Content from the Journal of the American Neurological Surgeons.
Emphysema affects an estimated 60 million people worldwide. It is a disease associated with significant morbidity in the form of dyspnea and exercise limitation and mortality. The pathology behind this is the destruction of pulmonary parenchyma, both alveolar walls and interstitial tissue. Introduction: Emphysema affects an estimated 60 million people worldwide. It is a disease…
By A. Sampath Kumar, MD
I am pleased to provide my reflections on what is now forty years of practicing cardiothoracic surgery. In 1958, after graduating from the University of Alabama in Birmingham, I pursued surgery training under James D. Hardy in Jackson, Mississippi. Jim Hardy would become my role model and life-long mentor and professional associate. At the time,…
Editor’s Note Dr. C. Barber Mueller is Professor Emeritus of Surgery, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. These remarks were given at a special class dinner for the second year medical students. The assembly gave Dr. Mueller a standing ovation at the end of his talk. Dr. Mueller is a product of the surgical training program…
Introduction Necrotizing esophagitis is a rare, potentially lethal clinical entity with an unclear etiology. We present a case of necrotizing esophagitis with a right-sided perforation of the distal esophagus in a 79 year-old female without significant precipitating events. The patient underwent resection of the distal two-thirds of the esophagus, followed by creation of a cervical…
Aortic translocation for the treatment of patients with transposition of the great arteries, ventricular septal defect and pulmonary stenosis appears to be an operation whose time has come. This operation was first reported by Hisashi Nikaidoh nearly 20 years ago, in 1984 [1]. At that time Dr. Nikaidoh published a single-author paper in the Journal…
I stood about six feet from the radiant warming bed, behind the nurses and residents who were crowded around, each playing a role in the drama reenacted from time to time in this intensive care unit. They were resuscitating a neonate in cardiopulmonary arrest. An anesthesiology resident was at the head of the bed, manually…
Live telecasts of surgery are on a dramatic rise. We are spammed daily with invitations to peer over the shoulders of master technicians, to learn nuances of operative technique and, in some, to even ask questions during the procedure. Empowered by the prowess of the internet and the falling cost of transmitting video images around…
As a young kid, my grandfather took me to see a wonderful respected golf pro in Austin with the purpose of teaching me to be a better golfer. His name was Harvey Penick, he was famous then and only became more so with time. For those of you deprived of knowledge of this great game,…
A 72 year old white male presented with a complaint of recent onset of upper mid-back pain. He states that the pain starts in his chest and radiates to his upper back, and that the symptoms have been relatively constant for the last several weeks. Patient Presentation A 72 year old white male presented with…
I rarely sit down and reflect on the joys and value that a career in cardiothoracic surgery brings to my life. I seem instead to be thinking about what I’m doing. Namely, that I love going to work; that I enjoy working with my colleagues; that I still like to write first authored scientific papers;…
A 52-year-old man presented to the emergency department with complaints of hemoptysis for two days (1/2 to 1 cup of bright blood). At the time of admission, the patient reported a two-day history of fever (102o F) and chills, but denied weight loss or night sweats. Patient Presentation A 52-year-old man presented to the emergency…
This video demonstrates an orthotopic heart transplantation.
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