Perimortem Cesarean Section in a Patient with Intrapartum Cardiorespiratory Arrest Due to a Massive Amniotic Fluid Embolism.

We report and discuss the case of a 29-year-old tercigravida with intrapartum cardiorespiratory arrest due to a massive amniotic fluid embolism and disseminated intravascular coagulopathy. Perimortem caesarean section with B-Lynch compression uterine suture with simultaneous fetal and maternal resuscitation were performed with a favorable outcome for both the mother and the child.

REFRACTORY BRADYCARDIA--A RARE COMPLICATION OF CARBOPROST TROMETHAMINE FOR INDUCTION OF ABORTION

We report a first case of refractory several-hour sinus bradycardia, a rare but already described side effect of intramuscular administration of carboprost tromethamine to induce abortion for medical indication in a patient without cardiovascular and other diseases. After administration of atropine sulfate 3x0.5 mg intravenously without effect, the patient's sinus rhythm spontaneously normalized as carboprost was eliminated from the body (it has a 3-hour half-life). It is reasonable to believe that the specific prostaglandin underlay the etiology of bradycardia.

[Treatment of gastrointestinal illness in palliative care]. / Lijecenje gastrointestinalnih simptoma u palijativnoj skrbi.

This review article describes access to palliative care for patients with gastrointestinal illness in terminal phase of malignant disease, manifesting with vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, obstipation, constipation, and cachexia/anorexia syndrome. Along with the etiopathogenesis of the above symptoms and holistic approach to the patient in terminal period of life, therapeutic protocols for dealing with gastrointestinal illness are presented.

Multiple Coronary Fistulas as a Rare Cause of Stable Angina Pectoris.

Congenital coronary artery-left ventricular multiple microfistulas (CA-LVMMFs) are rare anomalies in adults. They are more often found in female patients, and they usually originate from the distal segments of the coronary arteries, but they can originate from a proximal segments of a coronary arteries, and these patients are likely to be identified and treated in the pediatric age group. They are mostly asymptomatic. When symptoms and complications occur, they include angina, myocardial infarction, atrial heart failure, arrhythmias, and endocarditis. The management of CA-LVMMFs is controversial, but it is generally agreed that conservative medical management is the primary treatment of choice. Our case describes a rare form of CA-LVMMFs draining into the left ventricle in a female patient presenting with fatigue, atypical anginal symptoms, atrial fibrillation, and premature ventricular complexes, without concomitant obstructive coronary artery disease.

Association of chronic inflammation with cardiovascular risk in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-A cross-sectional study.

Background and Aims: COPD is progressive lung disease with known higher cardiovascular (CV) risk, mainly attributed to smoking of cigarettes as the main etiological factor of disease. The aim of this study was to compare CV risk in patients with COPD to control groups of smokers and non-COPD and to investigate the relation of lung function variables, COPD severity, and smoking with Systemic Coronary Risk Estimation (SCORE) risk calculation, arterial stiffness (AS) values, and biological systemic inflammatory markers. Methods: A total of 208 subjects were included in this study: 61 subjects diagnosed with COPD, 83 smokers without COPD, and 64 nonsmokers without COPD. Medical history and clinical data were recorded, including assessment of pulmonary function and AS, calculation of ankle-brachial index, blood analysis, and CV risk assessment by SCORE risk calculation. Results: Subjects with COPD had significantly higher values of SCORE calculation of risk, central aortic pressure, AS, and markers of systemic inflammation compared to control groups of smokers and nonsmokers without COPD (p < 0.001). Furthermore, statistically significant increase in hs-CRP concentration was found between the COPD group and the control group of non-COPD smokers (p < 0.001), and a statistically significantly higher SCORE calculation was found in the COPD group compared to control groups of smokers and nonsmokers without COPD (p < 0.001). Conclusion: The results of the research support further identification and research of biological markers and simple specific tests such as arteriography that will enable progress in personalized treatment of patients with COPD and better primary and secondary prevention of comorbidities with the aim of improved treatment outcome.

[Incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events after cardiac surgery procedures]. / Pojavnost velikih nezeljenih srcanozilnih dogadaja nakon kardiokirurskih zahvata.

The aim of the study was to analyze the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events after different cardiac surgery procedures. This study included 307 patients who underwent some of cardiac surgery procedures within a period of 6 months of arriving at stationary cardiac rehabilitation. There were 101 patients (33%) who had valve surgery and 206 patients (67%) who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Primary end-point was death caused by fatal myocardial infarction (MI) or sudden death, and secondary end-points were non-fatal MI or unstable angina pectoris, stroke, new cardiac surgery or percutaneous coronary intervention, heart failure or significant arrhythmia and non-cardiac death. The mean duration of follow-up period after leaving stationary cardiac rehabilitation was 35 +/- 21 months. During the follow up period, there was total of 61 primary and secondary end-points. In CABG group, there were 48 major adverse cardiovascular events compared to 13 in the group of patients with prosthetic valve (p=0.03). There was total of 19 fatal MI or sudden death (6%). The fatal outcome rates of cardiovascular origin were significantly higher in the group of patients after CABG than in the patients with prosthetic valve (16 vs. 3 death, NS). The results of this study suggest that the complications after cardiac surgery procedures occurs more often in CABG patients. However, mortality rate after cardiac surgery in the analyzed groups of patients is relatively low.

Is there a place for angiotensin receptor-neprilysin inhibitors in the treatment of heart failure patients after heart transplantation?

We present a case report of a heart failure patient after heart transplantation due to end-stage ischemic cardiomyopathy with significant clinical and echocardiographic improvement 3 months after the introduction of sacubitril/valsartan, an angiotensin receptor-neprilysin inhibitor. This new class of drugs is proved to be beneficial in heart failure patients, especially with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), but they have not yet been used in heart failure patients after heart transplantation. We believe that the increase of left ventricular systolic function, improvement of global longitudinal strain, and reduction of pulmonary hypertension with consequent clinical recovery in our patient may have been caused by sacubitril/valsartan.

Nonhemorrhagic primary obstetric shock.

OBJECTIVE: Clinical evaluation of nonhemorrhagic primary obstetric shock (NHPOS). METHODS: In a retrospective clinical study, data on 8 cases of NHPOS were analyzed. Data on patient age, parity, week of gestation, comorbidity, possible etiologic trigger, course of disease with clinical picture and laboratory findings of coagulopathy, and patient outcome including autopsy findings in two lethal outcomes were analyzed. RESULTS: These 8 patients were treated in the intensive care unit. One patient died during delivery from cardiopulmonary arrest in the state of irreversible obstetric shock, verified by massive pulmonary thromboembolism at autopsy. Another patient died from stroke and cerebral coma caused by trophoblastic cerebrovascular embolism 5 days after artificial abortion, showing a clinical picture of shock and cardiopulmonary arrest. In 1 patient, severe septic shock developed several hours after premature stillbirth and abruptio placentae in the 26th week of pregnancy, associated with disseminated intravascular coagulopathy. Four patients developed intrapartum NHPOS, with a clinical picture of chest pain, dyspnea, tachycardia, hypotension, cyanosis, and disseminated intravascular coagulopathy, as demonstrated by laboratory findings. Based on clinical picture and laboratory findings, amniotic fluid embolism or trophoblastic embolism was suspected. All these patients survived. One patient developed NHPOS during the third labor stage after vacuum extraction because of a macrosomic child, followed by disseminated intravascular coagulopathy and secondary hemorrhage which necessitated B-Lynch procedures and total hysterectomy for massive bleeding. Hereditary thrombophilia was detected in subsequent patients. CONCLUSIONS: NHPOS can be caused by amniotic fluid embolism, trophoblastic embolism or thromboembolism, and sepsis. These conditions may frequently prove fatal due to their abrupt and unexpected course, mostly during pregnancy, delivery, or immediately thereafter.

