Browsing by Author "Silvestre, C"
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- Cardiopulmonary complications in a patient with bezoarPublication . Viveiros, E; Moniz, M; Nunes, P; Silvestre, CWe report a case of a 17-year-old institutionalised male with a medical history of fragile X syndrome, bilateral congenital glaucoma, cataracts and pica disorder. He was transferred to our paediatric intensive care unit owing to respiratory failure and hypotension. On transoesophageal echocardiogram, he presented left atrium compression. A CT of the thorax and mediastinum revealed an unknown heterogeneous material in the lumen of the stomach and oesophagus, with a lung parenchyma suggestive of alveolar foreign material. Endoscopic evaluation showed diaper fragments inside the oesophagus and stomach. Fragmentation and suction of diaper material was made. Medical treatment was performed with inotropic support, conventional mechanical ventilation and antibiotics.
- Factores preditivos de gravidade e necessidade de ventilação na tosse convulsaPublication . Marques, T; Escobar, C; Silvestre, C; Nunes, P; Abadesso, C; Loureiro, H; Almeida, HIIntrodução: A tosse convulsa é uma causa importante de morbilidade e mortalidade na idade pediátrica. Pretendeu-se determinar fatores de risco de gravidade e de necessidade de ventilação em crianças com tosse convulsa. Métodos: Estudo retrospetivo analítico de crianças com tosse convulsa internadas em enfermaria e unidade de cuidados intensivos de pediatria entre 2007 e 2012. Avaliaram-se parâmetros epidemiológicos, sociodemográficos, clínicos, laboratoriais, imagiológicos e ventilatórios. Compararam-se doentes internados na enfermaria e na unidade de cuidados intensivos pesquisando fatores de gravidade e de necessidade de ventilação. Resultados: Foram identificados 26 casos, 73% do sexo masculino, 50% com idade inferior a 2 meses e 58% sem imunização para Bordetella pertussis. A hipoxemia foi o sinal mais frequente (83%) na admissão. Doze (46%) doentes tiveram necessidade de cuidados intensivos e oito (31%) foram ventilados. Foram fatores de gravidade a ausência de imunização e leucocitose máxima > 50000/mL, estando este último parâmetro também associado à necessidade de ventilação. Foi realizada leucoaférese em três doentes, com diminuição da leucocitose e melhoria da ventilação. Ocorreram três óbitos (12%) em pequenos lactentes não vacinados com hiperleucocitose. Discussao: A tosse consulva pode ser grave e potencialmente fatal, podendo obrigar a ventilação mecânica agressiva, principalmente nos pequenos lactentes não imunizados, com uma elevada leucocitose. As opções terapêuticas com sucesso são escassas, sendo a leucoaférese uma modalidade terapêutica que pode ajudar no tratamento do doente grave.
- Familial haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis: two case reportsPublication . Ferreira, M; Martins, J; Silvestre, C; Abadesso, C; Matias, E; Loureiro, H; Figueiredo, A; Dias, A; Almeida, HIHaemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a life threatening inflammatory syndrome, which presents a highly stimulated but ineffective immune response with severe hypercytokinaemia. HLH, primary or secondary, is characterised by prolonged fever and hepatosplenomegaly associated with pancytopenia, hypertriglyceridaemia and hypofibrinogenaemia. However, the hallmark of HLH is impaired or absent function of natural killer cells and cytotoxic T lymphocytes. HLH presents major diagnostic difficulties, since it may have an incomplete and/or late onset and with many conditions leading to the same clinical picture. When untreated, it is fatal in all primary cases and in a high percentage of acquired cases. Awareness of the clinical picture and diagnostic criteria is thus important to start life saving treatment. We describe two cases of primary HLH, with significant differences in their clinical presentation and evolution.
