Neurological complications of solid organ transplantation

Guidelines for Antibiotics Prescription in Critically Ill Patients

How to cite this article: Khilnani GC, Tiwari P, Mittal S, Kulkarni AP, Chaudhry D, Zirpe KG, et al. Guidelines for Antibiotics Prescription in Critically Ill Patients. Indian J Crit Care Med 2024;28(S2):S104-S216.

Solid organ transplant-related central nervous system infections

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Central nervous system (CNS) infections in solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients may present atypical or nonspecific symptoms. Due to a wider range of infectious agents compared with immunocompetent hosts, diagnosis is challenging. This review categorizes CNS infections in SOT recipients by cause.

RECENT FINDINGS

New studies have reported new data on the epidemiology and the risk factors associated with each specific pathogen described in this review. Additionally, we included the treatment recommendations.

SUMMARY

The latest findings give us an insight into the different pathogens causing infectious neurologic complications in SOT recipients.

Superacute onset of Guillain-Barré syndrome after elective spinal surgery: A case report and literature review

RATIONALE

Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) epitomizes an acute peripheral neuropathy hallmarked by an autoimmune retort directed at the myelin sheath enwrapping peripheral nerves. While it is widely acknowledged that a majority of GBS patients boast a history of antecedent infections, the documentation of postoperative GBS occurrences is progressively mounting. Drawing upon an exhaustive compendium of recent case reports, the disease's inception spans a gamut from within 1 hour to 1.2 years.

PATIENT CONCERNS

At this juncture, we proffer a singular case: an instance involving a 51-year-old gentleman who underwent lumbar spine surgery, only to encounter immediate debilitation of limb and respiratory musculature.

DIAGNOSES

Post elimination of variables linked to anesthetic agents, encephalon, and spinal cord pathologies, a potent suspicion of superacute GBS onset emerged.

INTERVENTIONS

Subsequent to immunoglobulin therapy, plasmapheresis, and adjunctive support, the patient's ultimate demise became manifest.

OUTCOMES

No progress was found to date.

LESSONS

Given GBS's potential to instigate paralysis, respiratory collapse, and autonomic nervous system aberrations, alongside other pernicious sequelae, coupled with the exceptional rarity of the temporal onset in this particular instance, it undeniably proffers an imposing conundrum for anesthetists in the realm of differential diagnosis and therapeutic conduct. During the postoperative convalescence phase under anesthesia, should the patient evince deviant limb musculature vigor and compromised respiratory sinews, the prospect of GBS must not be consigned to oblivion. Precision in diagnosis conjoined with apt therapeutic measures could well be the harbinger of a divergent denouement for the afflicted patient.

Post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder myeloradiculopathy

A 56-year-old woman developed progressive subacute lower limb weakness with sensory and autonomic abnormalities. She had received a living-donor kidney transplantation 21 years before for end-stage chronic kidney disease and took mycophenolate mofetil and prednisolone. MR scan of the spinal cord showed bilateral cauda equina gadolinium enhancement and MR scan of the brain showed enhancing nodular hyperintensities in the internal capsule and globus pallidus. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) showed a pleocytosis with extremely low glucose, and positive DNA-PCR for Epstein-Barr virus. Her condition worsened despite empirically guided antimicrobial treatment. CSF immunophenotyping later identified mature, clonal B lymphocytes of large size, expressing CD19, CD20, CD200 antigens, and kappa light chain immunoglobulin, with absent CD5 and CD10 expression. We diagnosed a myeloradiculopathy from a monomorphic post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder. This condition occurs after kidney transplantation and falls on the lymphoma spectrum. We review its clinical features, diagnosis and management.

Nursing Care for Kidney Transplant Patients: A Scoping Review

Objectives: Mapping nursing care in kidney transplant patients. Materials and method: A scoping review was conducted according to the recommendations of the Joanna Briggs Institute Reviewers’ Manual. Data were collected through 13 national and international databases from December 2020 to January 2021, following scientific rigor in the selection of the material. The pre-selection was made by reading the title, abstract and introductory text in advance; the materials included in this stage were read in full to define the content for the study. Results: Fifteen studies were included. Of these, 60% are articles; dissertations, manuals, protocols, guidelines and bulletins totaled 40% of the material studied. 86.6% of the material has a quantitative approach. Regarding the methodological design, 73.3% were descriptive/transversal character studies. Regarding the mapping of nursing care, it was possible to divide them into two categories: nursing care after kidney transplantation (immediate, mediated and late) and nursing care after kidney transplantation in primary health/extra-hospital care. Conclusions: It is concluded that the study allowed mapping nursing care to kidney transplant patients in the immediate, late and primary health care periods.

[Anesthesiological aspects of liver transplantation]

Liver transplantation (LTPL) is the only curative option for patients with end stage liver disease (ESLD) or with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Eurotransplant in Leiden, the Netherlands, is responsible for organ allocation. The model of end stage liver disease (MELD) score, which describes the severity of the liver disease, is decisive for organ allocation. The heterogeneous patient collective and hepatic-related comorbidities and their dynamics represent challenges. The anesthesiologist is responsible for evaluating the overall prognosis, whereby cardiac, pulmonary, renal and neurological comorbidities must be taken into consideration. During LTPL surgery is divided into several stages. Besides volume management, heat preservation and coagulation management, major challenges for the anesthesiologist are hemodynamic stabilization and regulation of the acid-base balance.

Complications of Solid Organ Transplantation: Cardiovascular, Neurologic, Renal, and Gastrointestinal

Despite improvements in overall graft function and patient survival rates after solid organ transplantation, complications can lead to significant morbidity and mortality. Cardiovascular complications include heart failure, arrhythmias leading to sudden death, hypertension, left ventricular hypertrophy, and allograft vasculopathy in heart transplantation. Neurologic complications include stroke, posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome, infections, neuromuscular disease, seizure disorders, and neoplastic disease. Acute kidney injury occurs from immunosuppression with calcineurin inhibitors or as a result of graft failure after kidney transplantation. Gastrointestinal complications include infections, malignancy, mucosal ulceration, perforation, biliary tract disease, pancreatitis, and diverticular disease. Immunosuppression can predispose to infections and malignancy.

Head Transplantation: The Immune System, Phantom Sensations, and the Integrated Mind

The principal focus of this paper is to consider the implications of head and neck transplantation surgery on the issue of personal identity. To this end, it is noted that the immune system has not only been established to impose a level of self-identity on bodily cells, it has also been implicated in mental development and the regulation of mental state. In this it serves as a paradigm for the mind as the product of cephalic and extracephalic systems. The importance of bodily systems in identity is then discussed in relation to phantom tissue syndrome. The data strongly indicate that, even if surgically successful, head and neck transplantation will result in the loss of the continuity of personal identity.