Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0038358 (gastric ulcer)
 5,179 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Increase in intracranial pressure due to brain oedema is one of the most frequent complications of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), apart from vasospasm and hydrocephalus. Up to now the administration of corticosteroids at various dosages has been the standard therapy for brain oedema. With this retrospective study we tried to answer the question whether the administration of dexamethasone at high dosage in patients with SAH bears an increased risk of medical complications such as infections, gastrointestinal bleeding and diabetes mellitus. 171 consecutive patients of our intensive care unit, 51 men and 120 women (average age 52.4 +/- 13.6 years) were included in the study. 107 patients received dexamethasone in high doses according to Gobiet's scheme. 64 patients who were not given any steroids formed the control group. Almost the same frequency of gastrointestinal bleeding was registered in the steroid group (2.8%) and in the control group (3.1%). No increase in diabetic problems was found in the steroid group, either. The steroid group showed an increase in infections (38.3% compared with 28.1% in the control group; p less than 0.001). The increase, however, was entirely due to the more frequent occurrence of urinary tract infections (14.0% vs. 4.7%). Dexamethasone therapy at high dosage bears no increased risk of medical problems in patients with SAH, except for a greater number of urinary tract infections. However, stomach ulcer prophylaxis and monitoring of blood sugar levels and electrolytes are deemed necessary.
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PMID:[Steroid therapy in subarachnoid hemorrhage]. 230 91

We report the findings in a patient in whom torsade de pointes atypical ventricular tachycardia occurred as a complication of subarachnoid hemorrhage. The patient was a 54-year-old female and she was admitted to our hospital to treat gastric ulcer on October 8, 1985. The electrocardiogram on admission showed mild left ventricular hypertrophy. She complained of severe headache and nausea in hospital on November 10 and she was transferred to our department. Her consciousness was clear. Computed tomography revealed a subarachnoid hemorrhage and left carotid angiogram showed a left middle cerebral artery aneurysm. Laboratory findings of blood and a chest roentgenogram were normal, but the electrocardiogram revealed a prominent prolongation of the QT interval and generalized giant negative T waves. The aneurysm was clipped on November 11, but a torsade de pointes atypical ventricular tachycardia occurred after clipping of the aneurysm during the surgery. Several anti-arrhythmic agents were not effective but phenytoin suppressed the arrhythmia. Postoperative course was almost uneventful. Since she had mild right hemiparesis, she continued the rehabilitation in our department. Five months later her electrocardiographic findings became normal. Prolongation of the QT interval and the giant negative T wave are typical electrocardiographic abnormalities in patients of subarachnoid hemorrhage, causing a predisposition to torsade de pointes ventricular tachycardia. The arrhythmia should be kept in mind as a complication in a viewpoint of the management of subarachnoid hemorrhage in the acute stage.
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PMID:[An electrocardiographic abnormality called torsade de pointes in a patient of subarachnoid hemorrhage]. 339 96