Consent in forefoot surgery; What does it mean to the patient?

AimsThis study aimed to assess patient risk recall and find risk thresholds for patients undergoing elective forefoot procedures.MethodsPatients were interviewed in the pre-assessment clinic (PAC) or on day of surgery (DOS); some in both settings. A standardised questionnaire was used for all interviews, regardless of setting. Patients were tested on which risks they recalled from their consent process, asked for thresholds for five pre-chosen risks and asked about a sham risk.ResultsAcross all interviews, risk recall on DOS (2.34 risks/patient interview) was significantly lower (p = .05) than in PAC (2.95 risks/patient interview) – this was repeated when comparing results from patients interviewed in both settings only with PAC mean recall of 2.93 risks/patient interview and DOS mean recall of 2.57 risks/patient interview. The mean reported risk thresholds greatly exceeded NHS Lothian’s observed complication rates for forefoot procedures. The five risks tested for thresholds produced the same order in each interview setting, suggesting a patient-perceived severity ranking. Patients answering the sham risk question incorrectly tended to recall fewer risks across all interviews.ConclusionsThis study shows that patient risk recall is poor, as previous literature outlines, reinforcing that consent process improvements could be made. It also illustrates the value of PAC visits in patient education, as shown by higher levels of recall when compared to DOS.     

Ataxia and tolerance after thalamic deep brain stimulation for essential tremor

BackgroundDeep brain stimulation (DBS) of the ventral intermediate nucleus (VIM) thalamus is highly effective to treat medication-refractory essential tremor (ET). Complications of stimulation-induced ataxia and tolerance have been reported in limited series, ranging from 5 to 40%.ObjectiveWe analyzed a large single-center cohort of ET patients treated with thalamic DBS to assess rates of ataxia and tolerance.MethodsRetrospective study of all ET patients that underwent VIM DBS at Mayo Clinic from 2010 to 2014. Demographic, clinical and DBS data were extracted. Risk factors, complications and time to onset of tolerance and ataxia were examined.ResultsOne hundred and thirteen ET patients (51% male) of mean age 68 ± 10 years and mean ET duration 27 ± 18 years underwent DBS during the study period. Of these, 98 (87%) had follow-up of ≥6 months (mean 4.0 ± 1.5 years) and were included for analysis. Complications of isolated ataxia (26%), isolated tolerance (4%), both tolerance and ataxia (9%), or neither (61%) were identified. Development of ataxia was about 3 times more common than tolerance (35% vs. 13%). The mean time to ataxia was 5.5 ± 0.3 years postoperatively. Risk factors for ataxia were baseline ataxic features, older age, and shorter ET disease duration. Small sample size limited calculation of risk factors and onset time for tolerance.ConclusionsStimulation-related ataxia occurred in one-third of ET patients, while tolerance was less common. Presence of baseline ataxia, age, and disease duration may aid counseling of stimulation-related ataxia risk. Larger studies are warranted to confirm these findings and further assess risk factors for tolerance.     

肩关节后脱位合并肱骨近端骨折1例

2018年6月笔者接诊1例电击伤后导致肩关节后脱位合并肱骨近端骨折患者,经过肱骨近端骨折手术复位内固定后,术后发现肩关节后脱位并未纠正,随后立即行闭合复位术,术后患者肩关节功能恢复良好。分析肩关节后脱位及其合并伤的发病率、治疗策略、预后情况,介绍经验教训,提高认识,减少误诊。     

Primary iliocaval leiomyosarcomas: The path beyond surgery

IntroductionIliocaval leiomyosarcoma (ICLM) is a rare and aggressive form of sarcoma within the retroperitoneum. Surgery is the mainstay of treatment, with no consensus on the benefit of chemoradiotherapy in the neo/adjuvant setting. This study aims to describe the natural history of a chemotherapy-naïve ICLM treated in a tertiary cancer centre and to explore potential directions to improve oncological outcome.Materials and methodsA prospective database was used to identify patient demographics, clinicopathological variables and oncological outcomes in 30 patients who underwent surgical resection in our institution for primary non-metastatic ICLM between 2003 and 2018.ResultsThere was no 90-day mortality. With a median follow-up time of 70.0 months (95% CI 52.6–87.4), 5/30 patients (16.7%) developed local recurrence while 11/30 (36.7%) developed distant metastatic disease. 1 patient (3.3%) developed both local and distant recurrence. Median overall survival of our cohort was 41.0 months (95% CI 33.6–48.4) and 5-year overall survival rate was 32.1%. Multivariate survival analysis using the Cox proportional hazard model identified tumour grade and blood loss of more than 600 mL as key prognostic factors in our model.ConclusionManagement of ICLM should be centralised in high-volume sarcoma centres with expertise in the management of retroperitoneal sarcomas. Integration of tumour biology with a concerted effort to conduct conclusive multi-centre phase III in histological and molecularly defined sarcoma subgroups is necessary to improve patient outcome. We eagerly await the results of STRASS 2 study to gain more insights to the efficacy of neoadjuvant chemotherapy on patient prognosis.     

浅低温不停循环优先重建弓部血管结合术中支架阻断技术与传统孙氏手术的对比研究

目的:采用浅低温不停循环优先重建弓部血管结合术中支架阻断技术治疗急性Stanford A型主动脉夹层,并与传统孙氏手术进行比较,评估其效果和安全性。方法:回顾性分析2017年1月至2018年12月山东省临沂市人民医院心脏血管外科手术治疗的40例急性A型主动脉夹层患者的资料,其中21例在浅低温不停循环下,采用优先重建弓部血管结合术中支架阻断技术进行改良的孙氏手术治疗,19例采用传统的孙氏手术治疗。统计分析患者术中、术后的相关指标及并发症情况。结果:与传统的孙氏手术相比,改良组在术中阻断时间[(218.63±27.86)min比(101.52±17.23)min]、停循环时间[(1174.74±183.65)s比(43.19±8.32)s]、体外循环时间[(218.63±27.86)min比(194.19±24.25)min]、术后并发症(14次比6次)、术后呼吸机辅助时间[(72.89±45.57)h比(29.86±32.3)h]及围术期输血量[(1332.63±301.55)ml比(991.90±323.23)ml]等方面存在明显优势,差异有统计学意义(P均<0.05)。手术后清醒时间方面,改良组优于传统组,但差异无统计学意义。结论:采用浅低温不停循环优先重建弓部血管结合术中支架阻断技术治疗急性A型主动脉夹层是安全、有效的,可以明显改善患者预后,减少并发症的发生。