- Giant tuberculoma in an adolescent: atypical form of tuberculosisPublication . Mascarenhas, MI; Pacheco, S; Silvestre, C; Felix, F; Brito, MJ; Correia, PA tuberculoma is a rare form of presentation of tuberculosis (TB) in children. We describe the case of a 13-year-old girl, with 3 weeks of progressive tiredness and asthenia and a 48 h fever and cough. Physical examination revealed diminished pulmonary sounds in the left lower hemithorax. A chest radiograph showed an oval hypotransparency image in this location. The TB skin test was anergic and sputum was negative for acid-fast bacilli (AFB). The thoracic CT revealed a cystic mass in the left lower half hemithorax, compressing the adjacent pulmonary lobe, with double non-calcificated membrane. The exeresis of the pulmonary mass was performed and the anatomopathological study revealed a tuberculoma with AFB. TB treatment was established with a favourable clinical and radiological evolution. TB is a prevalent disease around the world. In this case, due to the mass dimensions and adjacent-organ compression, surgery was essential for a favourable clinical evolution.
- H1N1 disseminated infection in a 3-month-old boyPublication . Moniz, M; Nunes, P; Silvestre, C; Abadesso, C; Matias, E; Loureiro, H; Almeida, HEarlier this year a new influenza virus emerged. In children, the clinical manifestations of H1N1 infection are similar to those reported during periods of seasonal influenza. We report on a 3-month-old boy with an upper respiratory tract infection who presented enteropathy, coagulopathy and encephalitis related to H1N1. The infection was confirmed in nasopharyngeal aspirate, stools and cerebrospinal fluid by real-time PCR. Treatment with oseltamivir was started.
- Hidden Risks of Alternative Medicines: A Case of Boldo-Induced Hepatotoxicity.Publication . Ribeiro, R; Silvestre, C; Duarte, CThe alternative medicines are commonly used, especially herbal ones. Among them, boldo is traditionally used for symptomatic treatment of dyspepsia and mild gastrointestinal spasmodic disorders. Nevertheless, the number of reported cases of possible hepatotoxicity of some of these products has increased, including one report of boldo-induced hepatitis. We present the case of a 72-year-old female patient who has developed jaundice and increased serum levels of liver enzymes, after repeated consumption of boldo leaves infusion, during 2 weeks. After exclusion of common causes of hepatobiliary pathology, boldo-induced hepatotoxicity was considered probable. Interrupting of ingestion led to clinical and laboratorial recovery. This case proves the value of research in the alternative medicines' use. Ingestion of boldo, particularly in elderly patients with biliary tract disorders, may be the cause of otherwise unexplained jaundice or abnormal values of liver enzymes.
- High-frequency oscillatory ventilation in children: a 10-year experiencePublication . Moniz, M; Silvestre, C; Nunes, P; Abadesso, C; Matias, E; Loureiro, H; Almeida, HIOBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to describe the experience with high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) in a Portuguese Pediatric Critical Care Unit, and to evaluate whether HFOV allowed improvement in oxygenation and ventilation. METHODS: This was a retrospective observational cohort study of children ventilated by HFOV between January, 2002 and December, 2011. The following parameters were recorded: demographic and clinical data, and blood gases and ventilatory parameters during the first 48 hours of HFOV. RESULTS: 80 children were included, with a median age of 1.5 months (min: one week; max: 36 months). Pneumonia (n=50; 62.5%) and bronchiolitis (n=18; 22.5%) were the main diagnoses. Approximately 40% (n=32) of the patients developed acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Conventional mechanical ventilation was used in 68 (85%) of patients prior to HFOV. All patients who started HFOV had hypoxemia, and 56 (70%) also presented persistent hypercapnia. Two hours after starting HFOV, a significant improvement in SatO2/FiO2 ratio (128±0.63 vs. 163±0.72; p<0.001) that was sustained up to 24 hours of HFOV and a decrease in FiO2 were observed. Since the beginning of HFOV, the mean PCO2 significantly decreased (87±33 vs. 66±25; p<0.001), and the pH significantly improved (7.21±0.17 vs. 7.32±0.15; p<0.001). Overall survival was 83.8%. CONCLUSIONS: HFOV enabled an improvement in hypercapnia and oxygenation. It is a safe option for the treatment of ARDS and severe small airway diseases.
