Goldenhar syndrome is a sporadic or inherited genetic syndrome characterized by limbal dermoids, preauricular skin tags and mandibular hypoplasia. Vertebral abnormalities may occur. The incidence of this syndrome ranges from 1 in 5,600 to 1 in >20,000 live births. It consists of abnormalities involving the first and second branchial arches. The etiology of the syndrome is heterogeneous. Diagnosis should be based principally on clinical aspects, which should be associated with the patient's systemic conditions and radiologic findings. Treatment depends on the patient's age and systemic manifestations, with a multidisciplinary approach often being required.
BACKGROUND Sepsis is a common cause of morbidity and mortality among hospitalized patients.
The prevalence of this condition has increased significantly in different parts of
the world. Patients admitted to dermatology wards often have severe loss of skin
barrier and use systemic corticosteroids, which favor the development of sepsis.
OBJECTIVES To evaluate the prevalence of sepsis among patients admitted to a dermatology
ward compared to that among patients admitted to an internal medicine ward. METHODS It is a cross-sectional, observational, comparative study that was conducted at
Hospital Santa Casa de Belo Horizonte. Data were collected from all patients
admitted to four hospital beds at the dermatology and internal medicine wards
between July 2008 and July 2009. Medical records were analyzed for the occurrence
of sepsis, dermatologic diagnoses, comorbidities, types of pathogens and most
commonly used antibiotics. RESULTS We analyzed 185 medical records. The prevalence of sepsis was 7.6% among patients
admitted to the dermatology ward and 2.2% (p = 0.10) among those admitted to the
internal medicine ward. Patients with comorbidities, diabetes mellitus and cancer
did not show a higher incidence of sepsis. The main agent found was Staphylococcus
aureus, and the most commonly used antibiotics were ciprofloxacin and oxacillin.
There was a significant association between sepsis and the use of systemic
corticosteroids (p <0.001). CONCLUSION It becomes clear that epidemiological studies on sepsis should be performed more
extensively and accurately in Brazil so that efforts to prevent and treat this
serious disease can be made more effectively.
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