Tunneled central venous catheters: Experience from a single center.

In the past vascular surgeons were called in to place tunneled central venous catheter (TVC) for hemodialysis patients. Advent of percutaneous technique has resulted in an increasing number of interventional nephrologists inserting it. A single centre three year audit of 100 TVCs with a cumulative follow up of 492 patient months is presented here.

Laparoscopic appendicectomy for complicated appendicitis: is it safe and justified?: A retrospective analysis.

Background: Although laparoscopic appendectomy has some advantages over open appendectomy, the literature suggests conflicting results regarding postoperative complications for complicated appendicitis.

Methods: A retrospective review of patients with complicated appendicitis managed surgically at Meenakshi Mission Hospital and Research Center, Madurai, Tamilnadu, India was undertaken. A total of 497 patients were admitted with acute appendicitis and operated during the study period of 10 years from January 1999 to July 2009, out of which 119 (24%) patients had complicated appendicitis whereas 378 (76%) had uncomplicated acute appendicitis.

Childhood Bartter's syndrome: An Indian case series.

This is a retrospective analysis of children diagnosed with Bartter's syndrome (BS) between 2001 and 2009 in our hospital. Seven children (six males) were diagnosed with BS. The mean age at presentation was 6.

Single-incision laparoscopic splenectomy.

Single-incision laparoscopic surgery (SILS) is a rapidly evolving field as a bridge between traditional laparoscopic surgery and natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery. We present a case of SILS splenectomy performed with conventional laparoscopic instruments in a 7-month-old boy with the diagnosis of multiple splenic abscesses. A 3-cm umbilical incision was used for the placement of two (5 mm) trocars and one 10-mm videoscope (30°).

Norwegian scabies in a renal transplant patient.

A variety of skin infections are encountered in postrenal transplant setting. Though bacterial and fungal infections are more common, surprises are in store for us sometimes. We describe a patient who underwent renal transplant two years ago, presenting with a painless, mildly pruritic expanding skin rash over abdomen.

Congenital lobar emphysema.

Congenital lobar emphysema (CLE) characterized by over distension and air-trapping in the affected lobe is one of the causes of infantile respiratory distress requiring surgical resection of affected lobe. At induction, positive pressure ventilation can expand the emphysematous lobe compressing the normal lung resulting in severe cardiovascular compromise. We report a case of 28 day old baby with CLE posted for emergency lobectomy.

ANCA negative pauci-immune glomerulonephritis with systemic involvement.

Systemic vasculitides (SV) are a group of diseases with multi system involvement and varied clinical presentation. Anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA) testing has high sensitivity and specificity for SV. We describe the clinical course of four patients who had pauci-immune glomerulonephritis with systemic involvement without serological ANCA positivity; they were followed up for a cumulative 55 patient months.

Granulomatous interstitial nephritis due to tuberculosis-a rare presentation.

Granulomatous interstitial nephritis (GIN) is an uncommon form of acute interstitial nephritis. We report a young male who presented to us with a rapidly progressing renal failure and massive proteinuria. A renal biopsy revealed GIN, and we were able to demonstrate the presence of tuberculous DNA in the biopsy specimen.

Hair dye poisoning and the developing world.

Hair dye poisoning has been emerging as one of the important causes of intentional self harm in the developing world. Hair dyes contain paraphenylene-diamine and a host of other chemicals that can cause rhabdomyolysis, laryngeal edema, severe metabolic acidosis and acute renal failure. Intervention at the right time has been shown to improve the outcome.

Niacin and analogs for phosphate control in dialysis--perspective from a developing country.

Hyperphosphatemia is an important modifiable risk factor in the dialysis population because it is linked to increased mortality. Existing phosphate-reducing agents either increase the risk of vascular calcification or are costly with high pill burden. Niacin shows promise as a cheap drug with low pill burden and a novel mode of action.

Percutaneous CAPD catheter insertion by a nephrologist versus surgical placement: A comparative study.

Peritoneal dialysis catheter (PDC) for continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis is inserted into the abdominal cavity either by a surgeon, interventional radiologist or nephrologist. Various innovations have been made in the methodology adopted in the placement of the PDC. We compared the percutaneous approach for PDC insertion with the open surgical technique.

Complications in atrial septal defect device closure.

Atrial septal defect (ASD) is a common congenital cardiac anomaly. Even though surgery is the gold standard, percutaneous device closure is gaining popularity because of the short learning curve, cosmetic advantage and relative safety. The long-term implications are open to question.

Emphysematous prostatitis in renal transplant.

Urinary tract infections are common following renal transplant. The spectrum varies from asymptomatic bacteriuria to septicemia. Gas-producing infections of the urinary tract are rare but tend to have a grave prognosis when they do occur.

Extended release nicotinic acid - a novel oral agent for phosphate control.

Background: Hyperphosphatemia is common in hemodialysis patients. Recent animal studies show that nicotinamide inhibits the sodium dependent phosphate co-transport in the small intestine and thereby reduces serum phosphorus levels. Nicotinic acid which is the prodrug of nicotinamide is widely used as antihyperlipidemic agent.

A retrospective study of infections in neutropenic patients.

This is a retrospective non-randomised study of 37 episodes of infections in neutropenic patients (grades III and IV myelosuppression). The commonest presentation of infection in these patients was fever which was followed by diarrhoea. Infection was documented bacteriologically in 22.