Pulmonary Failure After Norwood Procedure: Indication for Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation? A Case Report

Today some authors consider univentricular repair a contraindication for postoperative cardiac extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). The question is whether or not ECMO is indicated as pulmonary support in case of an overwhelming pulmonary infection during the postoperative course after a Norwood procedure. During the prolonged weaning period after a Norwood procedure using a 4 mm aortopulmonary shunt, proven respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) bronchiolitis occurred at the time of expected weaning from artificial ventilation. Venovenous ECMO was able to improve oxygenation, but when pulmonary opacification failed to resolve, ECMO was terminated after 12 days.     

Acute clinical deterioration in a patient with end-stage dilated cardiomyopathy and left ventricular thrombus formation

The case of a 17-year-old male patient with severe end-stage dilated cardiomyopathy and a large thrombus formation within the cavum of the left ventricle is reported. After an acute thrombectomia combined with a partial left ventriculectomy (Batista procedure), the patient was successfully treated with an appropriate left ventricular assist device (LVAD) system using a centrifugal nonocclusive pump (Biomedicus, Medtronic, Anaheim, CA, U.S.A.). Mechanical support was removed on Day 9, and the patient was discharged from the hospital on Day 19. The effectiveness of emergency mechanical support in patients with very unfavorable prognoses is discussed.     

The "preoxygenation" special function in mechanical ventilators. Medically necessary and an ergonomic plus?

Hypoxia-related cardiovascular complications and unnecessary monitor and ventilator alarms are well-known problems during tracheobronchial suctioning. Preoxygenation together with temporary muting of acoustic alarms for tracheobronchial suctioning are provided by a single operational control of the ventilator "Evita", software release 9 (Dr?gerwerk AG). This integrated function was evaluated in medical and ergonomic respects. METHODS. Thirty tracheobronchial suctioning procedures each, with or without preoxygenation, were evaluated. The subjects were patients in our anesthesiological intensive care unit who were under continuous positive-pressure ventilation with FIO2 between 0.25 and 0.6. They ranged in age from 18 months to 72 years. Each patient served as her/his own control after about 1-h delays. Depending on the preference of the nurse, the procedures were either both on-ventilator (via the catheter port) or both off-ventilator suctionings. Arterial samples for blood gas analyses as well as arterial oxygen saturation (SaO2) determinations were taken before preoxygenation, at the moment of disconnection or opening of the catheter port, at reconnection or closure of the port, and 5 min later. Moreover, the number of changes in position of the performing nurse, the number of acoustic ventilator alarms, and the duration of the procedure were recorded. Finally, assessments of the integrated ventilator feature by the 28 participating nurses were collected both as a score from 1 ("most useful and innovative") to 5 ("completely superfluous and distracting") and as detailed statements. RESULTS. Arterial blood gas results and SaO2 courses differentiated as to procedures with or without preoxygenation as well as on-ventilator and off-ventilator suctioning are shown in Table 1 (values are mean +/- standard deviation). Without preoxygenation, most patients did not exhibit threatening drops in SaO2 (values fell from 98.2%) to 97.0% on the average). Nevertheless, preoxygenation provided an additional safety margin (100% saturation throughout the procedure in all patients). Under certain conditions, e.g., low functional residual capacity as in small children or patients with adult respiratory distress syndrome (in 1 of these cases we observed a SaO2 drop to 87%), it is mandatory. Although occurring far less frequently, unnecessary acoustic alarms were not completely excluded by the integrated function because the ventilator would not recognize the insertion of the suction catheter via the catheter port as the expected disconnection. Thus, coughing was able to trigger the "high airway pressure" alarm. As expressed by an average score of 2.8, approval of the integrated ventilator function prevailed among the involved nursing staff.     

B‐Cell lymphoproliferative disorder not associated with Epstein‐Barr Virus in a child with relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Lymphoproliferative disorder (LPD) is described in only a few children receiving chemotherapy for cancer. In all of them, an association between LPD and EBV (Epstein‐Barr Virus) was found. We report on a patient who developed LPD not associated with EBV while receiving chemotherapy for relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Despite discontinuation of chemotherapy, administration of intravenous immunoglobulins and surgery the patient died. Growing experience with this disorder may allow better treatment options in the future and will show whether LPD not associated with EBV requires different therapeutic strategies. Med Pediatr Oncol 2003;40:13–17, © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Incidence of apnoea and bradycardia in preterm infants following DTPw and Hib immunization: A prospective study

Objective: To evaluate the incidence and severity of apnoea and bradycardia in hospitalized preterm infants following immunization at 2 months of age, and identify risk factors.
Methodology: A prospective study of 98 preterm infants, of gestational age 24–31 weeks, immunized at approximately 2 months post natal age with diphtheria-tetanus-whole cell pertussis vaccine (DTP_w) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at King George V Hospital Sydney. Half the infants also received Haemophilus influenzae type b conjugate vaccine (Hib) simultaneously. All infants were monitored for apnoea and bradycardia in the 24 h periods pre- and post immunization.
Results: Only one infant had apnoea and/or bradycardia pre-immunization compared with 17 post immunization. For 12 infants these events were brief, self-limiting and not associated with desaturations (oxygen saturation <90%). However, for five infants (30%) these events were associated with oxygen desaturation and two of these infants required supplemental oxygen. The group that had apnoea and/or bradycardia and the group that did not were not significantly different in terms of gestational age, birth weight and other variables. Infants who received Hib together with DTP_w were less likely to have apnoea and/or bradycardia than those given DTP_w alone.
Conclusion: When considering immunization for preterm infants, the benefits of early immunization must be balanced against the risk of apnoea and bradycardia. We recommend that the cardio-respiratory function of hospitalized infants born at less than 31 weeks gestation be monitored for 48 h post immunization.     

Low-dose dopexamine in patients undergoing hemihepatectomy: an evaluation of effects on reduction of hepatic dysfunction and ischaemic liver injury

BACKGROUND: Hepatic dysfunction is a common problem in patients after hemihepatectomy. Treatment with low-dose dopamine has been shown to be beneficial in hemihepatectomy patients. We hypothesized that dopexamine, a synthetic vasoactive catecholamine, due to its specific pharmocodynamic profile may be more effective in reducing hidden ischaemic episodes in the hepato-splanchnic region during and after temporary total cross-clamping of hepatic inflow in these patients. METHODS: The effects of low-dose dopexamine on hepatic venous haemoglobin oxygen saturation (ShvO2), hepatic venous lactate level, monoethylglycinxylid (MEGX) formation, hepatic synthetic function and indicators for hepatic cell damage were studied during hemihepatectomy and for 16 h postoperatively in hemihepatectomy patients and compared to those of low-dose dopamine. In a prospective, double-blind clinical study 20 patients received randomly either dopexamine (DPX) 0.5 microg kg(-1) min(-1) (n=10) or dopamine (DO) 2.5 microg kg(-1) min(-1) (n= 10). Infusions were started after induction of anaesthesia and continued 16 h postoperatively. Hepatic vein, radial and pulmonary artery were catheterized. Measurements were carried out after induction of anaesthesia, after total cross-clamping of hepatic inflow, and at 2 h and 16 h postoperatively. RESULTS: There were no differences in systemic haemodynamics, oxygenation, ShvO2, serum aminotransferases or MEGX levels between the groups. At 16 h postoperatively prothrombin and antithrombin III levels were significantly lower while hepatic venous lactate was significantly higher in the DPX group compared to the DO group. CONCLUSION: In patients undergoing hemihepatectomy, we could not reveal superior hepatoprotective effects of low-dose dopexamine compared to low-dose dopamine.