1/110. Pseudo-steroid resistant asthma.BACKGROUND: Steroid resistant asthma (SRA) represents a small subgroup of those patients who have asthma and who are difficult to manage. Two patients with apparent SRA are described, and 12 additional cases who were admitted to the same hospital are reviewed. methods: The subjects were selected from a tertiary hospital setting by review of all asthma patients admitted over a two year period. Subjects were defined as those who failed to respond to high doses of bronchodilators and oral glucocorticosteroids, as judged by subjective assessment, audible wheeze on examination, and serial peak flow measurements. RESULTS: In 11 of the 14 patients identified there was little to substantiate the diagnosis of severe or steroid resistant asthma apart from symptoms and upper respiratory wheeze. Useful tests to differentiate this group of patients from those with severe asthma appear to be: the inability to perform reproducible forced expiratory manoeuvres, normal airway resistance, and a concentration of histamine causing a 20% fall in the forced expiratory volume (FEV1) being within the range for normal subjects (PC20). Of the 14 subjects, four were health care staff and two reported childhood sexual abuse. CONCLUSION: Such patients are important to identify as they require supportive treatment which should not consist of high doses of glucocorticosteroids and beta2 adrenergic agonists. Diagnoses other than asthma, such as gastro-oesophageal reflux, hyperventilation, vocal cord dysfunction and sleep apnoea, should be sought as these may be a cause of glucocorticosteroid treatment failure and pseudo-SRA, and may respond to alternative treatment.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = apnoea (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/110. An unusual cause of obstructive sleep apnoea presenting during pregnancy.We describe a case of lingual thyroid (LT) with primary hypothyroidism, presenting during pregnancy and continuing beyond it with oropharyngeal obstructive symptoms and sleep apnoea syndrome (SAS) of mixed type. Although SAS of a combined obstructive and central type should not be too surprising in a case of LT with hypothyroidism, we were unable to find such a documentation previously. Only four weeks of L-thyroxin treatment resulted in a dramatic improvement in dysphagia, disturbed phonation, haemoptysis, arterial desaturation, sleep apnoea and overall sleep efficiency, in conjunction with a regression in the size of the lingual mass. This case highlights the vagaries confronted in the management of such a case and focuses on efforts towards accurate diagnosis and treatment.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 6keywords = apnoea (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/110. Hunter's syndrome and associated sleep apnoea cured by CPAP and surgery.A 42-yr-old male with Hunter's syndrome presented with severe obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) and daytime respiratory failure. continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy was initially ineffective and produced acute respiratory distress. Extensive Hunter's disease infiltration of the upper airway with a myxoma was confirmed. Following surgery to remove the myxoma at the level of the vocal cords, CPAP therapy was highly effective and well tolerated. This report demonstrates the necessity of evaluating fully the upper airway in patients with unusual variants of OSAS, particularly where the disease is not adequately controlled by CPAP.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 5keywords = apnoea (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/110. Obstructive sleep apnoea in a puerperal patient with Hallermann-Streiff syndrome.A 26 yr old puerperal female with Hallermann-Streiff syndrome developed serious obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome during pregnancy. She underwent an elective Caesarean section delivery, but ending the pregnancy did not improve her clinical symptoms. By treating her with nasal continuous positive airway pressure, a worsening of her headaches and glaucoma was prevented. The administration of acetazolamide controlled all of her symptoms. Treatment with nasal ventilation is the best initial approach. It is also important to assure normal oxygenation before pregnancy since the foetus may suffer from the severe deprivation that may occur in these patients.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 5keywords = apnoea (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/110. Acute pulmonary oedema complicating adenotonsillectomy for obstructive sleep apnoea.Acute pulmonary oedema can sometimes complicate adenotonsillectomy carried out for obstructive sleep apnoea. Early recognition and adequate oxygenation are the key to management. We report such a case; the pathophysiology and management of this rare complication of a common procedure are discussed.