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Biomedical subjects

J C Kolb

Publications and source records attributed to J C Kolb.

13 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Cervical collar-induced changes in intracranial pressure.

Placement of a protective cervical collar is common in cases of acute head trauma. However, the effect of this collar on intracranial pressure is uncertain. This prospective study examined the change in measured cerebrospinal fluid pressure (CSFP) after the application of a rigid Philadelphia collar in 20 adult patients undergoing lumbar puncture. CSFP averaged 176.8 mm H2O initially and increased to an average of 201.5 mm H2O after collar placement (range 0 to 120). Although this difference of 24.8 mm H2O is statistically significant (P = .001), it is uncertain if this would be clinically important. Nonetheless, this small increment in pressure could be significant in patients who already have an elevated intracranial pressure.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Prevalence of atypical chest pain descriptions in a population from the southern United States.

INTRODUCTION: The character of chest pain (CP) is a major factor determining triage and admission for patients presenting to the emergency department (ED). Previous studies have found atypical descriptions in as little as 10-15% of patients with true myocardial ischemic pain. Atypical descriptions may be more prevalent in the Deep South of the United States because of cultural differences in the semantic description of pain. METHODS: A retrospective study of patients presenting to the ED of a southern U.S. urban hospital with enzyme-documented myocardial infarction was conducted to determine the prevalence of atypical CP descriptions. A multivariate analysis of those patients with atypical pain descriptions was conducted to determine the independent demographic factors associated with these descriptions. RESULTS: In a total of 77 subjects (56% black; 44% white) meeting the study criteria, 43% were found to have atypical elements in the character of their CP descriptions. Only the black race demographic was found to be significantly correlated with the atypical descriptions. The use of the descriptive term "sharp" accounted for nearly half of the atypical presentations. CONCLUSION: Regional differences in the description of the character of CP may result in misleading portrayals of ischemic heart disease in southern U.S. populations. These differences are associated with a higher prevalence of atypical CP because of semantic distinctions, such as the use of the term "sharp" as a descriptor of acuity rather than character or quality.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Diagnostic uses for thoracic electrical bioimpedance in the emergency department: clinical case series.

Differentiation of the central haemodynamic state is often critical during acute resuscitation. A clinical case series is presented in which the use of thoracic electrical bioimpedance (TEB) was pivotal in the diagnostic determination of the pathophysiology. This new technology allows the emergency physician to rapidly determine cardiac output, total peripheral resistance and myocardial contractility. The inexpensive and non-invasive nature of the TEB measurement makes cardiac output determination a potential 'sixth' vital sign for the evaluation of the emergent patient.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Differentiating systolic from diastolic heart failure using impedance cardiography.

OBJECTIVE: Differentiating systolic from diastolic congestive heart failure (CHF) is often difficult in the ED. Impedance cardiography (IC) allows for the noninvasive evaluation of systolic function and measurement of diastolic time intervals. This study was designed to assess the ability of IC to accurately measure isovolumic relaxation time (IVRT) and determine relative cardiac contractility, thereby differentiating systolic from diastolic mechanisms in acute CHF. METHODS: In an evaluation of the technique, the average differences in the diastolic time intervals measured in normal subjects by both IC tracings and phonocardiography were compared. Likewise, the average Heather index (HI) of patients with known systolic dysfunction (ejection fraction < 30% by echo-cardiography) was compared with the mean HI measured in the normal subjects. In a retrospective analysis, the clinical performance of the method was examined by extracting the values of IVRT and HI from IC tracings of patients presenting with CHF. The determined IVRT and HI values were then correlated to clinical markers for diastolic and systolic dysfunction. RESULTS: Analysis of 280 IC tracings in eight healthy volunteers revealed an average difference of 0.0075 seconds (95% CI = -0.0067 to 0.0217) when IVRT intervals measured by phonocardiography and IC are compared. The HI in this normal group averaged 14.2 (95% CI = 9.4 to 19.0), contrasting to the much lower value of 2.8 (95% CI = 1.98 to 3.62) seen in eight subjects with documented systolic dysfunction. In 26 patients with decompensated CHF, there was a close correlation (r = 0.81) of the measured IVRT to left ventricular hypertrophy by voltage criteria and while a fall in the HI was correlated with intravascular volume expansion. Though there was considerable overlap (46%) in mechanisms of CHF, 35% of the patients were found to have only systolic dysfunction (HI < 5 and IVRT < 0.125), while 19% had a predominantly diastolic etiology (IVRT > 0.125 and HI > 5) for their failure. CONCLUSION: IC measures of contractility and diastolic time intervals are a potentially effective method for differentiating the dominant mechanisms of CHF in the emergent setting and categorizing CHF patients into different subsets.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1998

Role of technetium-99m sestamibi myocardial imaging in the emergency department evaluation of chest pain.

