Brain death: the Asian perspective.

Asia is the largest and most populous continent in the world with people from many diverse ethnic groups, religions and government systems. The authors surveyed 14 countries accounting for the majority of Asia's population and found that, although the concept of brain death is widely accepted, there is wide variability in the criteria for certification. Although most Asian countries have adopted the "whole-brain" concept of brain death, most countries with past colonial links to the United Kingdom follow the UK "brainstem" concept of brain death.

Respiratory failure as a first presentation of myasthenia gravis.

Background: Although respiratory failure commonly occurs during the course of myasthenia gravis (MG), it is rarely described at presentation in patients with previously unrecognized MG.

Material/methods: We determined the prevalence and clinical characteristics of patients with respiratory failure associated with undiagnosed MG by review of the medical records of all patients who were diagnosed with MG related respiratory failure at four University hospitals. Respiratory failure was defined on the basis of a forced vital capacity < or =1 liter, negative inspiratory force < or =20 cm H2O, or requirement of mechanical ventilation.

Ventilatory care in myasthenia gravis crisis: assessing the baseline adverse event rate.

Objective: Myasthenic patients who require mechanical ventilation often develop pneumonia or atelectasis. Although there are differences in the prevalence of these complications among various institutions, there is no evidence that aggressive treatment shortens the course of the myasthenic crisis. We have quantified the severity of lung injury and aggressiveness of respiratory intervention in myasthenic patients admitted to the neuro-critical care unit.