Florida children in grades six through eight are required under current law to take one semester of physical education every year, but the state is now considering a bill to eliminate the requirement for that class.
Superior vena cava syndrome (SVCS) is obstruction of blood flow through the superior vena cava (SVC). It is a medical emergency and most often manifests in patients with a malignant disease process within the thorax. A patient with SVCS requires immediate diagnostic evaluation and therapy.
The superior vena cava (SVC) is the superior of the two venae cavae, the great venous trunks that return deoxygenated blood from the systemic circulation to the right atrium of the heart. It is a large-diameter (24 mm), yet short, vein that receives venous return from the upper half of the body, above the diaphragm. (Venous return from the lower half, below the diaphragm, flows through the inferior vena cava.) The SVC is located in the anterior right superior mediastinum. It is the typical site of central venous access (CVA) via a central venous catheter or a peripherally inserted central catheter.