Oncotic therapy in management of preeclampsia.

BACKGROUND: We undertook this study to examine the effects of oncotic therapy for preeclampsia (PE). METHODS: The study included 29 pregnant women with PE and 14 pregnant women with PE and intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) and hematocrit (Htc) concentration >0.38. All study women received regular antihypertensive therapy and oncotic therapy (dextran 40 or hydroxyethyl starch). The parameters of Htc, uric acid, fibrinogen and platelet count, sonography RI (resistance index) of uterine artery, umbilical artery, middle cerebral artery and fetal biophysical profile were monitored before and after oncotic therapy. Perinatal outcome assessment was based on 5-min Apgar score, umbilical pH, need of neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) treatment, and birth weight. RESULTS: Statistically significant improvement of hemorheological parameters upon the introduction of oncotic therapy was recorded in the values of Htc, fibrinogen and diastolic blood pressure, whereas other parameters (uric acid, platelet count, uterine arterial RI on the side of placentation, and systolic blood pressure) showed a decrease that did not reach statistical significance. Upon the introduction of oncotic therapy, favorable changes in perinatal Doppler ultrasonography parameters were recorded in uterine arterial RI but not in middle cerebral artery RI. There was no statistically significant change in the fetal biophysical profile (FBP) values either. Perinatal outcome was favorable with a mean 5-min Apgar score 8 and pH 7.26. Lower birth weight values (mean 2631 +/- 407 g) were consequential to preterm delivery and IUGR, resulting in a number of neonates requiring NICU treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Careful oncotic treatment with antihypertensive therapy improves the maternal hemorheological parameters and uteroplacental sonographic parameters.

TWENTY-THREE-YEAR LONG-TERM HEALTH OUTCOME AFTER THE WAR IN VUKOVAR.

Results of the first research of this kind on the 23-year long-term outcome in children born during the war in Vukovar are presented. This retrospective clinical study surveyed the potential 23-year long-term consequences and morbidity of children born between May 1, 1991 and November 19, 1991, during the siege and occupation of Vukovar. Data were obtained from women having delivered their babies in that period and from delivery protocols of the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Vukovar County Hospital. According to the survey and the data collected, there were 9 (3.98%) preterm deliveries, 60 (81%) of the total of 77 subjects were breastfed, 14 (19%) were not breastfed, while three babies died in the postpartum period. However, the breastfeeding period was evidently shorter, as only 10 women breastfed for a period longer than 6 months, while the mean length of the breastfeeding period was 9.9 weeks, i.e. 2.5 months. Allergy-related illnesses and proneness to infections in childhood and preschool age were found in 27.3% and 16.9% of children, respectively, while two children developed diabetes type 1. One child had atopic diathesis, two started speaking after the age of two, one child started walking late (after 20 months) and started speaking after the age of two, one child had loud sound phobia, and one used to overreact and express anger in inconvenient situations, all of them being of female gender and born prematurely. Cognitive and attention disorders and stress reactions were found in 6.5% of the children. Regular elementary school education was completed by 74 (96%) children, while three (3.8%) children experienced failure at school due bad behavior, i.e. delinquency. At the age of 23, 34 (46%) children had developed bad habits, i.e. 33 of them smoked, 2 were addicted to alcohol, whereas one was addicted to both smoking and alcohol. Forty (54%) subjects did not use any harmful substances. Psychiatric disorders related to anxiety, depression or other illnesses were not found in this research. In conclusion, it should be noted that pregnant women who gave birth during the study period spent the first trimester of their pregnancy in a relatively peaceful pre-war period without acute stressors, so the long-term results and morbidity actually did not differ from those in the general population. The most important isolated risk factor was premature delivery with the known short-term and long-term consequences typical for premature delivery (perinatal mortality, slow neuromotor and cognitive development).

