Sudden headache, lumbar puncture, and the diagnosis of subarachnoid hemorrhage in patients with a normal computed tomography scans. / Cefalea súbita, punción lumbar y diagnóstico de hemorragia subaracnoidea en pacientes con una tomografía computarizada normal.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the usefulness of computed tomography (CT) to identify subarachnoid bleeding in patients with neurologic deficits seeking emergency care for sudden headache within 6 hours of onset of symptoms. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Retrospective observational study of patients presenting with sudden nontraumatic headache peaking during the previous hour in the absence of neurologic deficits. We ordered CT scans for all patients, and if the scan was normal we performed a lumbar puncture. All patients were then followed for 6 months. RESULTS: Eighty-five patients were included. Subarachnoid bleeding was identified in 10 (10.2%) patients by CT. Seventy- four lumbar punctures were performed in patients with negative CTs; the lumbar puncture was positive in 1 patient and inconclusive in 2 patients. In all 3 patients, bleeding was ruled out with later images; thus, no cases of subarachnoid hemorrhage were confirmed in the 74 patients who underwent lumbar puncture. Nor were any cases found in any of these patients during follow-up. CONCLUSION: A CT scan taken within 6 hours of onset of sudden headache is sufficient for confirming or ruling out subarachnoid bleeding in patients with sudden headache who have no neurologic deficits.

OBJETIVO: Valorar la utilidad de la tomografía computarizada (TC) para identificar la hemorragia subaracnoidea (HSA) en pacientes que consultan en el servicio de urgencias por cefalea súbita sin déficit neurológico dentro de las seis primeras horas desde el comienzo de los síntomas. METODO: Estudio observacional, retrospectivo, de pacientes que consultaron por cefalea súbita, no traumática, con un pico de máxima intensidad dentro de la hora previa y sin déficit neurológico. A todos los pacientes se les realizó una TC seguida de una punción lumbar (PL) si la TC era normal, y seguimiento a los 6 meses. RESULTADOS: Se incluyeron 85 pacientes. Se diagnosticaron 10 (10,2%) casos de HSA en la TC, y se realizaron 74 PL, en pacientes con una TC negativa, de las que una fue positiva y dos no concluyentes, pero en estudios posteriores de imagen se descartó la HSA. En total, la PL en 74 pacientes con TC normal no confirmó ningún caso de HSA. Tampoco se confirmó ningún caso durante el seguimiento. CONCLUSIONES: En los pacientes con cefalea súbita y sospecha de HSA, sin inconsciencia ni focalidad neurológica, una TC de alta resolución realizada en las primeras 6 horas desde la aparición de la cefalea fue suficiente para confirmar o descartar ese diagnóstico.

Gastric wall abscess presenting as thoracic pain: rare presentation of an old disease.

Acute phlegmonous gastritis, a suppurative infection of the gastric wall, has a high mortality rate. This disease remains a mystery to most clinicians. The rarity of this disease and its nonspecific presentation make early diagnosis difficult, especially in the emergency department. We describe a case of acute phlegmonous gastritis presenting as gastric wall abscess in a 55-year-old woman who visited the emergency department, illustrating the severity of this disease, the difficulty in its diagnosis and its unusual presentation.