Development of NREM sleep instability-continuity (cyclic alternating pattern) in healthy term infants aged 1 to 4 months.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: To evaluate non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep instability, as measured by the cyclic alternating pattern (CAP), in the first months of life in a group of normal healthy infants, in order to obtain more information on the maturation of arousal mechanisms during NREM sleep and to set normative data of CAP parameters in this age range (from 1 to 4 months of life). DESIGN: Retrospective study. SETTING: Sleep unit of an academic centre. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-three healthy newborns and infants with a mean conceptional age (gestational age plus postnatal age) of 47.6 + 3.8 weeks, age range 42 to 55 weeks, 10 boys (43.47%), were studied while they slept in the morning between feedings, by means of a 3-hour video-electroencephalographic (EEG)-polygraphic recording. Sleep was visually scored for sleep architecture and CAP in a blinded fashion, using standard criteria. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: We found 3 different sleep EEG patterns in our infants, according to their age, and we subdivided the entire group into 3 subgroups. Group 1-Tracé alternant mixed with high-voltage slow activity included 9 subjects (3 boys), with a mean conceptional age of 43.9 +/- 1.3 weeks; Group 2 (high-voltage slow activity and rudimentary spindles) included 6 subjects (4 boys), with a mean conceptional age of 49.4 +/- 3.1 weeks; and Group 3 (slow-wave activity and spindles, scored as NREM sleep) included 8 subjects (3 boys), with a mean conceptional age of 50.4 +/- 2.9 weeks. CAP rate was 6.83 +/- 3.58 in infants belonging to Group 2 and increased to 12.91 +/- 2.21 in Group 3. We found a statistically significant higher A1 index in only Group 3. The relative percentages of the A1, A2, and A3 subtypes showed non significant changes with age. The duration of CAP events and the cortical and subcortical arousal indexes were not statistically different between Groups 2 and 3. CONCLUSIONS: With this study, we provide the first data on CAP analysis in infants from 1 to 4 months of life, and we found that there is a transitory period when trace alternant disappears and CAP events begin to occur. Furthermore, we suggest that the more appropriate time of life when CAP analysis can be first performed is related to the appearance of mature stage 2 NREM with spindles and slow delta waves mixed with theta waves, at approximately 3 months of life.

Duplicación apendicular / Appendicular duplication

El apéndice cecal es un órgano pródigamente estudiado, debido a la gran frecuencia con que se producen inflamaciones agudas en él, no obstante, son menos conocidas las anomalías congénitas que resultan en una duplicación apendicular, por ser esta una entidad rara. Se presenta un caso de una paciente que se interviene quirúrgicamente por una apendicitis aguda, en la cual se encontró otro apéndice cecal. Se realiza discusión y revisión del tema(AU)

Cecal appendix is much studied organ due to the high frequency of its acute inflammations, however, the congenital anomalies are less associated resulting in a appendicular duplication because of it is a rare entity. This is the case of a female patient operated on due to acute appendicitis founding another cecal appendix(AU)

Duplicación apendicular / Appendicular duplication

El apéndice cecal es un órgano pródigamente estudiado, debido a la gran frecuencia con que se producen inflamaciones agudas en él, no obstante, son menos conocidas las anomalías congénitas que resultan en una duplicación apendicular, por ser esta una entidad rara. Se presenta un caso de una paciente que se interviene quirúrgicamente por una apendicitis aguda, en la cual se encontró otro apéndice cecal. Se realiza discusión y revisión del tema(AU)

Cecal appendix is much studied organ due to the high frequency of its acute inflammations, however, the congenital anomalies are less associated resulting in a appendicular duplication because of it is a rare entity. This is the case of a female patient operated on due to acute appendicitis founding another cecal appendix(AU)

Mortalidad por sangrado digestivo alto en el Hospital Enrique Cabrera / Mortality from upper digestive bleeding in Enrique Cabrera Hospital

