Pulmonary hydatid cyst in a pregnant patient causing acute respiratory failure.

A 21-year-old primigravida, at 32 weeks of gestation, presented with acute onset of respiratory failure and circulatory shock. Chest imaging showed findings suggestive of ruptured hydatid cyst, which was confirmed by histology post-thoracotomy. Tissue cultures from the removed cyst grew Mycobacterium tuberculosis also.

Use of noninvasive positive pressure ventilation during pregnancy: case series.

Mechanical ventilation is commonly required in critically ill pregnant patients, requiring ICU admission, with higher morbidity and mortality related to airway management. Alternatively, noninvasive positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) is increasingly used to treat nonpregnant patients. Pregnancy has been a contraindication to its use.

Successful use of non-invasive positive pressure ventilation in a complicated flail chest.

The current advanced trauma life support manual states that patients with significant hypoxia namely, SaO2 <90% on room air as a result of pulmonary contusion should be intubated and ventilated within the first hour of injury. Recently, several researchers have shown improved outcomes when patients with acute respiratory failure are managed with non-invasive positive pressure ventilation NIPPV. Trauma patients may also benefit from this therapy.

Clinical review: percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy.

As the number of critically ill patients requiring tracheotomy for prolonged ventilation has increased, the demand for a procedural alternative to the surgical tracheostomy (ST) has also emerged. Since its introduction, percutaneous dilatational tracheostomies (PDT) have gained increasing popularity. The most commonly cited advantages are the ease of the familiar technique and the ability to perform the procedure at the bedside.