Endoscopic ultrasound in routine clinical practice for staging adenocarcinomas of the stomach and distal esophagus]

PROBLEM: Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) is an important diagnostic tool for determining the best therapeutic strategy (primary resection, neoadjuvant therapy or palliation only) to offer esophageal or gastric cancer patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In the present study (1992-2001),we evaluated the accuracy of EUS in adenocarcinomas of the distal esophagus and stomach and compared our results with pathologists findings as the gold standard. RESULTS: Of the 222 patients studied, the precise examination of 11% EUS was not completely possible due to severe tumor stenosis. The accuracy of EUS with respect to T, N+/- and TN+/- amounted to 51%, 65% and 34% in 131 patients with adenocarcinomas of the esophageal gastric junction and to 50%, 66% and 37% in 91 patients with adenocarcinomas located in the fundus, corpus or antrum of the stomach respectively. With respect to T-stage, the overstaging of tumors was more common than understaging, especially in pT2b-carcinomas. The subgroup analysis of the 131 EGJ adenocarcinoma patients showed that the results obtained by EUS were slightly better in type I (distal esophageal cancer) than in type II and III cardia carcinomas (proximal gastric cancer).When comparing two observation periods (1992-1996 and 1997-2001), the accuracy of endoscopic ultrasound staging was very similar in both periods for T-category (51% vs 49%) and N-category (63% vs 64%) as well as for combined TN-staging (36% vs 35%) respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In clinical routine examinations of adenocarcinomas of the stomach and the distal esophagus, the accuracy of EUS is not as good as the excellent results in the past--mostly obtained under study conditions--may suggest.     

The influence of unrestricted use of sugammadex on clinical anaesthetic practice in a tertiary teaching hospital

This retrospective casenote audit involving 374 patients requiring intubation for an anaesthetic found that when the availability of sugammadex became unrestricted, its use increased from 7.1 to 65.3% (P <0.0001) of all muscle relaxant reversals, while neostigmine use decreased from 59.6 to 12.5%. Rocuronium use decreased slightly (90.8 to 79.2%, P=0.006) but vecuronium use increased (2.1 to 8.3%, P=0.02). Cisatracurium and suxamethonium use were unchanged. Total rocuronium dose (55.9 ± 24.1 vs 60.4 ± 22.3 mg) and the number of doses (1.9 ± 1.48 to 1.96 ± 1.27) were unchanged, but the time between the last dose and reversal decreased (91.7 ± 68.1 to 62 ± 52.4 minutes, P=0.0002). There appeared to be no change in postoperative nausea and vomiting, or post-anaesthesia care unit time or oxygen saturation levels. Anaesthetic theatre time fell from 143.5 ± 85.8 to 120 ± 71.2 minutes (P=0.01) and remained significant when adjusted for confounding variables (ratio of means 1.17, 95% confidence interval 1.03 to 1.34, P=0.02), although inferences in relation to causality are limited by the retrospective and observational design of the study. Hospital stay also appeared to fall (4.2 ± 3.5 to 3.4 ± 3.0 days, P=0.035), but was not statistically significant when adjusted for confounding variables (ratio of means 1.04, 95% confidence interval 0.89 to 1.2, P=0.59). These observations suggest that the unrestricted availability of sugammadex will change how steroid-based neuromuscular blocking drugs are used and reversed, but further research is needed to determine if patient outcomes will improve.     

A detailed analysis of theatre training activity in a UK teaching hospital

We examined the placement of anaesthetists in our departmentover a 2 yr period. Data were collected from an in-theatre systemto provide details of caseload and supervision for 34 856 operations.There was wide variation between anaesthetic sub-specialtieswith overall supervision levels of 35% of cases for senior houseofficers (SHOs) and 32% for specialist registrars (SpRs). Theconsultant data showed the size and areas of teaching reservein the department. We then examined individual logbooks in orderto validate our data, and departmental rotas to put these datainto perspective with previous attempts to quantify traineesupervision. Supervision data derived from the rota allocationsshowed that 86% of SHO lists and 62% of SpR lists were scheduledto be supervised. This study has described our training activityand facilitated departmental changes, as well as highlightingthe need for great care in interpreting trainee supervisiondata acquired from different sources, particularly when comparisonsare being made.     

Delivery of chemotherapy for testicular cancer in routine practice: A population-based study

Introduction

Maintenance of chemotherapy dose intensity is a cornerstone of management in testicular germ cell tumors. We describe chemotherapy delivery and outcomes of patients in routine practice.

