Esophageal Rupture After Ghost Pepper Ingestion.

BACKGROUND: The ghost pepper, or "bhut jolokia," is one of the hottest chili peppers in the world. Ghost peppers have a measured "heat" of > 1,000,000 Scoville heat units (SHU), more than twice the strength of a habanero pepper. To our knowledge, no significant adverse effects of ghost pepper ingestion have been reported. CASE REPORT: A 47-year-old man presented to the Emergency Department (ED) with severe abdominal and chest pain subsequent to violent retching and vomiting after eating ghost peppers as part of a contest. A subsequent chest x-ray study showed evidence of a left-sided pleural effusion and patchy infiltrates. A computed tomography scan of the abdomen and pelvis showed pneumomediastinum with air around the distal esophagus, suggestive of a spontaneous esophageal perforation and a left-sided pneumothorax. The patient was intubated and taken immediately to the operating room, where he was noted to have a 2.5-cm tear in the distal esophagus, with a mediastinal fluid collection including food debris, as well as a left-sided pneumothorax. The patient was extubated on hospital day 14, and was discharged home with a gastric tube in place on hospital day 23. WHY SHOULD AN EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN BE AWARE OF THIS?: Spontaneous esophageal rupture, Boerhaave syndrome, is a rare condition encountered by emergency physicians, with a high mortality rate. This case serves as an important reminder of a potentially life- threatening surgical emergency initially interpreted as discomfort after a large spicy meal.

Dual contraceptive method use in HIV-serodiscordant Kenyan couples.

BACKGROUND: World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines recommend dual contraceptive method use with condoms and another contraceptive to reduce both incidence of HIV/sexually transmitted infection transmission and unintended pregnancies. This qualitative study assessed the barriers to and motivations for dual contraceptive use in Kenyan HIV-serodiscordant couples. METHODS: HIV-serodiscordant couples in Nairobi, Kenya, were recruited from two longitudinal cohorts. Qualitative semistructured interviews were conducted using a semistructured questionnaire. Twelve male and 12 female members of serodiscordant couples and 10 women with incident pregnancies during the cohort studies were included. RESULTS: Few couples reported using dual contraceptive methods, with men reporting more condom use than women. No HIV-seropositive men or HIV-seronegative women reported using non-condom contraception. Men and women agreed that men play a dominant role in decisions to use both condoms and contraception in HIV-serodiscordant couples. Participants reported that perceptions of side effects, male partner preference, and reproductive desire were critical factors in contraceptive decisions. Both men and women saw dual contraceptive method use as redundant and a sign of possible unfaithfulness. Many participants actively desired pregnancy, but few were able to accurately define monthly fertility windows. CONCLUSIONS: Dual contraceptive method use was low in these HIV-serodiscordant couples, with some couples finding it unnecessary while using condoms, and others being more focused on conceiving a child. Biomedical HIV prevention, including male circumcision, pre-exposure prophylaxis or antiretroviral therapy to reduce HIV transmission, may be more acceptable strategies to promote safer sexual relations among HIV-serodiscordant couples and safer conception when desired.

Barriers to calling 911 and learning and performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation for residents of primarily Latino, high-risk neighborhoods in Denver, Colorado.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: Individuals in neighborhoods composed of minority and lower socioeconomic status populations are more likely to have an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest event, less likely to have bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) performed, and less likely to survive. Latino cardiac arrest victims are 30% less likely than whites to have bystander CPR performed. The goal of this study is to identify barriers and facilitators to calling 911, and learning and performing CPR in 5 low-income, Latino neighborhoods in Denver, CO. METHODS: Six focus groups and 9 key informant interviews were conducted in Denver during the summer of 2012. Purposeful and snowball sampling, conducted by community liaisons, was used to recruit participants. Two reviewers analyzed the data to identify recurrent and unifying themes. A qualitative content analysis was used with a 5-stage iterative process to analyze each transcript. RESULTS: Six key barriers to calling 911 were identified: fear of becoming involved because of distrust of law enforcement, financial, immigration status, lack of recognition of cardiac arrest event, language, and violence. Seven cultural barriers were identified that may preclude performance of bystander CPR: age, sex, immigration status, language, racism, strangers, and fear of touching someone. Participants suggested that increasing availability of tailored education in Spanish, increasing the number of bilingual 911 dispatchers, and policy-level changes, including CPR as a requirement for graduation and strengthening Good Samaritan laws, may serve as potential facilitators in increasing the provision of bystander CPR. CONCLUSION: Distrust of law enforcement, language concerns, lack of recognition of cardiac arrest, and financial issues must be addressed when community-based CPR educational programs for Latinos are implemented.

Measles seropositivity in HIV-infected Kenyan children on antiretroviral therapy.

This article describes results from a cross-sectional study among HIV-infected children 15 months to 12 years of age who were receiving antiretroviral therapy. We found a low prevalence of measles IgG seropositivity (45.7%) and identified CD4% ≥ 25 as a predictor. Most HIV-infected children on ART were not measles seropositive and might benefit from revaccination.

Seroprevalence of measles IgG among HIV-1-infected and uninfected Kenyan adults.

Despite global efforts to reduce measles incidence, outbreaks continue to occur in developing countries where HIV-1-infected adults represent a vulnerable population. Immunization campaigns have targeted children, although little is known about the levels of measles protection in adult populations in Kenya. The objective of this study was to determine seroprevalence and titers of measles IgG among HIV-1-infected and uninfected adults in Nairobi, Kenya. The presence of anti-measles IgG was measured in cryopreserved serum of 257 HIV-1-infected and 367 uninfected adults using a commercial ELISA (Enzygnost, Germany). The measles IgG concentration was calculated for those samples that were positive. Overall, 96% of adults were measles seropositive and the mean measles IgG concentration among those who were seropositive was 4134 mIU/ml, which is well above previously reported protective levels. There was no statistical difference in seroprevalence or antibody concentration between the HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected groups. While local vaccination efforts and circulating measles infection likely contribute to this high measles seroprevalence rate, these data are unique to an urban population and may not reflect a country-wide distribution. Our results suggest that reduced immunity among HIV-1-infected adults is not a major contributor to measles resurgence in Kenya.