About 16 million adults present with chronic back pain, the sixth most costly condition in the United States (US). Estimates suggest that about 60% of initial back surgeries have a successful outcome; however, many don't, leaving over 80,000 failed back surgeries per year. Failed Back Surgery Syndrome (FBSS) is defined by the International Association for the Study of Pain as back pain, with or without radiating pain, located in the lower limbs, of unknown origin, which persists or begins after surgical procedures are performed to treat lumbar disc herniations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAdenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) is an uncommon and aggressive head and neck cancer mainly affecting minor salivary glands. It affects more women than men in their 60s and 70s. The tumor is typically locally aggressive and has a high rate of distant metastatic disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTransesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is the preferred imaging modality to diagnose infective endocarditis (IE). However, esophageal disease can preclude performing a TEE. We present such a scenario.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) is a relatively rare neurological disorder that may result in significant morbidity if not diagnosed and managed promptly. The clinical presentation of CVT is nonspecific and highly variable with acute, subacute, or chronic onset. It most often presents as a headache but may present with focal neurological symptoms, symptoms of intracranial hypertension, or encephalopathy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSmith-Magenis syndrome (SMS) is a complex genetic developmental disorder characterized by distinctive physical features, cognitive impairment, developmental delay, and behavioral abnormalities. It is caused by a microdeletion of chromosome band 17p11.2 encoding for multiple genes including the Retinoic-acid-induced (RAI1) gene.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAn isolated hydatid cyst of the spleen is a rare presentation of echinococcal diseases, especially in non-endemic areas where it may end up with unnecessary work-up and misdiagnosis. Here, we present the case of a 28-year-old female presenting with generalized abdominal pain, constipation, and early satiety who had a delayed diagnosis of isolated splenic hydatid cyst which was partially treated with albendazole, eventually requiring splenectomy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTakotsubo cardiomyopathy (TTC) is a reversible form of myocardial injury characterized by transient systolic and diastolic dysfunction secondary to regional left ventricle (LV) wall motion abnormalities. We present a case of a rare variant of TTC, termed reverse TTC (rTTC), involving basal hypokinesis with apical hyperkinesis accounting for less than 5% of identified cases of TTC. Our patient is a 49-year-old Hispanic female who presented for evaluation of dyspnea.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTransverse myelitis is a neurological disorder of the spinal cord that can have a variety of etiologies. Herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection has been described as one of the causes, most commonly HSV type 2. We report here a case of an 18 year old male who presented with weakness that started in his upper extremities and rapidly evolved to quadriplegia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHTLV type 1 and 2 are both involved in actively spreading epidemics, affecting over 15 million people worldwide. HTLV-1 has been described as the more clinically significant one, being associated with diseases such as adult T-cell leukemia and tropical spastic paraparesis. We report here a case of tropical spastic paraparesis in an HIV-positive patient who did not report any history of travel or residence in an HTLV endemic area.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTuberculous enteritis is a clinical rarity even in immunocompromised patients. We present a case of miliary tuberculosis with gastrointestinal involvement. A 47-year-old homosexual male from Philippines with no significant medical history presented with productive cough, night sweats, subjective fevers, shortness of breath, watery diarrhea, and 25-pound weight loss in past one year.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF