• LETTER FROM THE EDITORS.
• Chronic pain in critical illness survivors after Intensive Care Unit hospitalization.
• Postdural Headache.
• Sampling of microbial reservoirs in surgery and maternity departments of a hospital in Albania.
• Tension pneumothorax, a reversible cause of cardiac arrest.
• West Nile virus Encephalitis: Case report and review of the literature.
Continue reading
• Chronic pain in critical illness survivors after Intensive Care Unit hospitalization.
• Postdural Headache.
• Sampling of microbial reservoirs in surgery and maternity departments of a hospital in Albania.
• Tension pneumothorax, a reversible cause of cardiac arrest.
• West Nile virus Encephalitis: Case report and review of the literature.
Continue reading
The third issue of the Greek e-journal of Perioperative Medicine for 2020 covers a wide range of interest in perioperative scientific articles.
The first article of this issue is a narrative review of Staikou Ch et al, which identifies, in the existing literature, the providing information about the development of chronic pain after ICU stay. This article discusses the epidemiology, the risk factors, the pathophysiology and the treatment of chronic pain in intensive care survivors. The authors conclude that chronic pain after ICU stay demands vigilance, care and an individualized multimodal analgesic regimen, in order to improve the quality of surviving patient’s lives. Continue reading
Patients admitted to Intensive Care Units (ICU) have the highest mortality rates among hospitalized patients. For those who survive, recovery is often a prolonged rehabilitation period with physical, cognitive and psychological dysfunction. The aim of the present narrative review was to identify in the existing literature articles providing information about the development of chronic pain after ICU stay. We performed a PubMed search for publications up to 22 March 2020. We identified 41 articles eligible to be included in the present review; 29 of them were original research articles. Pre-existing chronic pain, previous poor health- related quality of life (HRQoL), but also the critical illness itself and organ support with multiple interventions, predispose to the development of chronic pain in the post-critical period, making it difficult to return to the pre-disease functional status. Opioid administration during mechanical ventilation is a common practice, frequently without reliable and systematic assessment of pain or individualized titration of dosage. Continue reading
Postdural puncture headache (PDPH) may occur after inadvertent dura mater puncture inepidural anaesthesiaor after spinal puncture in spinal anesthesia, spinal diagnostic or therapeutic procedures. It is characterized by severe headache that occurs within 5 days following thepuncture, located in the frontal and/or occipital region, not necessarily worsened in the upright position. PDPH is associated with substantially increased postpartum risks of major neurologicand other maternal complications, underscoring the importance of early recognition, follow up andtreatment particularly in obstetrics. Despite the fact that epidural blood patch is recognized as thegold standard in the treatment of PDPH, it is not without risk andpotentially may fail. Nerve blocks andnewer therapieshave been reported that could be efficacious, easy to administer and with less risk. In this review wepresent updated evidence and potential alternative therapies in the treatment of PDPH. Continue reading
Nosocomial infections continue to increase all over the world and remain a major cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitals. There are three elements required for the transmission of nosocomial infections: a reservoir of microbial agent, a susceptible host with a portal of entry receptive to the agent and a mode of transmission for the microbial agent.
Microorganisms that cause nosocomial infections derive primarily from human sources1-3 , but inanimate environmental sources are implicated in transmission4.
Human reservoirs include patients, healthcare personnel, household members and visitors5. People in hospitals are usually already in a ‘poor state of health’, impairing their defense against bacteria. Invasive devices impair natural lines of defense against pathogens and provide an easy route for infection. Patients already colonized at the time of admission are instantly put at greater risk when they undergo invasive procedures6. Continue reading
Pneumothorax is a collection of air in the pleural space between the lungs and the chest wall and depending on its cause it could be either spontaneous or traumatic. Tension Pneumothorax (TPT) can be a cause of cardiac arrest (CA) or might be a complication after chest compressions. According to the 2015 European Resuscitation Council guidelines on resuscitation, TP is considered one of the reversible causes of CA, which should be recognized and treated during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) Continue reading
West Nile virus is an RNA virus, member of the Japanese encephalitis serogroup of the genus Flavivirus, family Flaviviridae. First isolated in 1937, the virus has re-emerged after giving several outbreaks after the 1990 both in Europe and North America. Though severe neurological infection is only 1% of the total cases, mortality can reach 14% after CNS involvement. The present case report describes a case of WNV encephalitis with concomitant acute flaccid paralysis. Continue reading
• LETTER FROM THE EDITORS
• EDITORIAL - ΑΝΤΙΜΕΤΩΠΟΙ ΜΕ ΤΟΝ COVID-19.
