Barrett’s esophagus: Review of natural history and comparative efficacy of endoscopic and surgical therapies

Barrett's esophagus (BE) is the precursor to esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC). Progression to cancer typically occurs in a stepwise fashion through worsening dysplasia and ultimately, invasive neoplasia. Established EAC with deep involvement of the esophageal wall and/or metastatic disease is invariably associated with poor long-term survival rates. This guides the rationale of surveillance of Barrett’s in an attempt to treat lesions at an earlier, and potentially curative stage. The last two decades have seen a paradigm shift in management of Barrett’s with rapid expansion in the role of endoscopic eradication therapy (EET) for management of dysplastic and early neoplastic BE, and there have been substantial changes to international consensus guidelines for management of early BE based on evolving evidence. This review aims to assist the physician in the therapeutic decision-making process with patients by comprehensive review and summary of literature surrounding natural history of Barrett’s by histological stage, and the effectiveness of interventions in attenuating the risk posed by its natural history. Key findings were as follows. Non-dysplastic Barrett’s is associated with extremely low risk of progression, and interventions cannot be justified. The annual risk of cancer progression in low grade dysplasia is between 1%-3%; EET can be offered though evidence for its benefit remains confined to highly select settings. High-grade dysplasia progresses to cancer in 5%-10% per year; EET is similarly effective to and less morbid than surgery and should be routinely performed for this indication. Risk of nodal metastases in intramucosal cancer is 2%-4%, which is comparable to operative mortality rate, so EET is usually preferred. Submucosal cancer is associated with nodal metastases in 14%-41% hence surgery remains standard of care, except for select situations.     

Pure laparoscopic living donor liver transplantation: Dreams come true

Minimally invasive approaches are increasingly being applied in surgeries and have recently been used in living donor hepatectomy. We have developed a safe and reproducible method for minimally invasive living donor liver transplantation, which consists of pure laparoscopic explant hepatectomy and pure laparoscopic implantation of the graft, which was inserted through a suprapubic incision. Pure laparoscopic explant hepatectomy without liver fragmentation was performed in a 60-year-old man with alcoholic liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. The explanted liver was retrieved through a suprapubic incision. A modified right liver graft, procured from his 24-year-old son using the pure laparoscopic method, was inserted through a suprapubic incision, and implantation was performed intracorporeally throughout the procedure. The time required to remove the liver was 369 min, and the total operative time was 960 min. No complications occurred during or after the surgery. The patient recovered well, and his hospital stay was of 11 days. Pure laparoscopic living donor liver transplantation from explant hepatectomy to implantation was performed successfully. It is a feasible procedure when performed by a highly experienced surgeon and transplantation team. Further studies with larger sample sizes are needed to confirm its safety and feasibility.

     

26所基层民营口腔诊所医务人员手卫生现况调查

 目的 调查十堰市区基层民营口腔诊所医务人员手卫生现况。方法 2019年9—11月采用便利抽样法对十堰市区民营口腔诊所医务人员手卫生现况进行隐蔽式调查,分析并比较不同岗位类别医务人员的手卫生依从率及正确率。结果 共调查民营口腔诊所26所,设有专用洗手设施的仅17所(占65.38%),配有快速手消毒剂的12所(46.15%)。隐蔽式观察102名医务人员,观察有效手卫生时机2 183次,医务人员实际执行572次,手卫生依从率26.20%,正确率25.52%(146次)。不同岗位类别医务人员的手卫生依从率、正确率比较,差异均有统计学意义(均P＜0.001)。护士的手卫生依从率(30.80%)、正确率(31.85%)较其他岗位人员高。医务人员在接触患者体液后的依从率(76.24%)和正确率(40.26%)较其他手卫生时刻高,接触患者前后的手卫生依从率最低,仅为15.38%、24.72%。医务人员不同手卫生时刻的依从率、正确率比较,差异均有统计学意义(均P＜0.001)。结论 基层民营口腔诊所医务人员手卫生依从率和正确率均较低,急需相关部门加强对基层民营口腔诊所的手卫生管理。     

早孕期监测子宫动脉多普勒参数在预测低危人群不良妊娠结局的价值

目的 建立妊娠11~13+6周子宫动脉多普勒参数在低危人群中的正常参考值，同时评估其对不良妊娠结局的预测价值。方法 收集2019年6月至2021年6月于我院行产前超声检查的妊娠11~13+6周孕妇，根据妊娠结局分组。收集两侧子宫动脉多普勒指标，包括搏动指数（PI）、阻力指数（RI）、舒张早期是否有切迹，以及孕妇基本临床资料和胎儿出生信息，将以上相关参数进行统计学分析。结果 最终纳入800例孕妇，包括正常妊娠结局组740例和不良妊娠结局组60例。两组孕妇体质量指数（BMI）、分娩孕周和胎儿出生体质量比较，差异均有统计学意义（均P＜0.05）。随着孕周的增加，子宫动脉两侧平均搏动指数（mPI）、平均阻力指数（mRI）和两侧舒张早期切迹检出率均呈逐渐下降的趋势。ROC曲线分析显示，mPI、mRI及两侧舒张早期切迹预测妊娠结局的曲线下面积（AUC）分别为0.542、0.574、0.521，三者联合预测妊娠结局的AUC为0.648；孕妇BMI、年龄mPI、mRI及两侧舒张早期切迹预测妊娠结局的AUC为0.751。结论 建立了低危人群在妊娠11~13+6周子宫动脉多普勒参数的正常参考值范围。在妊娠11~13+6周单纯应用子宫动脉多普勒参数预测妊娠结局的价值有限，将子宫动脉参数与临床相关指标结合可提高对不良妊娠结局的预测价值。     

Online Health Information-Seeking Behavior Among Korean American Immigrants in Rural Alabama: Dose Discrimination Matter?

Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health - Little attention has been paid to online health information seeking (OHIS) among immigrants residing in rural areas. This study examines the intensity of...