Acute Surgical Abdomen: An Unusual Presentation of Pulmonary Embolus.

Background. Pulmonary embolism is a common and potentially lethal condition. Most patients who die from massive pulmonary embolism do so within the first few hours of the event.

Myopathy following mechanical ventilation for acute severe asthma: the role of muscle relaxants and corticosteroids.

Background: Acute myopathy following mechanical ventilation for near-fatal asthma (NFA) has been described recently, and some researchers have suggested that this complication is related to the use of neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBAs) and corticosteroids (CSs).

Objectives: To determine the incidence of acute myopathy in a group of patients and to examine the most important predictors of its development.

Design And Methods: A retrospective cohort study over a 10-year period (1985 to 1995) of all asthma patients who received mechanical ventilation at two centers in Vancouver (designated center 1 and center 2).