Complications of Solid Organ Transplantation: Cardiovascular, Neurologic, Renal, and Gastrointestinal.

Despite improvements in overall graft function and patient survival rates after solid organ transplantation, complications can lead to significant morbidity and mortality. Cardiovascular complications include heart failure, arrhythmias leading to sudden death, hypertension, left ventricular hypertrophy, and allograft vasculopathy in heart transplantation. Neurologic complications include stroke, posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome, infections, neuromuscular disease, seizure disorders, and neoplastic disease.

Ultrasound-Enabled Noninvasive Management of Inadvertent Carotid Cannulation.

Introduction: Despite ultrasound use, accidental carotid cannulation is possible during placement of a central venous catheter (CVC), requiring operative repair of the carotid artery and removal of the catheter.

Case Presentation: We report 2 cases-a 59-year-old Hispanic man and an 86-year-old white man-of inadvertent placement of a CVC into the left common carotid artery, removed via a pull-and-pressure technique under real-time ultrasound guidance. No complications occurred and follow-up imaging was negative for fistula creation, hematoma, or cerebral infarcts.

Mechanical circulatory assist devices: a primer for critical care and emergency physicians.

Mechanical circulatory assist devices are now commonly used in the treatment of severe heart failure as bridges to cardiac transplant, as destination therapy for patients who are not transplant candidates, and as bridges to recovery and "decision-making". These devices, which can be used to support the left or right ventricles or both, restore circulation to the tissues, thereby improving organ function. Left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) are the most common support devices.

Adult venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for severe respiratory failure: Current status and future perspectives.

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) for severe acute respiratory failure was proposed more than 40 years ago. Despite the publication of the ARDSNet study and adoption of lung protective ventilation, the mortality for acute respiratory failure due to acute respiratory distress syndrome has continued to remain high. This technology has evolved over the past couple of decades and has been noted to be safe and successful, especially during the worldwide H1N1 influenza pandemic with good survival rates.