Urothelial atypia and survival rate of 500 unselected patients with primary transitional-cell tumour of the urinary bladder

In a consecutive series of 500 unselected patients with primary urinary bladder tumours the influence of urothelial atypia on the 5 years survival-rate was examined. All tumours were transitional-cell tumours categorized according to the T-classification. Mucosal biopsies from 7 pre-selected sites were taken at the initial cystoscopy in 391 patients (78%) to identify urothelial atypia. The over-all cumulative 5 years survival-rate was 48%. Submucosal and muscle invasion had major influence on survival, whereas tumour grade was less important. Patients with urothelial atypia fared significantly worse than those with normal bladder mucosa (5 years survival 42% versus 62%). This difference in survival-rate became apparent first after two years of observation. Grade II atypia in the bladder mucosa and grade III (carcinoma in situ) had equal significance assessed by the survival-rates.     

Patterns of primary care and survival in 336 consecutive unselected Norwegian patients with bladder cancer.

The outcome of 336 unselected patients diagnosed as having bladder cancer in 1985 in a southern health region of Norway was studied. Two hundred and forty patients had superficial bladder cancer (Tis, Ta and T1). Seventy-four had T2-3 and 17 had T4 bladder tumours at the time of diagnosis (the T-category was unknown in five cases). In 46 of 248 evaluable cases (19%) 12 or more months had elapsed between the onset of symptoms and the histological confirmation of the diagnosis. The information received from the initial routine histology report was inadequate in 51 of 240 (21%) of the patients with superficial bladder cancer. Among the 91 patients with muscle-infiltrating tumours the primary treatment varied considerably, and only 15 patients underwent total cystectomy as the initial treatment. Only 46 in whom muscle-infiltrating tumours were diagnosed initially were referred to the regional uro-oncological unit during the course of the disease. The cancer-corrected, four-year survival was 86% and 42% for superficial and muscle infiltrating bladder cancer, respectively. The comparable figures for crude survival were 64% and 34%, respectively. The lack of optimal standard treatment of muscle-infiltrating bladder cancer warrants the introduction of clinical trials to assess both curative and palliative regimens as well as to study prognostic factors such as proliferation and immunohistochemical parameters by uro-oncological units. Scandinavian Cancer Registries should consider the optional recording of the T category on the case record forms for newly diagnosed cases of bladder cancer.     

Incidence of Campylobacter pylori in a consecutive series of surgical patients referred for endoscopy

Over a 9-month period, 109 consecutive patients referred from general surgical out-patient clinics for endoscopy were studied. The presenting symptoms, endoscopic diagnosis, clinical history and degree of histological gastritis were determined. The presence of the organism Campylobacter pylori in oesophageal, antral and duodenal biopsies was detected by a combination of culture, histology and fluorescence microscopy. C. pylori was identified in 49.5% of patients by at least one of the methods described. The organism was present only in antral biopsies in patients with both normal and abnormal endoscopies. The presence of C. pylori was significantly associated with the symptom of dyspepsia, and endoscopic diagnosis of peptic ulceration and a greater degree of histological gastritis. Analysis of the clinical history of the patients with a normal endoscopy suggests that a proportion of these patients (7 of 20) had previous evidence of peptic ulceration. Treatment with H2-receptor antagonists may heal ulceration but fails to eradicate C. pylori.     

Pulmonary embolism and mortality in patients with fractured hips--a prospective consecutive series.

To find out the causes of death with particular reference to venous thromboembolism all patients being operated on for hip fractures who were taking part in a trial of two methods of prophylaxis against thromboembolism were consecutively and prospectively registered. A total of 806 patients were included, 66 of whom died within three months (8%). The necropsy rate was 64%. The patients who died were significantly older than those who did not. Pulmonary emboli were diagnosed in 17 of the 42 necropsies: 3 fatal, 5 contributory, and 9 incidental. The patients with fatal and contributory emboli died a median of 31 days postoperatively. In the 24 patients who did not have necropsies the clinical cause of deaths were cardiac insufficiency (n = 11), pneumonia (n = 8), pulmonary embolism (n = 2), and myocardial infarction, cerebral infarction, and pancreatic cancer (n = 1 each). The incidence of fatal pulmonary embolism therefore varies between a minimum of 0.37% and a theoretical maximum of 3.3%. In conclusion, fatal pulmonary embolism after operations for fractured hips is low where routine thromboprophylaxis is used. Most patients who develop large pulmonary emboli are old but live independently. To study causes of death a high necropsy rate is essential.     

单中心连续500例全胸腔镜肺叶切除治疗非小细胞肺癌

目的 总结单中心连续500例非小细胞肺癌接受全胸腔镜肺叶切除病例资料和中期随访结果,探讨全胸腔镜肺叶切除治疗非小细胞肺癌的安全性、有效性和彻底性.方法 2006年9月至2011年9月,500例接受全胸腔镜肺叶切除的非小细胞肺癌患者中男267例,女233例;平均年龄62.3岁.肿瘤最大径2.65 cm.初治病例496例,肿瘤放化疗后手术4例.肿瘤位于左肺上叶129例、下叶73例,右肺上叶163例、中叶47例、下叶89例(其中1例左肺下叶和右肺中叶同时性双原发癌).手术方式为全胸腔镜下解剖性肺叶切除+系统性淋巴结清扫(包括至少3组纵隔区域淋巴结),其中单纯肺叶切除480例,复合肺叶切除(肺叶+肺叶或肺叶+肺段切除)13例,解剖性肺段切除3例,全肺切除2例,全胸腔镜下支气管袖式切除1例,同期双侧肺叶切除1例.结果 全组手术顺利,围手术期死亡1例,为高龄肺癌患者术后多器官功能衰竭死亡.手术平均198.1 min,术中出血平均214.6 ml,无严重并发症.术后肺动脉残端渗血5例,4例经再次胸腔镜手术止血,1例经保守治疗好转.术中每例平均清扫淋巴结5.7组,16.9个.中转开胸45例,中转开胸率9.0％.术后带胸管7.8天,术后平均住院10.2天.轻微并发症87例,主要包括持续心律失常等心脏异常32例,漏气超过7天28例,肺部感染或肺不张9例,乳糜胸6例,其他并发症12例.术后病理示腺癌363例,鳞癌85例,腺鳞癌12例,肺泡细胞癌28例,大细胞癌6例,其他6例.术后病理分期示Ⅰ a期161例,Ⅰb期176例,Ⅱa期46例,Ⅱb期14例,Ⅲa期85例,Ⅲb期3例,Ⅳ期15例.全组1年无瘤生存率(DFS)为90.2％,1年总体生存率(OS)为94.3％;3年分别为76.4％和81.3％.结论 全胸腔镜肺叶切除治疗早期非小细胞肺癌是一种安全、有效的手术方式,其彻底性与开胸术相仿.     

