Management of complex hepatic abscess by percutaneous catheter drainage: a case report

Abstract

Liver abscesses are a commonly encountered pathology in the tropical setting. Most commonly these are secondary to amoebic infestation. Majority of liver abscesses present with abdominal pain confined to the right hypochondrium. Smaller abscesses are easily dealt with by needle aspiration or catheter drainage under image guidance. Larger and complex abscesses are commonly dealt with by surgical drainage. We deal here with a case of complex liver abscesses which even had perforated into the pleural cavity. Keeping a close watch on the patient’s general condition which was satisfactory, we did not rush into a major surgical procedure. Wide antibiotic coverage and pulmonary care were initiated. Two pig-tail catheters were placed in separate abscesses and metronidazole irrigation periodically done. The daily drain output gradually reduced and we could successfully remove the two catheters at an interval. The patient made a good recovery and continues to do well on follow-up. We see in this case that even large and multiple abscesses if meticulously managed, surgical drainage can be avoided and catheter drainage provides satisfactory results. Good antibiotic coverage must continue in the follow-up period too.

A Case of Amoebic Liver Abscess Presenting as a Therapeutic Conundrum Necessitating the Exploration of Other Under-the-Radar Treatment Modalities

“…Very few studies on the specific effects of Malecot catheter on liver abscesses have been published, and a survey conducted by Rehman et al showed 100% success [ 9 ] with Malecot catheter with only minor complications. The study reported a 100% success rate with Malecot catheter drainage, which is more than the success rate of around 90-100% with pigtail catheters [ 9 - 10 ].…”

Exciton‐Mediated Energy Transfer in Heterojunction Enables Infrared Light Photocatalysis

“…[10][11][12] Thus, efficient infrared-light-driven photocatalysis could be anticipated in ah eterojunction based on two excitonic semiconductors by exciton-mediated energy transfer process.That is,one of the excitonic semiconductors serves as infrared light absorber,a nd transfers its energy to activate the other component serving as the main photocatalyst. [13,14] Bearing this in mind, we paid our attention to two-dimensional black phosphorus (BP) with narrow band gap less than 1.5 eV,i n which exciton is the main photogenerated specie due to the dielectric shielding. [15][16][17][18] Besides,m any-body correlations in BP result in the generation of multiexcitons with more suitable dipole moments,p roviding further possibility to realize energy transfer in long-wavelength light.…”