Experimental ultrasound analysis of the appendix. Contribution to improving the diagnosis of acute inflammation in routine clinical practice

Sonographic investigations of fresh operative specimens - 50 non-infected, 50 chronic and 50 acute inflammatory appendices - and also of 335 pertinent operated patients with "typical" appendiceal disorders were performed. All other entities, mimicking acute or perforated appendicitis were excluded from this study. Under experimental conditions, negative, chronic and acute or phlegmonous appendices appeared as "cockade" or "pseudokidney sign" with reflecting wall and echoless lumen. The application of a 5 Mz linear transducer made the differentiation of three wall layers feasible, in negative appendices as well as in dilated acute appendicitis, whereas in chronic inflammation and in obliterating acute appendicitis a wall layer stratification was not possible. In clinical application of 335 operated patients we only could demonstrate cases of acute or perforated appendicitis (n = 182/220), but no cases of non-infected appendix. In 57% of pertinent cases the objectivation of lumen dilatation, in 35% a wall layer stratification was feasible. Acute, phlegmonous or perforated appendicitis was proven by demonstrating an immobile "pseudotumor mass" with dominating constant hypodense reflex property. The pertinent diameters as measured in clinical acute appendicitis exceeded significantly the diameters observed in experimental sonography of negative appendices with a differential intact mobility. Intraluminary coproliths and hyperdense reflecting attached omental segments facilitated a sonographic diagnosis. In 101/115 patients correct negative diagnosis was established. On the basis of these criteria, a sensitivity of 83%, a specificity of 88% and a diagnostic accuracy of 85% related to the diagnosis of acute or perforated appendicitis was obtained in this study.     

Impact of hospital case volume on testicular cancer outcomes and practice patterns

Background

Given the rarity of testicular germ cell tumors (TGCTs) and the complex aspects of management, we evaluate the effect of hospital TGCT case volume on overall survival outcomes and practice patterns.

Dual-energy contrast-enhanced digital mammography in routine clinical practice in 2013

To date, analysis of the vascularisation of breast lesions mainly relies on MR imaging. However, the accessibility of MRI is sometimes limited and has led to the development of new means of imaging, such as dual-energy contrast-enhanced mammography, which provides data on the vascularisation of the breast along with the usual morphological information. The purpose of this paper is to present this new imaging technique as well as the recent references, illustrated by clinical reports derived from our everyday practice to focus on the advantages and disadvantages of this new breast exploration. Dual-energy contrast-enhanced mammography is a recent, seemingly promising technique, in the management of breast cancer. The main advantages consist of its easy installation, the good tolerance and the comfort in the interpretation of difficult to read mammograms. However, the indications and the role of dual-energy contrast-enhanced mammography still have to be determined within the diagnostic strategy of breast tumours. New studies are expected, especially to compare dual-energy contrast-enhanced mammography with breast MRI.     

Emergency room surgical workload in an inner city UK teaching hospital

Background  

Emergency admissions may account for over 50% of surgical admissions. The impact on service provision and implications for training are difficult to quantify. We performed a cohort study to analyse these workload patterns.     

Variation in measurement of ankle-brachial pressure index in routine clinical practice

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the variation in ankle-brachial pressure index (ABPI) measurements in routine clinical practice.Methods: Analysis was done of preoperative and postoperative ABPIs in 130 limbs contralateral to those undergoing femoral bypass grafting in 123 patients over a 15-month period.Results: The mean initial ABPI was 0.72 (range 0.22 to 1.10). The range of observed differences between the preoperative and postoperative ABPIs was from -0.33 to +0.25. The mean (±SD) difference between the first and second ABPIs was 0.00 (±0.11). The 95% confidence limits of the difference were -0.21 to 0.21. There was no trend for the size or direction of the difference in ABPI to vary according to the mean ABPI, brachial blood pressure, or time between tests.Conclusions: ABPI is routinely used as an objective measure of peripheral vascular disease. The variation observed in this study is comparable with values obtained in reproducibility studies and is greater than that accepted in clinical practice. The difference between an ABPI measurement and the actual ABPI and the difference between repeat single measurements are not the same and should be distinguished. Vascular laboratories should determine the accuracy of ABPI measurement on a local basis to guarantee and maintain quality assurance. (J Vasc Surg 1996;24:871-5.)