Manejo de los niños con epidemia: drenaje pleural no siempre es necesaria / Management of children with epidemic pleural drainage is not always necessary

El tratamiento de niños con neumonía bacteriana y derrame paraneumónico (empiema) nunca ha sido directoy aún no está claro que los pacientes se beneficien con el drenaje pleural. En la actualidad, el drenaje pleural, principalmente a través de tubo torácico con fibrinolíticos o cirugía vídeo toracoscópica (CVT) es ampliamente utilizada.

Respiratory syncytial virus pneumonia in the hospital setting: length of stay, charges, and mortality.

BACKGROUND: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most important viral cause of lower respiratory tract infection in infants and young children worldwide. No vaccine against RSV is available, but prophylactic interventions have been shown to be safe and effective in clinical trials. OBJECTIVES: This retrospective analysis was conducted to examine the health and economic burden of hospitalization for RSV pneumonia. METHODS: Nationally weighted hospital discharges for RSV pneumonia among children 4 years old and younger were analyzed by using the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project National Inpatient Sample. RESULTS: In 1993, there were estimated to be 16,500 hospital discharges with RSV pneumonia, which increased to 19,700 and 20,800 in 1994 and 1995, respectively. Children less than 1 year of age accounted for over 70% of these discharges. Hospital charges (in 1998 dollars) for RSV pneumonia-associated episodes were $295,100,000 in 1993; $392,300,000 in 1994; and $295,800,000 in 1995. CONCLUSIONS: With inpatient charges of $300 to $400 million per year in the United States, the disease burden of RSV pneumonia is very high in terms of both morbidity and economic costs. Emerging prophylactic interventions should have an impact on the high burden of RSV pneumonia.

Exercise, education, and quality of life in lung transplant candidates.

In addition to improved functional ability, patients who complete rehabilitation programs typically have positive psychologic changes, including increased motivation and an enhanced quality of life. Potentially, patients with end-stage lung disease awaiting a lung transplant can have similar benefits. However, no studies were identified that examined the impact of an exercise program on quality of life in patients awaiting lung transplantation. This pilot study was an initial step toward evaluating outcomes of a health maintenance program on exercise tolerance and quality of life. Subjects were nine lung transplant candidates who met lung transplant listing criteria and who were randomized to participate in a 6-week health maintenance program consisting of education alone or education plus exercise. Subjects completed cardiopulmonary exercise testing, a 6-minute walk, and the Quality of Well-being scale, Quality of Life Index, and Symptom Frequency/Symptom Distress scale before and after completion of the program. No significant between-group changes were seen. Quality of Well-being scores (p < 0.005) and 6-minute walk distance (p < 0.03) improved over time in both groups. Findings suggest that patients awaiting lung transplantation perceived improved quality of well-being and increased walk distance after participation in a health maintenance program. Education plus exercise conferred no benefits beyond those achieved by education alone. However, the number of subjects studied was small and duration of follow-up was limited.

Effects of a closed tracheal suction system on ventilatory and cardiovascular parameters.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether patients ventilated in the assist-control mode experienced a change in oxygenation, respiratory rate, inspiratory:expiratory ratio, heart rate, blood pressure or acid-base balance when suctioned with a closed tracheal suction system. DESIGN: A quasi-experimental, within-subject, repeated-measures design was used. SUBJECTS: 18 patients ventilated on a fraction of inspired oxygen of 0.47 +/- 0.17 and 2.3 +/- 5.0 cm H2O positive end-expiratory pressure. INTERVENTIONS: Two suction passes were performed, with measurements at baseline, immediately after the first suction pass, immediately before the second suction pass, immediately after the second suction pass, 2 minutes after the second suction pass and 5 minutes after the second suction pass. No hyperoxygenation was used. RESULTS: Significant differences were seen over time for arterial oxygen saturation, respiratory rate and inspiratory:expiratory ratio. Arterial oxygen saturation decreased to less than 90% in four subjects (range 88% to 89%), with a maximum fall of 9%. No significant differences were seen for heart rate, blood pressure, partial pressure of carbon dioxide, bicarbonate, time to nadir (lowest arterial oxygen saturation) or recovery time. CONCLUSIONS: Subjects ventilated in the assist-control mode and suctioned with a closed tracheal suction system did not experience significant changes in cardiovascular or acid-base parameters when suctioned without hyperoxygenation. Although most subjects did not become desaturated, four subjects experienced desaturation at one or more intervals. To prevent desaturation, hyperoxygenation should be used before and after suctioning with a closed tracheal suction system.

Cardiac transplantation: the changing faces of immunosuppression.

Many advances have been made in immunosuppressive therapy and other aspects of cardiac transplant management since the first cardiac transplantation was performed in the late 1960s. The cellular immune response and rejection process are better understood. This knowledge changed the way existing drugs were used to control rejection and led to the development of new drugs that could more effectively control the rejection process. Early drug protocols used combinations of azathioprine, antilymphocyte globulin, and steroids. Later protocols used combinations of cyclosporine, steroids, and antithymocyte globulin. After problems related to cyclosporine were identified, protocols came full circle. They now include drugs that were used in earlier protocols, as well as cyclosporine. The purpose of this article is to describe how protocols for immunosuppressive therapy have evolved based on our expanded knowledge of immunosuppression and methods of best using new and old drugs to achieve this goal.