The use of technetium-99m sestamibi myocardial imaging is rapidly becoming a state of the art methodology for the emergency department evaluation of patients with chest pain. The following case report represents the first emergency department sestamibi scan ordered at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and is used to discuss the logistics and indications for such tests. A general guideline for ordering sestamibi scans has been developed for use in the emergency department.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Gastric syphilis.

A sexually transmitted disease is seldom considered in the differential diagnosis of patients with clinical gastritis. A patient with gastric syphilis is reported to alert emergency department physicians to this entity. History and physical findings of syphilis should be sought and rapid plasma reagin tests should be obtained in the patient with severe or refractory gastritis.

Abdominal Pain↗
PubMed1993

Simultaneous asymmetric bilateral traumatic hip dislocation.

A 25-year-old man presented to the emergency department with simultaneous right anterior and left posterior hip dislocations resulting from a motor vehicle accident. Simultaneous bilateral traumatic hip dislocation is an uncommon occurrence. More rare is asymmetric simultaneous bilateral hip dislocation, with only ten cases documented in the English-language literature. The importance of an anteroposterior pelvic radiograph after significant major trauma is emphasized. Several serious complications can be associated with this condition, so expeditious management in the ED is warranted.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed1991

Usefulness of empiric chest radiography and urinalysis testing in adults with acute sickle cell pain crisis.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine the usefulness of obtaining routine chest radiographs and urinalyses on adults presenting to the emergency department in acute sickle cell pain crisis. The hypothesis tested is that in some adult sickle cell patients, sickle cell pain crises are precipitated or accompanied by acute infection that may be clinically occult and that routine screening for pulmonary or urinary tract infection would identify some of these precipitating illnesses. DESIGN: Prospective clinical study. SETTING: A university hospital ED. PATIENTS: All patients more than 14 years old with S-S, S-C, or S-beta-thalassemia sickle hemoglobinopathies who presented to the ED with acute nontraumatic painful complaints during a six-month period. INTERVENTIONS: All patients underwent posteroanterior and lateral chest radiography, routine urinalysis, and CBC count with reticulocyte count. A standard questionnaire for localizing symptoms of systemic, pulmonary, and urinary tract infection was completed for each patient. Urine cultures were ordered on all patients with voiding symptoms, flank pain, and/or more than 5 WBCs or RBCs per high-power field on urinalysis. Physical examination for evidence of pulmonary and urinary tract infection was carefully performed and recorded for subsequent analysis. RESULTS: Seventy-one patients with 134 ED presentations were studied over a six-month period. Eight diagnoses of acute pneumonia were made. Four of these patients complained of chest pain (50% vs 48% overall) and three had shortness of breath (38% vs 21%). None of these patients complained of fever or symptoms of upper respiratory illness. Ten diagnoses of urinary tract infection were made. Four of these patients complained of dysuria and frequency; three complained of flank pain. Eleven of the 18 infections (61.1%) did not have a typical history for or suggestive physical or laboratory findings of bacterial infection. CONCLUSION: In sickle cell disease patients with pain crisis, routine chest radiography and urinalysis may be clinically useful and cost effective in the early diagnosis of crisis-related infection.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1990

Chylous drainage from a stab wound to the neck.

A 24-year-old man was assaulted and sustained a stab wound to the left lower neck. When he arrived at the emergency department, he was hemodynamically stable. Although the wound had penetrated the platysma, on initial evaluation the patient did not appear to have sustained significant injury. Closer examination of the wound revealed chylous drainage, indicating injury to the cervical portion of the thoracic duct. The patient was taken to the operating room for exploration of the wound, during which an injury to the left internal jugular vein was identified and repaired. The thoracic duct, which had been severed, was ligated. The remainder of the patient's hospital course was unremarkable. The consistent association between penetrating injury to the cervical portion of the thoracic duct and injury to neighboring vascular structures is discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Acute carbon monoxide poisoning: emergency management and hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

An ice storm in February 1989 resulted in numerous incidences of carbon monoxide poisoning in central Mississippi secondary to exposure to open fires in unventilated living spaces. Sixteen cases were treated during this period at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and 6 received Hyperbaric Oxygen therapy. These 6 cases and the mechanisms of CO poisoning are discussed and recommendations for emergency management are reviewed.

Acute Disease↗