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 5keywords = apnoea (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/110. Age-related changes in the epiglottis causing failure of nasal continuous positive airway pressure therapy.At 65 years of age, a former coal miner, now 72-years-old, developed a progressive loss of concentration with daytime sleepiness and sleep disturbances. work-up in pneumological and medical sleep centres resulted in diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), borderline obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome and, later, upper airway resistance syndrome. In addition, there was evidence of reduced efficiency of sleep. Neither the initial administration of theophylline nor the later use at night of hyperbaric respiration led to improvement in the patient's symptoms. Instead, the patient developed loud snoring, as well as the inability to sleep while in a lying position. At age 71 years, otorhinolaryngological examination resulted in findings of age-related changes in the epiglottis, that completely blocked the hypopharynx upon inspiration. polysomnography, which was possible only in a half-seated position, revealed reduction in deep sleep, with a maximum oxygen saturation of 77 per cent at an apnoea-hypopnoea index (AHI) of 4.8. Partial resection of the epiglottis with laser surgery resulted in complete improvement of diurnal drowsiness and reduced stamina. Sleeping in a supine position again became possible. polysomnography revealed normalization of sleep architecture, but unchanged, low efficiency of sleep. This case underscores the importance of an interdisciplinary approach to the treatment of sleep-related breathing disorders.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2keywords = apnoea (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/110. Simultaneous occurrence of multiple aetiologies of polycythaemia: renal cell carcinoma, sleep apnoea syndrome, and relative polycythaemia in a smoker with masked polycythaemia rubra vera.A 58 year old male heavy smoker presented with intracranial haemorrhage and erythrocytosis. Four aetiologies of polycythaemia--polycythaemia rubra vera (PRV), renal cell carcinoma, sleep apnoea syndrome, and relative polycythaemia--were found to be associated with the underlying causes of erythrocytosis. He did not fulfill the diagnostic criteria for PRV at initial presentation, but an erythropoietin independent erythroid progenitor assay identified the masked PRV, and the low post-phlebotomy erythropoietin concentration also suggested the likelihood of PRV evolution. This case demonstrates that a search for all the possible causes of erythrocytosis is warranted in patients who already have one aetiology of polycythaemia.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 5keywords = apnoea (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/110. Road traffic accidents in patients with obstructive sleep apnoea.Three patients involved in road traffic accidents were suspected to have obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA). Two of them fell asleep while riding motorcycles and one patient fell asleep behind the wheel of a truck causing it to overturn. The diagnosis of OSA in each case was suspected based on a history of loud snoring, restless sleep, and excessive daytime somnolence and was confirmed by sleep studies.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 5keywords = apnoea (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/110. charcot-marie-tooth disease and sleep apnoea syndrome: a family study.BACKGROUND: Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease is a genetically heterogeneous group of hereditary motor and sensory polyneuropathies in which sleep apnoea has rarely been reported and no causal relation shown. We looked for an association between the most common subtype of CMT disease (CMT1A) and sleep apnoea syndrome. methods: Having diagnosed sleep apnoea and CMT in one family member (index case), we prospectively investigated 13 further members not previously suspected of having neuropathy or apnoeas. All had a neurological examination, electroneuromyography, polysomnography, and genetic testing for CMT disease. FINDINGS: 11 of the 14 family members had the autosomal dominant demyelinating form of CMT disease with PMP22 gene duplication on chromosome 17. Whatever their neurological disability, all 11 individuals had sleep apnoea syndrome with a mean (SD) apnoea-hypopnoea index of 46.6/h (28.5) of sleep (normal value <15/h). The remaining three family members were free from neuropathy and sleep apnoea syndrome. sleep apnoea and neuropathy severity were highly correlated; the compound muscle action potential (CMAP) amplitude of the median nerve was inversely correlated with the apnoea-hypopnoea index (r=-0.69, p=0.029). The severity of neuropathy and sleep apnoea were higher in male CMT individuals and were correlated with age and body mass index. No wake or sleep diaphragmatic dysfunction was shown. INTERPRETATION: We think that sleep apnoea syndrome is related to a pharyngeal neuropathy. Upper airway dysfunction, previously described in the CMT2C subtype, might be a clinical expression of the CMT1A subtype, to which familial susceptibility could predispose.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 15keywords = apnoea (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/110. Acute psychosis after CPAP treatment in a schizophrenic patient with sleep apnoea-hypopnoea syndrome.A 52-yr-old man with a residual phase of schizophrenia developed sleep apnoea-hypopnoea syndrome (SAHS). After five days of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment, the patient developed an aggressive mood with incoherence, prominent hallucinations and agitation, and attempted to hit his relatives. He was finally admitted to the hospital with an acute psychotic episode. Withdrawal of CPAP, and neuroleptic treatment controlled the episode, and clinical symptoms of SAHS reappeared 10 days later. schizophrenia associated to sleep apnoea-hypopnoea syndrome has rarely been reported, but, to the authors' knowledge, the induction of a psychotic episode by continuous positive airway pressure treatment in a patient with sleep apnoea-hypopnoea syndrome and coexisting schizophrenia has never been previously reported.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 7keywords = apnoea (Clic here for more details about this article) |
| | Next -> |