Hypersensitivity Eosinophilic Myocarditis in a Patient Receiving Multiple Drug Therapy: Challenges in Diagnosis and Defining the Aetiology.

Eosinophilic myocarditis (EM) is a rare and potentially fatal disease if left untreated. Because the disease can have a delayed presentation and can appear even after 2 years, its underlying causes often remain unknown. We report the case of a 63-year-old man with an atypical clinical presentation of hypersensitive EM and significant coronary artery disease, which was confirmed through coronary angiography. The patient was treated with hydrochlorothiazide (12.5 mg once daily for 2 years) and budesonide/formoterol (160/4.5 µg once daily for 2 years). Amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (1000/200 mg three times daily for 2 days) and azithromycin (500 mg once daily for 2 days) were used to treat pneumonia, while ibuprofen (600 mg three times daily for 2 days) was used to treat pericarditis. Extremely high levels of eosinophils led to clinical suspicion of non-acute coronary syndrome as the cause of chest pain and myocardial necrosis. In addition, early pulse doses of methylprednisolone (500 mg intravenously once daily) were administered. Complete clinical recovery and a fast decrease in eosinophils and troponin levels were observed after a few hours on the same day. No signs of recurrent myocarditis were noticed after 3 days of administering the same pulse doses of methylprednisolone, which was then replaced by oral methylprednisolone administered for the next 2 months (step-down regimen, starting from 64 mg/day). Despite causality assessment being difficult, prompt therapy must be given as soon as possible to prevent fatal outcomes. Delayed corticosteroid treatment, which is necessary regardless of the underlying cause, can result in heart failure and death.

Perinatal epidemiological risk factors for preeclampsia.

In the present study, the impact of the potential perinatal epidemiological factors on preeclampsia development was assessed. This clinical study included 55 pregnant women with preeclampsia and control group of 50 healthy pregnant women. Positive family history of cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus or thromboembolic disease was recorded in 50% of women with preeclampsia versus 28% of control group women. Positive personal history of this disease was recorded in 15% of women with preeclampsia, whereas all control group women had negative personal history of preeclampsia. Dietary habits, i.e. the intake of meat and meat products, fruit and vegetables, coffee and alcohol drinks were similar in the two groups, without statistically significant differences. The women with preeclampsia and control women reported comparable habits; there was no difference in the consumption of meat, fruit, vegetables, coffee and alcohol, smoking, use of folate and oral hormonal contraception before pregnancy, or in physical activity as the potential risk factors for preeclampsia in current pregnancy. However, personal and family history of vascular disease proved to be significant risk factors for the occurrence of preeclampsia, emphasizing the need of lifestyle and dietary modifications with healthy dietary habits, while avoiding adverse habits in pregnancy.

Autosectio of the prolapsed uterus and vagina.

The authors present a bizarre case of attempted autosection of prolapsed genital organ by a demented 81-year-old women with chronic alcocholism.

Fetal biophysical profile and cerebro-umbilical ratio in assessment of brain damage in growth restricted fetuses.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between fetal biophysical profile (FBP), Doppler cerebro-umbilical (C/U) ratio and neonatal neurosonography in growth restricted newborns. STUDY DESIGN: This prospective study included 87 growth restricted fetuses from 28 to 42 weeks of gestation. The FBP and C/U ratio were assessed twice a week. Within 48h and on the seventh day after birth, neonatal neurosonography was performed as the outcome parameter. RESULTS: Brain damage was detected, by neurosonography, in 34 newborns with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). Severe periventricular echodensities (PVE) were ultrasonographically verified in eleven infants. Intraventricular or intraparenchymal hemorrhage (severe intracranial hemorrhage ICH) was detected in seven infants, and subependymal hemorrhage (SEH) in nine infants with IUGR. Porencephalic cysts, as a result of chronic intrauterine hypoxia, were found in four infants, and brain atrophy was detected in one case. Nonspecific ultrasonographic changes were observed in two newborns. The FBP and C/U ratio were statistically significantly associated with neurosonographicaly verified neonatal brain lesions (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The FBP and the C/U ratio represent the useful indicators for early detection and assessment of fetal hypoxia. They may also be parameters for the prediction of neonatal neurosonography findings in newborns with IUGR.

