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Acquired immune deficiency syndrome and systemic lupus erythematosis: potential causes of surgical emergencies of the hand.

Wirth JJ, Sheka KP, Gheewala A, Rowe NM

Division of Plastic and Hand Surgery, Department of Surgery, Coney Island Hospital, Brooklyn, NY 11235, USA.

Compartment Syndrome (CS) is a disease that has 2 etiologies, that of acute events and that of chronic. It occurs when the pressure in a fascia-encased compartment exceeds the profusion pressure in tissue. The end result, when left untreated, is muscle and nerve ischemia that can cause significant morbidity. Nerve paralysis, muscle necrosis and fibrosis and, when occurring in an extremity, loss of the limb are some of the potential outcomes of missed diagnosis. This case series involves 2 cases of CS that where caused by vasculitis with etiologies of human immunodeficiency virus and systemic lupus erythematosis. Autoimmune vasculitis has many systemic and local manifestations, but to our knowledge CS has not been described as one of its sequelae. The following is literature review and presentation of these 2 cases.

Published 26 June 2008 in Ann Plast Surg, 61(1): 35-9.
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