Kreiskrankenhaus Emmendingen

Background: Primary progressive aphasia (PPA) is a rare disorder. Data on health care utilisation and care-relevant symptoms are scarce.Aims: The study aimed at finding out how patients with PPA are cared for, the extent of professional support utilised by family caregivers, and which care-relevant clinical symptoms and signs occur with advanced disease.Method & Procedures: Forty-three family caregivers of patients with PPA were interviewed with a standardised questionnaire.Outcomes & Results: A majority of caregivers cared for the patients at home without any support. More than 40% of the patients were treated with cholinesterase inhibitors or memantine. Only 9% of the patients received speech therapy. In advanced PPA, the majority of patients were unable to communicate and almost all needed 24-hr care. Other neurological symptoms appeared, and a considerable number of patients suffered from moderate or severe somatic illnesses.Conclusion: Future studies are necessary to investigate the reasons why the PPA caregivers hardly utilise informal and formal support, what their specific needs are, and which kind of support and interventions prove to be useful.

Faecal incontinence (FI) challenges a patient's professional, social and sexual life. Often the patient becomes depressive and socially isolated. If able to break open for therapy the patient should receive as first line a conservative treatment (like dietary measures, pelvic re-education, biofeedback, bulking agents, irrigation). When is the time to implant an artificial anal sphincter? If conservative therapy fails as well as surgical options (like a sphincteroplasty - if indicated a reconstruction of the pelvic floor if insufficient, or a sacral nerve stimulation) an ultimo surgical procedure should be offered to appropriate and compliant patients: an artificial anal sphincter. Worldwide, there are two established devices on the market: the artificial bowel sphincter® (ABS) from A. M. S. (Minnetonka, MN, USA) and the soft anal band® from A. M. I. (Feldkirch, Austria). How to implant the artificial anal sphincter? Both devices consist of a silicon cuff which can be filled with fluid. Under absolute aseptic conditions this cuff is placed in the lithotomy position by perianal incisions around the anal canal below the pelvic floor. A silicon tube connects the anal cuff with a reservoir (containing fluid) which is placed either behind the pubis bone in front of the bladder (ABS) or below the costal arch (anal band). With a pump placed in the scrotum/labia (ABS) or by pressing the balloon (anal band) in both types operated by the patient the fluid is shifted forth and back between the anal cuff and the reservoir closing or opening the anal canal. Both systems are placed completely subcutaneously. Both devices improve significantly the anal continence. Both systems have a high rate of reoperations. However, the causes for the redos are different. The ABS is associated with high infection and anal penetration rates of the cuff leading to an explantation rate to up to 60 % of the implants. This kind of complication seems to be much lower with the anal band. The major problem in the anal band is a defunctioning valve which occasionally has to be replaced. Despite these problems both types of artificial anal sphincters improve faecal incontinence significantly and, thus, quality of life of incontinent patients.

A prospective study was conducted to determine the diagnostic value of sonography in suspected acute appendicitis. From September 1987 until May 1988, the end of the study, 152 patients suspected of having "acute appendicitis" were admitted to hospital. In contrast to other recently published studies conducted by a few highly qualified examiners, we dimed at determining whether this method is useful as a 24-hour-screening performed ba y number of more or less qualified examiners. In the beginning, the patients were examined with a 3.5 MHz scanner, later on exclusively with 5 MHz linear and sector scanners. 150 cases could be evaluated, 96 of which underwent surgery. We found 35 sonographically correct results, 89 correctly negative, 4 false positive and 13 false negative diagnoses. This means a sensitivity of 73% and a specificity of 96% for the sonographical diagnostic method. In 20 cases (13%) sonography led to other diagnoses. A large majority of these findings can be detected by less experienced examiners. The goal of a 24-hour-screening could not be reached because there a competent examiner was not always available at night. It became clear that clinically obvious cases do not require sonographic conformation. The value of sonography lies with doubtful cases of appendicitis: if the ultrasound examination is negative, appendectomy can be postponed; if sonography leads to other differential diagnoses, appropriate therapy can be started immediately.

From 1976 to March 1987 intraabdominal or retroperitoneal abscesses were confirmed by ultrasound in 40 patients. 13 patients had surgical drainage with zero-mortality. 3 of 27 patients were treated with antibiotics (only systemically). 24 patients were treated by percutaneous catheter drainage or needle aspiration. Elective cholecystectomy was performed later in 3 patients. Nonsurgical treatment was successful in 22/27 cases. 3 patients died despite percutaneous drainage. Failure of percutaneous drainage required surgical intervention in 3 patients. The considerably poorer primary condition of the patients receiving nonsurgical treatment allows no comparison with the surgical group. Advantages of percutaneous drainage and needle aspiration are a high success rate and low mortality. These techniques can be used even in critically ill persons.

This is the report of a patient, that had without using any assisted reproduction technology (ART) the rare event of a heterotopic pregnancy. After verifying the intrauterine pregnancy by ultrasound, the ectopic tubal pregnancy (EP) was detected at an emergency abdominal surgery as the cause of an intraabdominal hemorrhage. After removal the further pregnancy was uncomplicated.

Cardiac metastases are a rare finding. The primary diagnosis of a malignant disease by cardial metastases is a curiosity. A 76-year-old patient presented with dyspnea, angina pectoris and body weight loss. Echocardiography showed a circular pericardial effusion and intramyocardial masses with high echodensity in the right atrial and the right ventricular wall. MIR was not diagnostic of the intramyocardial masses. The pericardiocentesis was negative. The procedures revealed an intestinal type gastric adenocarcinoma. Echocardiography is an established method for the diagnosis of cardiac metastases.