[Intrauterine hypoxia and sudden infant death syndrome]. / Intrauterina hipoksija i sindrom iznenadne dojenacke smrti.

Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) or crib or cot death are synonyms for the sudden, unexpected and unexplained death of an infant. The incidence of SIDS has been estimated to be from 1-2% to 3%. Protracted intrauterine hypoxia or recurrent hypoxic insults during fetal life undoubtedly influence the development of the central nervous structures as a tissue most susceptible to hypoxia, although well developed mechanisms of defense against hypoxia exist during the fetal life. The mechanisms underlying SIDS include neurologically compromised infants who are deprived of compensatory mechanisms during sleep, sustaining a hypoxic insult with alterations in neurotransmitter receptors within the regions involved in chemoreception and cardiovascular control. Changes in the brain result from perinatal prolonged hypoxia (persistent reticular pathways in the pons and medulla, astroglia in the brainstem, gliosis of brain nerve nuclei, defects in neurotransmitter receptors, neuronal apoptosis, microthrombosis, and hypoxic ischemic lesion). Hypoxic perinatal risk factors for SIDS included passive and active exposure to cigarette smoking in pregnancy, abuse of drugs, alcohol, coffee and medication in pregnancy, intrauterine growth retardation, perinatal hypoxia with or without resuscitation, preeclampsia, anemia in pregnancy, prematurity, multiparity, multiple pregnancy, pregnant women aged < 20 years and > 35 years, cardiocirculatory, pulmonary and endocrine diseases in pregnancy, and short time interval between two pregnancies. As cigarette smoking has been demonstrated to lead to fetoplacental insufficiency, which result in fetal hypoxia, it is concluded that hypoxia is a precondition for the occurrence of SIDS. Prenatal exposure to cigarette smoke decreases maternal red blood cell count, and concentrations of tyrosine and selenium, reduces fetal and neonatal cerebral blood flow, and increases maternal MCV, leukocytosis, especially neutrophils, monocytes and lymphocytes, maternal and fetal heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, resistance index in umbilical artery, fetal hemoglobin, cytokine, serotonine, dopamine, catecholamine, hypoxanthine, endorphin and interleukin-6. Pregnancy at a risk of hypoxia, especially in heavy smokers, is a major risk factor for SIDS, and such pregnancy requires close and intensive antenatal monitoring.

Left ventricular diastolic function in diabetes mellitus type 2 patients: correlation with heart rate and its variability.

AIMS: To assess the prevalence of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction in a population of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus; to determine correlation of diastolic dysfunction with heart rate and its variability. METHODS: The study included 202 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Echocardiography was performed with special reference to diastolic function, and heart rate variability was analysed using standard deviation of normal RR intervals, root mean square of successive differences and percentage of successive R-R intervals greater than 50 ms (pNN 50 %) in a 24-h electrocardiogram recording. RESULTS: Diastolic dysfunction is present in 79 % of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients: grade 1 in 52 %, grade 2 in 26 % and grade 3 in 1 % of patients. The subjects with grade 1 diastolic dysfunction had a statistically significantly higher heart rate variability compared with those with grade 2 diastolic dysfunction (LSD, post hoc test, p = 0.001). In the group with diastolic dysfunction, grade 2 reduced heart rate variability was recorded in 83 % of patients (37 and 7 % for grade 1 and normal diastolic function). An increase in the severity of diastolic dysfunction was associated with decreased heart rate variability and increased heart rate. CONCLUSION: Progression of diastolic dysfunction is associated with a significantly greater prevalence of reduced heart rate variability, which is accompanied by increased heart rate.