| Table of Contents |  |
|
Case Report
|
| Short-lived survival of severe hypercapnia from chronic respiratory failure in motor neuron disease |
| Josef Finsterer1, Claudia Stöllberger2 |
|
1Danube University Krems, Krems, Krankenanstalt Rudolfstiftung, Vienna.
2Second Medical Department, Krankenanstalt Rudolfstiftung, Vienna, Austria. |
|
doi:10.5348/ijcri-2012-02-90-CR-4
|
|
Address correspondence to: J. Finsterer Postfach 20 1180 Vienna Austria Europe Phone: +43-1-71165-92085 Fax: +43-1-4781711 Email: fifigs1@yahoo.de |
|
[HTML Full Text]
[PDF Full Text]
|
| How to cite this article: |
| Finsterer J, Stöllberger C. Short-lived survival of severe hypercapnia from chronic respiratory failure in motor neuron disease. International Journal of Case Reports and Images 2012;3(2):15-19. |
|
Abstract
|
|
Introduction:
Surviving extreme hypercapnia from muscular respiratory failure has been only rarely reported.
Case Report: A 66-year-old male developed slowly progressive weakness of the lower limbs since one year resulting in recurrent falls and later dysarthria, weakness of the left intrinsic hand muscles, general wasting, brisk tendon reflexes, and symmetric stocking type pall-hypaesthesia. Electromyograms of various muscles were neurogenic. Cerebral MRI showed diffuse atrophy, leucaraiosis, spot-like hyperintensities subcortically and in the basal ganglia and a diffuse hypersignal in the pons. Probable amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) was diagnosed. Four months later he was admitted for respiratory insufficiency, impaired consciousness, exsiccosis, and cachexia. Blood pH was 6.9 and blood pCO2 was 235 mmHg (n, 35 - 45 mmHg). Within six hours under mechanical ventilation he recovered completely from hypercapnia and actively extubated himself two days after admission. Conclusion: This case shows that severe hypercapnia from weakness of the respiratory muscles may be survived if respiratory failure develops slowly, and if adequately treated. | |
|
Key Words:
Neuromuscular disorder, Muscular respiratory failure, Hypercapnia, Differential diagnoses, Multi-system disease, Cardiac involvement
| |
|
[HTML Full Text]
[PDF Full Text]
|
|
Author Contributions:
Josef Finsterer - Substantial contributions to conception and design, Analysis and interpretation of data, Drafting the article, Revising it critically for important intellectual content, Final approval of the version to be published Claudia Stöllberger - Substantial contributions to conception and design, Acquisition of data, Drafting the article, Revising it critically for important intellectual content, Final approval of the version to be published |
|
Guarantor of submission:
The corresponding author is the guarantor of Submission. |
|
Source of support:
None |
|
Conflict of interest:
The authors declare no conflict of interest. |
|
Copyright:
© Josef Finsterer et al. 2012; This article is distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any means provided the original authors and original publisher are properly credited. (Please see http://www.ijcasereportsandimages.com/copyright-policy.php for more information.) |
|
|