An 81-year-old man with pain and crepitus in the shoulder
Article Abstract:
An 81-year-old man with severe pain in his right shoulder was diagnosed with clostridial myonecrosis. Clostridial myonecrosis, also known as gas gangrene, is an acute and painful condition in which muscle and tissues become infected with Clostridial bacteria. Clostridial species are normally found in human feces, but given a means of entry, such as through trauma or tissue death, can infect the body. Cases of spontaneous clostridial myonecrosis are usually associated with cancer of the bowel or diabetes. The patient's blood pressure had dropped significantly on the way to the hospital, and he had subcutaneous emphysema near the right shoulder, which is an accumulation of air in the tissues. In the hospital, his blood pressure continued to drop and he suffered cardiac arrest twice. During surgery on his shoulder, a mass of dead muscle tissue was removed and gas formation was observed. He died 30 hours after the shoulder pain first developed. The muscle tissue removed tested positive for bacteria, and colon cancer was detected at autopsy, confirming the diagnosis.
Publication Name: The New England Journal of Medicine
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0028-4793
Year: 1993
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Understanding the Timing of HIV Transmission From Mother to Infant
Article Abstract:
About half of mother-to-baby transmissions of HIV occur a few days before delivery and about one-third occur during childbirth, according to a model developed by researchers. For this reason, pregnant women who test positive for HIV should take AIDS drugs early in the third trimester and continuing up until the first few weeks of the baby's life.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 2001
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