El sangrado digestivo alto continúa siendo un problema de salud que conlleva una significativa morbilidad y mortalidad y un elevado consumo de recursos sanitarios. El presente estudio buscó caracterizar la mortalidad por sangrado digestivo alto en el período comprendido entre enero del 2003 y julio del 2007, en el Hospital ®Enrique Cabrera¼ (La Habana). Se realizó un estudio descriptivo, retrospectivo de corte transversal, donde se revisaron las fichas clínicas de los pacientes fallecidos por sangrado digestivo alto en el período señalado. Fallecieron 49 pacientes de un total de 320 ingresados por sangrado digestivo alto (15 percent). El 80,6 percent de los fallecidos eran mayores de 55 años. Es destacable el antecedente personal de elevado consumo de antiinflamatorios no esteroideos, de forma mantenida, presente en el 54,8 percent de los casos, y le siguió la cirrosis hepática. La mitad de los diagnósticos clínicos iniciales fueron errados. El 64 percent de los fallecidos se encontraban hemodinámicamente inestables en el momento del ingreso. Solo se intervino quirúrgicamente el 32,2 percent de estos fallecidos. Todos los pacientes que no se operaron fallecieron en un cuadro de shock hipovolémico. Una actitud quirúrgica a tiempo podría salvar a estos enfermos(AU)

Upper digestive bleeding is still a health problem leading to a significant morbidity and mortality and to an elevated consumption of health resources. The present study was aimed at characterizing mortality from upper digestive bleeding in ®Enrique Cabrera¼ Hospital (Havana City) from January 2003 to July 2007. A descriptive, retrospective and cross-sectional study was conducted to review the clinical cards of the dead patients due to upper digestive bleeding in this period. 49 patients died of a total of 320 admitted as a result of upper digestive bleeding (15 percent). 80,6 percent of the dead were over 55. It was stressed the personal history of the elevated mantained consumption of non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs observed in 54,8 percent of the cases, followed by liver cirrhosis. Half of the initial clinical diagnoses were wrong. 64 percent of the dead were hemodinamically unstable on admission. Only 32,2 percent of the dead had been operated on. All the patients that did not undergo surgery died of hypovolemic shock. A surgical procedure performed on time may save these patients(AU)

Mortalidad por sangrado digestivo alto en el Hospital Enrique Cabrera / Mortality from upper digestive bleeding in Enrique Cabrera Hospital

INTRODUCCIÓN. El sangrado digestivo alto continúa siendo un problema de salud que conlleva una significativa morbilidad y mortalidad y un elevado consumo de recursos sanitarios. El presente estudio buscó caracterizar la mortalidad por sangrado digestivo alto en el período comprendido entre enero del 2003 y julio del 2007, en el Hospital «Enrique Cabrera¼ (La Habana). MÉTODO: Se realizó un estudio descriptivo, retrospectivo de corte transversal, donde se revisaron las fichas clínicas de los pacientes fallecidos por sangrado digestivo alto en el período señalado. RESULTADOS: Fallecieron 49 pacientes de un total de 320 ingresados por sangrado digestivo alto (15 por ciento). El 80,6 por ciento de los fallecidos eran mayores de 55 años. Es destacable el antecedente personal de elevado consumo de antiinflamatorios no esteroideos, de forma mantenida, presente en el 54,8 por cientode los casos, y le siguió la cirrosis hepática. La mitad de los diagnósticos clínicos iniciales fueron errados. El 64por cientode los fallecidos se encontraban hemodinámicamente inestables en el momento del ingreso. Solo se intervino quirúrgicamente el 32,2 por ciento de estos fallecidos. Todos los pacientes que no se operaron fallecieron en un cuadro de shock hipovolémico. CONCLUSIONES. Una actitud quirúrgica a tiempo podría salvar a estos enfermos(AU)

INTRODUCTION. Upper digestive bleeding is still a health problem leading to a significant morbidity and mortality and to an elevated consumption of health resources. The present study was aimed at characterizing mortality from upper digestive bleeding in Enrique Cabrera Hospital (Havana City) from January 2003 to July 2007. METHODS: A descriptive, retrospective and cross-sectional study was conducted to review the clinical cards of the dead patients due to upper digestive bleeding in this period. RESULTS: 49 patients died of a total of 320 admitted as a result of upper digestive bleeding (15 percent). 80.6 percent) of the dead were over 55. It was stressed the personal history of the elevated mantained consumption of non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs observed in 54.8 percent) of the cases, followed by liver cirrhosis. Half of the initial clinical diagnoses were wrong. 64 percent) of the dead were hemodinamically unstable on admission. Only 32.2 percent) of the dead had been operated on. All the patients that did not undergo surgery died of hypovolemic shock. CONCLUSIONS. A surgical procedure performed on time may save these patients(AU)