BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to assess the incidence of organ failure in trauma patients treated in an intensive care unit (ICU), and to study the relationship between organ failure and long-term survival and functional status. METHODS This is a cohort study of all adult ICU trauma patients admitted to a university hospital during 1998 to 2003. Organ failure was quantified by the Sequ...

Acute liver failure is a rare but catastrophic condition which can progress rapidly to multi-organ failure. Studies investigating the onset of individual organ injury such as the liver, kidneys and brain during the evolution of acute liver failure, are lacking. MicroRNAs are short, non-coding strands of RNA that are released into the circulation following tissue injury. In this study, we have c...

Transplantation is an effective, life-prolonging treatment for organ failure. Demand has steadily increased over the past decade, creating a shortage in the supply of organs. In addition, the number of deceased organ donors has reached a plateau. Living-donor transplantation is increasingly an option, influenced by favourable clinical outcomes and increased waiting times at most transplant cent...

Background: Sickle cell anemia (SCA) is an inherited monogenic disorder. The clinical symptoms of SCA are protean, including vaso-occlusion, hemolysis, early stroke, leg ulcers, multi-organ failure, and increased risk of premature death. Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the only treatment identified to reduce SCA-related organ damage. Unfortunately, graft rejection is a significant im...

INTRODUCTION Leptospirosis presents with disease of variable severity; multi-organ failure can occur. In this situation, plasma exchange has been used with positive results, although the mechanism of action has not been fully explained. CASE PRESENTATION A 67-year-old Caucasian man developed severe leptospirosis with marked icterus, acute kidney injury and cardiorespiratory failure, after exp...

BACKGROUND Nijmegen Breakage Syndrome (NBS) is a rare autosomal recessive DNA repair disorder characterized by immune deficiency, microcephaly, mental retardation and a disposition for the development of hematological malignancies. So far, mostly pediatric patients have been described, since the underlying condition is often fatal before adulthood. Many patients diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma ...

Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) is a disease characterized by chronic persistent hemolysis, multi-organ damage and eventually multiple organ failure. PNH develops as a result of increased sensitivity to complement due to an acquired deficiency of certain glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-linked proteins. The clinical presentation of PNH varies greatly from one patient to another. We ...

severe coronary artery disease often coexists with peripheral vascular atherosclerosis. the assessment of the supra-aortic circulation is, therefore, of clinical relevance. we herein describe a case of coronary artery disease treated with surgical revascularization using the internal mammary artery and thereafter the progressive atherosclerotic disease of the native coronary arteries as well as...

During 2000, four cases of fatal Lassa fever were imported from Africa to Europe. In two patients, consecutive serum samples were available for monitoring of virus load and cytokine levels in addition to standard laboratory data. Both patients had non-specific early clinical symptoms including high fever. Patient 1 developed multi-organ failure and died of hemorrhagic shock on day 15 of illness...