Anesthesia in paraplegic patients. A brief Case Report-Based Literature Review

Despite the vast progress in contemporary medicine, the burden of spinal cord injury has increased over the last decades. Thus, more and more often patients with paraplegia appear for an emergency or elective surgery below the level of the injury. Anesthetic management of those patients can be turn out to be a challenge. Continue reading →

Category: 2023, 2023b, Case Reports, Current issue
Keywords: anesthesia, Paraplegia
Authors (a/b order): Aslanidis Th., Matsi K., Papachatzopoulou E.

Peritoneal Dialysis in adult Intensive Care Unit: Case report and literature review

Choice of peritoneal dialysis over other renal replacement therapy modalities for adult critically ill patients is still limited; despite the data against it. The present article presents a case of peritoneal dialysis in a patient with intracerebral hemmorhage and reviews the relevant literature. Continue reading →

Category: 2022, 2022b, Special Articles, Case Reports
Keywords: acute renal failure, Intensive Care, Peritoneal dialysis
Authors (a/b order): Aslanidis Th., Martika A., Spaia S.

Clinical impact of Medicinal Cannabis on Patients with Sickle Cell Disease Pain: A scope review

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is an umbrella term that defines a group of inherited diseases (in-cluding sickle cell anaemia (SCA), HbSC and HbSβ-thalassaemia) characterized by mutations in the gene encoding the haemoglobin subunit β¹. One of the most frequent and debilitant complications of the disease is the vaso-occlusive crisis (VOC), which is mediated by multicell adhesion between red blood cells (RBCs), white blood cells, platelets, and endo-thelial cells and causes intense pain in conse-quence of impaired oxygen supply, but also in-farction-reperfusion injury^2,3. Continue reading →

Category: 2022, 2022a, Review Articles
Keywords: medicinal cannabis, pain, sickle cell anemia
Authors (a/b order): Ashmawi H.A., Aslanidis Th., Darcy Alves Bersot C., Guimarães Pereira J.E., Palmeira C., Saffier I.P.

Resuscitation Medicine and death definition

Death is the reason for the existence of resuscitation. The Western definition of death has evolved continuously over the last three centuries. Today, the world recognizes two types of biological death: cardiac or “real” death (I,e. definitive cease of cardiac , respiratory and cerebral function) and encephalic death. The latter (brain death) has been accepted worldwide medically and legally as the biological state of death of the organism. Continue reading →

Category: 2022, 2022a, Case Reports
Keywords: brain death, Death, Resuscitation
Authors (a/b order): Aslanidis Th., Myrou A.

Raoultella planticola an emerging pathogen? Case report and literature review.

Raoultella planticola is a Gram-negative, oxidase-negative, aerobic that belongs to Enterobacteriaceae family and has a lot of similarities with Klebsiella spp. Though initially rare mentioned as an opportunistic infection, more and more reports are published. In the present article we present a case of an R. planticolla upper respiratory infection and we review the relevant literature. Continue reading →

Category: 2022, 2022a, Case Reports
Keywords: Raoultella planticola
Authors (a/b order): Aslanidis Th., Didangelos T., Myrou A., Savopoulos Ch.

Ginko leaf sign and subcutaneous emphysema in a patient with COVID-19

Subcutaneous emphysema (SE) refers to air in the subcutaneous tissues. Clinical manifestation is generally benign, yet in several cases it can provoke serious complications such as airway compromise, respiratory failure, pacemaker malfunction and tension phenomena. Treatment is usually aiming at the underlined cause, while the air is gradually absorbed from interstitial tissues. However, in extensive cases, surgical intervention may also needed¹. In the present article we present a case report of subcutaneous emphysema in patient with COVID-19 with presence of ginko leaf sign. Continue reading →

Category: 2021, 2021c, Case Reports
Keywords: covid-19, Ginko leaf sign, Subcutaneous emphysema
Authors (a/b order): Aslanidis Th., Pertsas E., Thoma G.

A case-based literature synthesis of extreme hyperferritinemia in critically ill patients with COVID-19

COVID-19 has brought up the interest about hyperferritinemic syndromes. Though often seen in COVID-19, especially within the frame of COVID-CSS, hyperferritinemia needs a systematic diagnostic approach, as co-infections or other causes may also increase ferritin. In this article, we present a case report of extreme hyperferrinemia in an male criticall ill patient with COVID-19 and we perform a short synthesis of the available literature. Continue reading →

Category: 2021, 2021b, Case Reports
Keywords: covid-19, Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis, Hyperferritinemia, ICU
Authors (a/b order): Aslanidis Th., Flioni EN., Myrou A., Papachristou D., Thoma G.

Status epilepticus and topiramate induced metabolic acidosis in a patient with multiple sclerosis under natalizumab therapy.

Therapy armamentarium for multpile sclerosis include a variety of drugs. Natalizumab, a humanized antibody, is widely used in relapsing-remissing multiple sclerosis. Anticonvulsants, like topiramate, are also widely used for symptomatic relief. We hereby describe a case of Status epilepticus and topiramate induced metabolic acidosis in a female patient with multiple sclerosis under natalizumab therapy. Continue reading →

Category: 2021b, Case Reports
Keywords: metabolic acidosis, Multiple sclerosis, Natalizumab, Status epilepticus, topiramate
Authors (a/b order): Aslanidis Th., Drampa F., Mytkani K., Syrmou E.

COVID-19 INDUCED ACUTE HYPOXAEMIC RESPIRATORY FAILURE: RESPIRATORY VENTILATORY STRATEGIES

Respiratory failure due to Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) disease has triggered a debate about when and how to apply mechanical ventilation in these patients, as it has been proposed that severe "atypical" ARDS of COVID-19 cause an ARDS pandemic. As global database grows, it is evident that about 6% of patients will need admission to the ICU. About 75% of these will require invasive ventilation, and approximately 10% will need ventilation beyond 14 days. Different ventilation strategies are followed yet there is no strong evidence in favor of anyone. The present article attempts to gather the daily evolving evidence on the subject. Continue reading →

Category: 2021, 2021a, Review Articles
Keywords: Acute hypoxemic respiratory failure (AHRF), anaesthesia, Critical Care, SARS-CoV-2
Authors (a/b order): Aslanidis Th., Bersot C.D.A, Lessa M.A.

SUBJECTIVE WORKLOAD MEASUREMENTS AMONG CRITICAL CARE NURSES IN A GREEK INTENSIVE CARE UNIT OF A SMALL URBAN HOSPITAL-PRELIMANARY RESULTS

Patient care in Intensive Care Units is characterized be high demanding tasks, which lead in daily high workload. In the present study, a questionnaire-based evaluation of ICU nurse’s workload was conducted at the adult general 7 - beds ICU of a small urban hospital. NASA Task Load Index (TLX) along with other two tools, used for the first time in healthcare environment: Instantaneous Self-Assessment (ISA) and Crew Status Survey (CSS) were used for that purpose. Information about every nurse’s professional background and basic demographics were also collected. Responses from 70% of total nurse staff were collected. Continue reading →