- Infecção neonatal por vírus herpes simplexPublication . Neves, R; Nunes, P; Silvestre, C; Voutsen, O; Lemos, P; Carreiro, H; Barroso, R; Brito, MJA infecção neonatal pelo vírus Herpes simplex é rara mas cursa com morbilidade e mortalidade elevadas. Nas últimas décadas a prevalência de herpes genital e neonatal tem aumen tado. No recém-nascido descrevem-se três formas de apresentação clínica: sistémica ou disseminada, do sistema nervoso central ou dos tecidos mucocutâneos, sendo esta a mais frequente. Apresentam-se três casos de herpes neonatal mucocutâneo em que num deles a apresentação cutânea orientou o diagnóstico para a forma clínica de doença disseminada. Todas as mães estavam assintomáticas e desconheciam infecção herpética genital prévia. Nos recém-nascidos o diagnóstico foi confirmado por polimerase chain reaction. Todas as crianças foram medicadas com aciclovir, registando-se recorrências em duas delas.
- Non-invasive ventilation in acute respiratory failure in childrenPublication . Abadesso, C; Nunes, P; Silvestre, C; Matias, E; Loureiro, H; Almeida, HIBACKGROUND: There is only sparse data on the use of non-invasive ventilation (NIV) in acute respiratory failure (ARF) in infants and children. For this setting we investigated feasibility and efficacy of NIV and aimed to identify early predictors for treatment failure. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Retrospective chart review was performed for all patients treated with NIV for ARF from 2003 to 2010 on an 8-bed pediatric intensive care unit of a tertiary university hospital. RESULTS: Seventy-four patients were treated with NIV. One patient did not tolerate mask ventilation and needed immediate invasive ventilation. Intubation rate of the remaining patients was 23% and mortality 15%. Institution of NIV led to significant improvement of both respiratory and heart rate in all patients within the first hour and to further stabilization within the next 8-10 hr. In patients with NIV success blood gases improved significantly 1-2 hr after starting NIV. Multivariate analysis identified low pH after 1-2 hr to be an individual risk factor for NIV failure. Other factors tested were age, underlying disease, acute respiratory insufficiency versus post-extubation failure (PEF), and 1-2 hr after starting NIV oxygen saturation, respiratory rate, PCO(2) , and FiO(2) . Patients with PEF tended to show better outcomes compared to those with acute respiratory insufficiency. CONCLUSION: NIV can be effective in infants and children with ARF. Low pH 1-2 hr after start of NIV is associated with NIV failure. It may therefore be useful in the decision to continue or stop mask ventilation.
- Transfusão permuta parcial no tratamento de complicações agudas na drepanocitosePublication . Escobar, C; Moniz, M; Mascarenhas, I; Silvestre, C; Nunes, P; Abadesso, C; Ferreira, T; Loureiro, H; Barra, A; Dias, A; Almeida, HIIntrodução: A doença das células falciformes ou drepanocitose pode ter consequências graves e as transfusões têm um papel fundamental no prognóstico da doença. Existem poucos estudos sobre a utilização da técnica manual de transfusão permuta ou exsanguíneo-transfusão parcial de glóbulos vermelhos no tratamento de complicações agudas da drepanocitose na população pediátrica. A técnica pretende diminuir os níveis de hemoglobina S, mantendo estáveis a concentração de hemoglobina e o hematrócrito, evitando a sobrecarga hídrica e de ferro. Neste trabalho é descrita a experiência dos autores de utilização de transfusão permuta parcial. Métodos: Estudo observacional e descritivo de crianças com células falciformes internadas numa unidade de cuidados intensivos pediátricos entre janeiro de 2011 e dezembro de 2013 e que realizaram transfusão permuta parcial manual. Resultados: Foram realizados dez procedimentos a sete doentes . A mediana da idade era de nove e todos eram homozigóticos para hemoglobina S. A indicação foi acidente vascular cerebral num e síndrome torácica aguda em nove. A mediana da redução de hemoglobina S foi de 27% com incremento de hemoglobina de 0,1g/dL. A mediana do volume trocado foi de cerca de 24mL/kg e a técnica demorou 60-120 minutos. As complicações foram obstrução do lúmen do cateter, hipotensão e hipotermia. Todos os doentes apresentaram melhoria clínica, exceto no acidente vascular cerebral. Discussão: A transfusão permuta parcial manual é uma técnica simples e segura, associada a bons resultados clínicos, e que pode ser realizada em unidades de pediatria sem equipamento de eritrocitaferese nem diferenciação específica, permitindo assim uma expansão das opções terapêuticas das complicações agudas da drepanocitose.