Intrapleural tetracycline for spontaneous pneumothorax in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.

Spontaneous pneumothorax is occurring in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and Pneumocystis carinii infection with increasing frequency. These patients are typically poor surgical candidates. Conservative management using tetracycline sclerosis was performed with good results in a patient with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and recurrent pneumothorax.

Retrospective analysis of the efficacy of open lung biopsy in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.

Open lung biopsy (OLB) was performed on 66 patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome from November 1981 through December 1987. Twenty-two patients with severe respiratory failure died within a month, 3 during operation. Fourteen patients with negative transbronchial biopsy and 19 with failure of treatment based on transbronchial biopsy died within a year.

Use of profound hypothermia and circulatory arrest in complex intra-cardiac repair in adults.

Profound hypothermia and circulatory arrest is a well worked out technique for total repair of congenital defects in infants. Recently, it has been popularized for the repair of aneurysms of the transverse aortic arch. We have applied this technique of profound hypothermia and circulatory arrest in three other adult patients in whom conventional techniques would not allow safe and adequate complete repair of acquired intra-cardiac defects.

Abdominal pain in patients with acquired immune deficiency syndrome.

The patient with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and abdominal pain presents the surgeon with a difficult challenge. The pain may be due to an opportunistic infection, ileus, organomegaly, or a true surgical emergency. The hospital records of 235 patients with AIDS were reviewed.

Indications for intubation in blunt chest trauma.

The value of endotracheal intubation and internal stabilization in severe chest injuries is well known. Recent reports have proposed that many such patients can be managed without intubation. To determine which patients need intubation we reviewed 140 patients with three or more rib fractures who presented to our hospitals from 1 January 1979 through 31 December 1983: 119 nonintubated patients (Group A); 13 patients intubated on admission (Group B); five patients intubated after hospital day 1 (Group C); and three patients intubated questionably on admission (Group D).