Quality Of Initial Management Research Articles

Pediatric head injuries: particularities and neurosurgical experience in a lower-middle income country.

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study conducted in Tunisia on the neurosurgical management of child cranial trauma. The objectives of the present work were to identify the causes of pediatric head injuries, explore epidemiological and clinical specificities, and analyze the short- and long-term postoperative evolution. A retrospective review was conducted on one hundred children with head injuries over a five-year period at one of the largest neurosurgery departments in Tunisia. The collected data encompassed demographic information, clinical presentation features, neuroimaging characteristics, surgical management, complications, and outcomes. Over a five-year period, we have found 118 children who have undergone surgery, representing an annual incidence of twenty-four children per year. The average age was 10 years. Falls emerged as the primary cause of childhood head injuries in our series, followed by road traffic accidents. The most frequently encountered initial sign was the loss of consciousness (52%), followed by headaches (28%), vomiting (25%), and seizures (8%). The average time between the accident and admission to the operating unit was 10h. Various neurosurgeries were performed, with the evacuation of an epidural hematoma being the most common procedure. At a median follow-up of 24 months, the outcomes were favorable in 88% of cases. The main prognostic factors for head trauma in children included age, circumstances of the accident, association with polytrauma, the initial Glasgow Coma Scale, the nature of the initial cerebral lesions, and the timeliness and quality of initial management.

Prise en charge chirurgicale des nécroses cutanées dans le purpura fulminans : à propos de 2 cas cliniques

The authors report their experience of the management of 2 patients with purpura fulminans. After a review of the epidemiology, diagnostic methods, natural course and prognosis of the disease, the various stages of the treatment are described. The urgency of the medical treatment is stressed and the specific technique of the surgical approach to the artificial dermis is detailed. The quality of initial management is of crucial importance and such extensive and deep cutaneous destruction is best dealt in burn centers.

Paralysie obstétricale du plexus brachial

Brachial plexus birth palsy (BPBP) is defined as an injury to any nerve root of the brachial plexus during difficult delivery. BPBP is relatively rare; its incidence has remained constant over the last few decades, mostly due to unpredictable risk factors, such as shoulder dystocia. Both diagnosis and assessment of spontaneous recovery is based on clinical examination. Electromyography is difficult to interpret in the newborn and is therefore not meaningful. MRI of the cervical spine requires sedation or general anesthesia. Searching for a pre-ganglion tear prior to surgery is indicted. Prognosis depends on the level of the injury (pre- or post-ganglion), size and severity of the post-ganglion tears, speed of recovery, and quality of initial management. Although spontaneous recovery is frequent, some children suffer various degrees of sequelae, up to complete loss of function of the affected upper limb. Recent publications have improved general knowledge and indications for surgery. However, some aspects, such as indication and timing of nerve repair continue to be debated.