Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH), which makes up the bulk of the 14 million occurrences of obstetric hemorrhage that happen yearly, is the most prevalent type. Obstetric emergencies must be promptly identified and treated because most PPH-related deaths occur within four hours of delivery and even after hysterectomy. This literature study tries to elucidate abdominal packing in reducing obstetrical bleeding in greater detail. Pads or roller gauze (sterile pads bound by suture threads, wrapped in a sterile bag, or stacked gauze) and balloon pack (Foley catheter or Bakri balloon), and abdominal packs retrieved within 24-48 hours, are two categories of abdominal packing techniques for controlling bleeding after hysterectomy. Due to its ease of use, minimal risk of complications, and usefulness in environments with limited resources, abdominal packing continues to be a valuable technique in the arsenal of the modern obstetrician.
Acute kidney injury among medical and surgical in-patients in the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital, Cape Coast, Ghana: a prospective cross-sectional study
Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a syndrome associated with high morbidity, mortality and high hospital costs. Despite its adverse clinical and economic effects, only a few studies have reported reliable estimates on the incidence of AKI in sub-Sahara Africa. We assessed the incidence and associated factors of AKI among medical and surgical patients admitted to a tertiary hospital in Ghana.
Methods: A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted among one hundred and forty-five (145) consecutive patients admitted to the medical and the surgical wards at the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital (CCTH), Cape Coast, Ghana from April 2017 to April 2018. Socio-demographic and clinical information were collected using structured questionnaires. AKI was diagnosed and staged with the KDIGO guideline, using admission serum creatinine as baseline kidney function.
Results: The mean age of the study participants was 46.6±17.7 years, whilst the male:female ratio was 68:77. The overall incidence of AKI among the participants was 15.9% (95% CI: 10.33 – 22.84%). Stage 1 AKI occurred in 56.5% of the participants, whilst stages 2 and 3 AKI respectively occurred among 4.1% and 2.8% of respondents. About 20% of the participants in the medical ward developed AKI (n= 15) whilst 12% of those in surgical ward developed AKI (n= 8). Among the participants admitted to the medical ward, 60.0%, 26.7% and 13.3% had stages 1, 2 and 3 AKI respectively. Whilst 50.0%, 25.0% and 25.0% respectively developed stages 1, 2 and 3 AKI in the surgical ward. Medical patients with AKI had hyper-tension (40%), followed by liver disease (33.3%); 37.5% of surgical inpatients had gastrointestinal (GI) disorders.
Conclusion: The incidence of AKI is high among medical and surgical patients in-patients in the CCTH, Ghana, with hypertension and liver disease as major comorbidities.
Epidemiology of Surgical Amputations in Tamale Teaching Hospital, Ghana
The current study aimed to explore the details of surgical amputations in Tamale, Ghana. This was a retrospective descriptive study. We analyzed case files of 112 patients who underwent surgical amputations
between 2011 and 2017. Demographics, site of amputation, indication for amputation, and outcomes were
retrieved from case files. Descriptive statistics were used to report the means and frequencies. Associations
between variables were assessed using Chi-Square, ANOVA, and Student’s t-test. The mean age of the participants was 43.6±23.1 years (range 2 to 86). Most (64.3%) were males. Lower limb amputations accounted for most (78.6%) cases. Diabetic vasculopathy was the most prevalent indication (44.6%), followed by trauma (36.6%). The mean hospital stay was 30.1±22.4 days (range 5 to 120). Surgical site infection (17.9%) was the main complication. In our study setting, there is thus far limited capability for proper management of diabetes mellitus, which needs to be improved. There is also an urgent need for multidisciplinary foot care teams that will help patients receive comprehensive care to reduce complications from diabetes and other vasculopathies
Magnitude of Surgical Site Infection and Its Associated Factors Among Patients Who Underwent a Surgical Procedure at Debre Tabor General Hospital, Northwest Ethiopia
Background: Surgical site infections are the commonest nosocomial infections and responsible for considerable morbidity and mortality as well as increased hospitalizations and treatment cost related to surgical operations. The aim of this study was to determine the magnitude and factors associated with surgical site infections at the surgical ward of Debre Tabor General Hospital, Northwest Ethiopia.
Method: Institution based cross-sectional study was conducted on patients who underwent a surgical procedure at Debre Tabor General Hospital in 2020. The sample size was determined using the single population proportion formula. Data were entered and analyzed using SPSS version 21 software. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions analysis were employed. The odds ratio and its 95% confidence interval were taken to test the association between the dependent and independent variables. A P-value of less than 0.05 will be considered statistically significant.
Result: In this study, a total of 191 patients have participated in the study yielding a response rate of 100%. The mean age of the respondents was 2.5 (SD ±0.68) years. The most age group 115(60.2%) resides at the age group greater than 40 years. More than one half(62.3) of the surgical clients were females. Most of the clients were farmers(32.5%) and unable to read and write(41.9) based on the occupation. The magnitude of surgical site infection in this study was found to be 11.5% (95% CI: 7.8%, 15.9%). The factors existence of comorbidity and antibiotic prophylaxis was given were found to be significantly associated with the magnitude of surgical site infection.
Conclusion: The magnitude of surgical site infection in this study was high. Proper management of patients with co-morbidity especially those with diabetes mellitus, proper administration of anesthesia, and delivering intravenous antimicrobial prophylaxis before surgery as ordered would significantly reduce the incidence of surgical site infection.