In this concise and well written case report the authors raise an important question. Could vaccination be causing serotypic drift result in more severe infections as the general population become exposed to unseen serotypes of S.pneumonia Tension pneumatocoele in a child with an empyema […]
Latest articles
Sudden onset proptosis secondary to cavernous sinus thrombosis from underlying mandibular dental infection
This case describes a relatively unusual cause of cavernous sinus thrombosis which is one of those conditions that is ideal for educationally combining applied anatomy and pathology. The report is clear and educational and is an important reminder of a rare but devastating condition. Sudden onset proptosis secondary to cavernous sinus thrombosis from underlying mandibular […]
Botulism case in Scotland
There are reports of a case of an infant with botulism in Scotland. “A 16-week-old baby boy is fighting for his life after being diagnosed with botulism. Logan Douglas was admitted to hospital in Edinburgh where doctors spotted signs of the rare disease and ordered a test. Health protection experts said there had not been […]
Rapid genome analysis for complex diagnoses
A rapid genome analysis that took only 10 days helped make the correct diagnosis in a critically ill 5 month old Turkish boy. http://opa.yale.edu/news/article.aspx?id=6988 “In a dramatic illustration of the power of emerging genetic technologies, Yale University researchers have reported making a clinical diagnosis for the first time using comprehensive DNA sequencing of all the […]
“Up yours”: smuggling illicit drugs into prison
“This account of drug dependency and smuggling in UK prisons is a reminder of an important clinical lesson that the most vulnerable in our society may get the poorest quality of care. The authors highlight how prison inmates smuggle and abuse drugs and call for more to be done at a treatment policy level to […]
Surfers ankle: a bony spur of the talar neck
“”As a sport surfing is generally safe. It is different for competitive surfers where this rapid sport calls for great agility and balance. This case report of an ankle injury demonstrates the type of damage that can be done. The authors describe the clinical investigation of this case and outline the circumstances that led to […]
Autologous stem cell therapy for heart failure plus artificial heart bridge
Autologous stem cell therapy for a diseased heart using an artificial heart to bridge for time has been performed in Greece by an Oxford surgeon. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/oxfordshire/8274259.stm “Prof Stephen Westaby, from the John Radcliffe Hospital, led the operation on Ioannis Manolopoulos in Greece. He used an artificial heart to relieve Mr Manolopoulos’s heart while it was […]
Progressive respiratory distress due to neck mass
“This well documented case of a life threatening respiratory obstruction from a neck mass is an important reminder of how to approach such emergencies. The authors describe a case of a thyroid mass and its subsequent management.” Progressive respiratory distress due to neck mass […]
Finding your doctor through their published case reports
Had a very interesting communication from a BMJ Case Reports author who was contacted by a patient’s family because the patient was suffering from a similar condition to that which the author had just published. This raises interesting points about the role of the medical literature and the increasing ability of patients and their relatives […]
YouTube case series of sporting injuries yields new clinical sign.
A case series of YouTube sporting injuries has identified what could be a useful clinical sign for sports coaches. The ‘fencing response’ (tonic posturing) is an immediate sign and is associated with moderate head injury. It seems to be a separate entity from convulsions, which may also occur, and since it is a clinical sign […]