ISPN 2008: Yesterday was Great

Yesterday was a remarkable day. I presented our work "Endoscopic Management of Hydrocephalus in Nigerian Children" to the over-600 international audience from over 50 countries at the 36th congress of the International Society for Paediatric Neurosurgery. You would agree with me that it is an honour to present alongside the likes of Ben Warf and Michael Fritsch and to an audience that included the great Hal Rekate and Schuzio Oi.

The paper presentations were followed by an evening of wine tasting during which poster presentations were made. I presented a classic poster on "The profile of hydrocephalus in Nigerian Children with Myelomeningocoele" under the guidance of my mentor and trainer, Professor M. T. Shokunbi.

I shall keep you posted on further developments at the congress. The weather here is getting progressively colder. I now use warmer in my room.

Catch u.

ISPN 2008 Update 12-10-2008

I had a great day today. We had a wonderful neuroendoscopy hands-on workshop at the South African headquarters of Karls Storz in Cape Town. Quite educative. The programme had Profs. Ben Warf and Schizuo Oi on the faculty. These are well respected neurosurgeons all over the world.

After the workshop, we had an exciting welcome cocktail at the Table Bay Hotel before returning to our All Africa House, University of Cape Town, residence.

The 2008 Congress of the International Society for Paediatric Neurosurgery (Cape Town, South Africa)

We had a great day in Cape Town today.

The 1st South Africa ISPN Course was well attended and the discussions were enlightening.

The resource persons were wonderful- including the renowned Ben Warf, formerly of Uganda but now back to the US. We discussed neuro-developmental problems, paediatric brain tumours, neurotrauma in children and neurosurgery in Africa. I enjoyed every bit of the day.

The programme was held at the BoE conference centre, overlooking the magnificent V&A Hotel at Waterfront, Cape Town.

Greetings from Cape Town

I'm writing in from Cape Town, Republic of South Africa, where I'm attending the 2008 Congress of the International Society for Paediatric Neurosurgery. Miss U all. The congress promises to be a memorable one.

My perception of the event and South Africa so far is positive. The weather is cool here and one does not need an air conditioner. The environment is clean and beautiful. Airport formalities were quick, efficient and friendly. Nigeria need to take a cue from this country.

I shall give you regular updates about the conference which brings together paediatric neurosurgeons from all over the word.

More details: ispn2008

Look out for my regular updates on this site.

Cervical Spine Immobilization!!!

 

 

 

See the various means of cervical spine immobilization in a resource-poor facility.

Keep following my post.

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Clinical assessment of head injury: The history

A quick and concise history is essential in the care of the patient with head injury. Necessary details include:
• Age
• Type of accident that caused the head injury and the events surrounding it
• Time of occurrence
• Details of rescue/transportation to the hospital
• Occurrence and details of

o Vomiting: may indicate raised ICP
o Convulsions (early/late post traumatic seizures)
o Bleeding (craniofacial orifices and others)
o CSF leaks
o Fever
o Loss of consciousness

• Allergies (avoid drugs of allergy)
• Last meal (stomach may need to be emptied before general anaesthesia)
• Details of pre-hospital care
• Co-morbidities

The history is obtained from a conscious patient while relations and bystanders at the site of the accident or from the ambulance officers are important informants for both the conscious and the unconscious .

Initial management of head injury

The initial management of head injury is very important to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with the condition. The initial care impacts significantly on the eventual outcome and if not properly done, it may make nonsense of any eventual specialist neurosurgical care.

The key aspects in the management of patients following head injury involve:
• accurate clinical assessment of the neurological and other injuries
• determination of the pathological process involved
• accurate assessment of changes in the neurological status of the patient; this indicates an improvement, progression or change in the pathological processes.

At the injury site, immediate care involves careful extraction of the injured individual (e.g from a car wreck, collapsed building, gutters, etc), rapid restoration and maintenance of an adequate airway, protection of the cervical spine, ventilation, essential circulatory resuscitation, first aid treatment of other injuries and the urgent transfer of the patient to hospital.

It is essential to avoid hypoxia and hypotension as these will cause further brain
injury (secondary brain damage). The ‘ABC’ of resuscitation gives a good guide for the initial management of the head-injured patient like other trauma patients.