Corrigendum to "Evaluation of injury threshold from the number of rib fracture for predicting pulmonary injuries in blunt chest trauma" [Heliyon 9 (4), (April 2023) Article e15278].

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e15278.].

Evaluation of injury threshold from the number of rib fracture for predicting pulmonary injuries in blunt chest trauma.

Background: Blunt chest trauma is a common presentation in emergency departments. The relationship between bone fractures and organ injuries has not been studied in detail. The purpose of this study was to examine the degree of external force represented by the number of rib fractures that causes lung injury in blunt chest trauma. Patients and methods: This study was performed retrospectively using trauma patients who received medical examinations in a single university hospital emergency center between April 2015 and March 2020. We examined the association between the number of rib fractures and pulmonary damage using multivariable regression analysis and considered the relationship between rib fracture location and each type of lung injury. Results: A total of 317 patients were included. The mean age was 63.1 years, 65.0% were male, and traffic accidents were the most common mechanism of injury (55.8%). The number of mean rib fractures was 4.0, and the mean Injury Severity Score was 11.3. The number of rib fractures was associated with an increased risk of pulmonary injuries: pulmonary contusion (odds ratio [OR] 1.30, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.14-1.48, p < 0.05); hemothorax (OR 1.22, 95% CI 1.08-1.38, p < 0.05); pneumothorax (OR 1.15, 95% CI 1.02-1.30, p < 0.05); and hemopneumothorax (OR 1.14, 95% CI 1.01-1.28, p < 0.05). In addition, bilateral rib fractures were associated with fractures of the superior ribs more often and more severely, but were not associated with the occurrence of each type of lung injury. Conclusion: The number of rib fractures was associated with an increased risk of pulmonary injuries. In addition, the type of pulmonary injury could be predicted from the number of rib fractures in blunt chest trauma.

Reversible brain imaging findings with a severe neurological prognosis of neuroleptic malignant syndrome.

Neuroleptic malignant syndrome is a rare but life-threatening disorder associated with the use of neuroleptic drugs, and is characterized by fever, altered mental status, muscle rigidity, autonomic instability, myoclonus, elevated creatine kinase levels, rhabdomyolysis, and leukocytosis. Previous reports have shown that most patients with neuroleptic malignant syndrome recover without neurologic sequelae. Some patients with neuroleptic malignant syndrome show reversible magnetic resonance imaging (changes in the brain. The severe neurological impairments do not persist in neuroleptic malignant syndrome patients with reversible lesions. Here, we describe a 66-year-old Japanese woman who was diagnosed with septic shock secondary to obstructive pyelonephritis. She was administered haloperidol for delirium and developed neuroleptic malignant syndrome. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain showed diffuse hyperintense signals in the cerebellar cortex, cerebellar dentate nucleus, superior cerebellar peduncle, and thalamus on T2-weighted imaging or fluid-attenuated inversion recovery, and in the bilateral substantia nigra and bilateral globus pallidus on diffusion-weighted imaging. Subsequently, the signal intensities of the cerebellar and thalamic lesions diminished and the basal ganglia lesions disappeared, but the severe neurologic sequelae remained. The cerebellum is reportedly particularly sensitive to thermal damage because Purkinje cells are believed to be vulnerable to heat. Although brain imaging studies revealed reversible changes, her disturbance of consciousness was prolonged. Therefore, brain magnetic resonance imaging findings might not reflect the neurologic prognosis in patients with neuroleptic malignant syndrome.

Metallo-ß-lactamase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae infection in a non-hospital environment.

Case: A 92-year-old female resident at a nursing home was transported to the emergency department unconscious, hypotensive, and febrile. Chest X-rays and computed tomography revealed a permeation shadow in the right lung. The patient was diagnosed with sepsis due to pneumonia. At the time of admission, she had not received antibiotics or treatment using medical devices over the past 6 months. Two sets of samples were taken for blood and sputum cultures, and Klebsiella pneumoniae was isolated from all cultures. The strain was identified as metallo-ß-lactamase-producing K. pneumoniae, and the patient was successfully treated with tazobactam-piperacillin. This case indicates that metallo-ß-lactamase-producing K. pneumoniae infection occurred in a non-hospital environment. Outcome: After tazobactam-piperacillin treatment, the patient was transferred to another hospital. Conclusion: Emergency physicians should be aware of multidrug-resistant bacterial infection even in a non-hospital setting.