• A MODEL FOR PERIOPERATIVE CARE IN A SUSPECTED COVID-19 PATIENT. BREAKING THE CHAIN OF TRANSMISSION.
• CARDIOPULMONARY RESUSCITATION IN PRONE POSITION IN CRITICALLY ILL PATIENTS WITH SARS-COV-2 INFECTION.
• PRE-HOSPITAL MEDICAL EMERGENCIES SERVICES ACTIVITY DURING COVID-19 LOCKDOWN IN AN URBAN SETTING, IN GREECE: FOCUSED CASES.
• FRACTURE OF NASOGASTRIC TUBE: A CASE REPORT. Continue reading
• EDITORIAL - ΑΝΤΙΜΕΤΩΠΟΙ ΜΕ ΤΟΝ COVID-19.
• A MODEL FOR PERIOPERATIVE CARE IN A SUSPECTED COVID-19 PATIENT. BREAKING THE CHAIN OF TRANSMISSION.
• CARDIOPULMONARY RESUSCITATION IN PRONE POSITION IN CRITICALLY ILL PATIENTS WITH SARS-COV-2 INFECTION.
• PRE-HOSPITAL MEDICAL EMERGENCIES SERVICES ACTIVITY DURING COVID-19 LOCKDOWN IN AN URBAN SETTING, IN GREECE: FOCUSED CASES.
• FRACTURE OF NASOGASTRIC TUBE: A CASE REPORT. Continue reading
This second issue of the Greek e-journal of Perioperative Medicine for 2020 is mainly dedicated to COVID-19 pandemic, with world-reported 6.762.211 confirmed cases and 394.992 deaths1.
As countries are trying to reemerge from their coronavirus lockdowns and reopen their economies, scientists fear a second wave of COVID-19 infections and deaths.
In this issue, the editorial originates from Intensive Care Unit of the AHEPA University Hospital in Thessaloniki, which is one of the forefronts of the effort to fight the new coronavirus pandemic in Thessaloniki. Their article describes their experiences and feelings in treating patients with COVID-19 infections. Continue reading
Οι καταστάσεις στις οποίες κληθήκαμε να ανταπεξέλθουμε ήταν ιδιαίτερες και πολλοί τις χαρακτήρισαν «εμπόλεμες». Το ιατρικό και νοσηλευτικό προσωπικό μετατράπηκε αυτομάτως σε στρατιώτες, που καθήκον τους ήταν να υπηρετήσουν και να αντιμετωπίσουν αυτόν τον πόλεμο. Ένα πόλεμο άνισο, έναν πόλεμο άγνωστο που δεν μας έδινε την δυνατότητα να έχουμε τα κατάλληλα επιστημονικά εφόδια στην φαρέτρα μας για να τον αντιμετωπίσουμε. Κατά την διάρκεια της πανδημίας οι επαγγελματίες υγείας της πρώτης γραμμής ήρθαν αντιμέτωποι με μια σειρά από σημαντικές προκλήσεις και πολλές πρακτικές δυσκολίες, αλλά κυρίως έπρεπε να κινηθούν σε αχαρτογράφητα μονοπάτια όσο αφορά στη διαχείριση και αντιμετώπιση του ιού. Τα καθήκοντα και οι υποχρεώσεις των επαγγελματιών υγείας κατά την διάρκεια της πανδημίας COVID-19 αντικρούονταν με τα καθημερινά καθήκοντα. Continue reading
