Hestermitchell2488
Myasthenia gravis is an auto-immune disease that results in muscle weakness caused by antibodies released against acetylcholine receptors at the presynaptic membrane. Treatment options include acetylcholinesterase medications that cause a wide range of side-effects by increasing the concentration of acetylcholine at the synaptic cleft. One peculiar side effect seen is the precipitation of myocardial infarction caused by an excess of acetylcholine especially among elderly females. We present an interesting case of an 88-year-old female with a history of lung cancer newly diagnosed with paraneoplastic myasthenia gravis, started on treatment with prednisone 40 mg daily, and pyridostigmine 60 mg every six hours. She initially showed remarkable improvement in symptoms within a few hours, however, one day later, the patient developed sudden onset of chest pain radiating towards her left arm. A 12-lead electrocardiogram (EKG) showed diffuse ST-elevation in anterior leads and cardiac enzymes were found to be elevated. Pyridostigmine was stopped and the patient was started on heparin. The patient underwent cardiac catheterization which showed 50% stenosis in the right coronary artery (RCA) and 70% in the left anterior descending artery (LAD). The patient was monitored in the cardiac care unit (CCU) for 24 hours and later on discharged home on oral prednisone. It is a common practice to start treatment with anti-cholinesterase medications in newly diagnosed patients of myasthenia gravis, however, these medications can precipitate myocardial ischemia by coronary vasogenic spasm or by their arrhythmogenic effect. It is important to be aware of these outcomes while starting patients on these medications.Background Podcasts and their use in medical education, particularly emergency medicine (EM), are growing and becoming more popular. Many podcasts focus on EM, but the number of podcasts on each EM subspecialty remains unknown. Therefore, the goal of this study was to ascertain the number of podcasts available by EM subspecialty and collect the basic characteristics of each podcast. Methods We conducted a Google-based, investigational study of EM podcasts by subspecialty from July 2019 to January 2020. Search terms included "podcasts in ____", where the EM subspecialties of Toxicology, Ultrasound, Wilderness Medicine, Emergency Medicine Services, Medical Education, and Simulation were inserted to identify podcasts. Results Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and Medical Education subspecialties have the most active podcasts. Toxicology and EMS have the most inactive podcasts, while Medical Education and Simulation were the only subspecialties found to not have any identified inactive podcasts. Cefodizime research buy Conclusions The use of podcasts in EM has been increasing overall, but physicians in specific subspecialties, such as EMS and Medical Education, have access to a larger number of podcasts specific to their subspecialty than others. There is an opportunity for experts in Toxicology, Simulation, and Ultrasound to create podcast content.Background There has been an increasing incidence of drug abuse patients presenting with rhabdomyolysis after prolonged immobilization. Our study was to assess etiology and management challenges with patients presenting with gluteal compartment syndrome after drug abuse. Methodology We did a retrospective analysis of five patients who presented with gluteal compartment syndrome secondary to drug abuse over one year. Results We had a 100% association with rhabdomyolysis and acute renal injury necessitating hemodialysis. There was a frequent association with the involvement of additional compartments like thigh and leg. Conclusion Patients with drug overdose can present with unusual compartment syndrome involvement like the gluteal compartment. Compartment syndrome is a surgical emergency and needs multidisciplinary involvement.Background Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by infection with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), usually presents clinically with cough, fever, shortness of breath, and loss of taste and/or smell. COVID-19 can also present with neurologic signs and symptoms, including headache, hyposmia/anosmia, encephalopathy, meningoencephalitis, Guillain-Barré syndrome, stroke, and seizure. Viral transmission occurs through aerosols generated when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or exhales and by direct touching of contaminated surfaces. The present study evaluated the frequency of neurologic presentations of coronavirus disease in patients presenting at a tertiary care hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methodology This cross-sectional study included 350 inpatients and outpatients (self-isolated) with polymerase chain reaction-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection who presented at Dow International Medical College of Karachi between March and June 2020. Of these 350 patients, 68 quent in patients with COVID-19. Neurologic manifestations should be carefully monitored in infected patients. COVID-19 should be suspected in patients presenting with neurological abnormalities and should be included in the differential diagnosis to prevent further virus transmission.Background and Aim Early hemorrhoidal disease is usually treated conservatively with fiber diet and medical therapy with flavonoids or calcium dobesilate. The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy of these two agents in the treatment of early hemorrhoidal disease. Materials and Methods Patients having grade I and grade II hemorrhoidal disease were recruited in the study. One group received flavonoid therapy and the other group took calcium dobesilate treatment for three weeks. The symptoms and size of hemorrhoids were then assessed at the fourth week. Results In this study, 70.2% of patients were male and 29.8% of patients were female. Of the total patients, 58.65% of patients were below 45 years of age and 41.34% of patients were above 45 years of age. Moreover, 83.65% of patients had grade II hemorrhoids, whereas 16.34% of patients had grade I hemorrhoids; 80.8% of patients showed a decrease in frequency and amount of bleeding after being treated by flavonoids, whereas 67.3% showed a decrease in frequency and amount of bleeding after administration of calcium dobesilate.