured middle colic artery. The presenting symptoms, laboratory work, differential diagnosis, computed tomography scan, treatment, and follow-up are reviewed. This case is unusual in that delayed rupture of the middle colic artery secondary to blunt abdominal trauma had not been described previously.     

The abdominal compartment syndrome: a complication with many faces

BACKGROUND: Lately renewed attention has been given to the abdominal compartment syndrome. Despite of this there still remain a lot of controversies with regard to the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying this syndrome and the therapeutic options. METHODS: Two cases of patients with this syndrome are described and the data from animal and human trials concerning the abdominal compartment syndrome are presented and discussed. RESULTS: A variety of clinical disorders may lead to the abdominal compartment syndrome. It mainly affects the cardiovascular, pulmonary and renal organ systems. Although some clinical effects are clearly described, the exact mechanisms underlying these changes in humans are incompletely understood. It is still unclear why some patients develop abdominal compartment syndrome and others do not. The intra-abdominal pressure can easily be assessed by measuring the urine bladder pressure, which correlates well with the actual intra-abdominal pressure. All authors agree that a decompression of the abdomen by means of a laparotomy is the treatment of choice for the abdominal compartment syndrome. Which parameters should determine the indication however, remains controversial, since the correlation between clinical signs and pressure is not straightforward. CONCLUSIONS: The abdominal compartment syndrome is a well-recognised disease entity related to acutely increased abdominal pressure. Urgent laparotomy can be lifesaving in some cases. However no single threshold of abdominal pressure can be applied universally. Pending further clinical trials the best therapeutic option seems to be to decompress the abdomen surgically if the intravesical pressure is 25 mmHg or higher in patients with refractory hypotension, acute renal failure or respiratory failure due to abdominal distension.     

Early recognition of abdominal compartment syndrome in patients with acute pancreatitis

AIM： To assess the value of widely used clinical scores in the early identification of acute pancreatitis （AP） patients who are likely to suffer from intra-abdominal hypertension （IAH） and abdominal compartment syndrome （ACS）.
METHODS： Patients （η = 44） with AP recruited in this study were divided into two groups （ACS and non-ACS） according to intra-abdominal pressure （IAP） determined by indirect measurement using the transvesical route via Foley bladder catheter. On admission and at regular intervals, the severity of the AP and presence of organ dysfunction were assessed utilizing different multifactorial prognostic systems： Glasgow-Imrie score, Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation Ⅱ （APACHE-Ⅱ） score, and Multiorgan Dysfunction Score （MODS）. The diagnostic performance of scores predicting ACS development, cut-off values and specificity and sensitivity were established using receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curve analysis.
RESULTS： The incidence of ACS in our study population was 19.35%. IAP at admission in the ACS group was 22.0 （18.5-25.0） mmHg and 9.25 （3.0-12.4） mmHg in the non-ACS group （P 〈 0.01）. Univariate statistical analysis revealed that patients in the ACS group had significantly higher multifactorial clinical scores （APACHE Ⅱ, Glasgow-Imrie and MODS） on admission and higher maximal scores during hospitalization （P 〈 0.01）. ROC curve analysis revealed that APACHE Ⅱ, Glasgow-Imrie, and MODS are valuable tools for early prediction of ACS with high sensitivity and specificity, and that cut-off values are similar to those used for stratification of patients with severe acute pancreatitis （SAP）.
CONCLUSION： IAH and ACS are rare findings in patients with mild AR Based on the results of our study we recommend measuring the IAP in cases when patients present with SAP （APACHE Ⅱ 〉 7; MODS 〉 2 or Glasgow-Imrie score 〉 3）.     

暴发性胰腺炎时腹腔室膈综合征的治疗进展

暴发性胰腺炎(fulminantacutepancreatitis,FAP)是重症急性胰腺炎(severeacutepancreatitis,SAP)中的一种亚型,SAP患者中约25%为FAP,其病死率高达60%,并且治疗无章可循.SAP患者约11%并发腹腔室膈综合征(abdominalcompartmentsyndrome,ACS),而FAP时ACS发生率更高,腹腔室膈综合征是FAP患者病死的主要原因之一.因此,暴发性胰腺炎时腹腔室膈综合征的防治成为重症急性胰腺炎研究的重点和热点.     

An autopsy case of abdominal compartment syndrome in a patient with schizophrenia

A 61-year-old man who had taken several kinds of psychotropic agents for schizophrenia from eighteen was admitted due to acute abdomen. In spite of any treatment he died after arrival. The autopsy revealed marked dilation of gastrointestinal tracts without necrosis through stomach to rectum and pathological examination disclosed hypoganglionosis of whole gastrointestinal wall. We thought that he died of abdominal compartment syndrome as a result of acute on chronic secondary pseudo-obstruction of gastrointestinal tracts due to acquired hypoganglionosis, megacolon, and aerophagia.