Functional bladder neck obstruction. Results of endoscopic bladder neck incision in 131 consecutive patients

Endoscopic diathermy incision of the bladder neck was carried out as a routine procedure in 131 consecutive male patients with an established diagnosis of functional bladder neck obstruction. Follow-up after 3 months revealed excellent symptomatic and urodynamic results. Morbidity was low and the post-operative stay in hospital short (median 2 days). Patients must be informed of the risk of retrograde ejaculation associated with the procedure and objective evidence of the diagnosis is essential.     

Targeted parathyroid surgery: a series of 100 consecutive patients

INTRODUCTION: The treatment of primary hyperparathyroidism has long required a bilateral neck exploration to localize all parathyroid glands. New techniques in pre-operative imaging (technetium-99m-sestamibi scanning, high resolution ultrasonography) have allowed an accurate localization of pathological glands. Moreover, the intraoperative intact parathyroid hormone assay (iPTH) now permits to confirm the resection of all hyper-secreting glands. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Two hundred and twenty patients underwent parathyroid operations during the last 3 years, by different minimally invasive techniques. Pre- and intra-operative data, as well as the follow-up were recorded prospectively. The results of the last 100 unilateral approaches, performed for primary hyperparathyroidism, were analyzed. RESULTS: There were 78 women and 22 men, with a mean age of 57 +/- 15 years (25 to 92 years). Mean operative time was 44 +/- 25 min. Ninety-three solitary adenomas, three double adenomas, three carcinomas and one hyperplasia were resected. Two patients required a bilateral exploration. There was one intra-operative complication (pneumothorax) during the resection of a mediastinal gland. Three post-operative complications occurred, with 2 hematomas and one transient recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis. Median hospital stay was 2 +/- 7,5 hours (1-72 hours). All patients were cured following the operation, as predicted by the intra-operative iPTH assays. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that unilateral, targeted, neck explorations offer a cure rate similar to those obtained by bilateral neck explorations. Moreover, this operation can be performed under local anesthesia, with a short hospital stay and recovery time. The morbidity rate is low but should be addressed by large-scale comparative studies.     

Sentinel lymph node biopsy in malignant melanoma: a series of 100 consecutive patients.

A consecutive cohort of 100 patients who had undergone sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) was analysed retrospectively. Three areas were studied: success in finding the sentinel node(s); complications of the procedure; and extra costs incurred by SLNB. The sentinel node(s) were successfully identified in 98% of the lymph node basins biopsied. The overall complication rate was 33%. The additional cost of the procedure was estimated at 1420 pounds sterling per patient. SLNB can reliably identify the sentinel node. However there is a significant complication rate of the technique and considerable additional costs. SLNB requires further critical evaluation before it can be accepted as a standard treatment for patients with malignant melanoma.     

Long-term results of sigmoid vaginoplasty in a consecutive series of 62 patients

We performed a historical cohort study of 62 consecutive patients who underwent abdomino-perineal vaginal re-construction with a segment of the sigmoid colon during a 25-year period. A dedicated database was reviewed for the aetiology of vaginal malformation, surgical complications and post-operative follow-up. Follow-up visits were scheduled 2, 6 and 12 months after discharge from hospital and annually thereafter. Fifty-eight (93.5%) patients were diagnosed as having Mayer–Rokitansky–Kuster–Hauser syndrome (MRKHS) and four (6.5%) had undergone previous demolitive surgery for gynaecologic malignancy. The mean operating time was 145 min (range 95 to 250 min). The mean hospital stay was 8.3 days (range 5 to 23 days). Post-operative complications requiring additional surgery occurred in 3 (4.8%) patients and were a case of necrotising fascitiis with leakage of the bowel anastomosis, a case of bowel occlusion and a case of neovaginal prolapse. The mean follow-up was 11.3 years (range 3 months to 24 years). We recorded 5 cases (8.1%) of sigmoid graft shrinkage treated successfully by dilation. The time interval between sigmoid vaginoplasty and first intercourse was 4 months (range 2 months to 4 years). During the follow-up, 32 (51.6%) women reported regular and 30 (48.4%) women reported occasional sexual intercourse; 80.6% (50/62) were “satisfied” with the surgical procedure. In this large series, laparotomic sigmoid vaginoplasty was a safe and acceptable technique to treat congenital absence of the vagina. This procedure allowed early sexual intercourse and was associated with a low incidence of shrinkage and a high rate of patients’ satisfaction.     

Survival and prognostic factors in patients undergoing parenchymal saving bronchoplastic operation for primary lung cancer: a series of 110 consecutive cases.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to report our experience concerning bronchial sleeve lobectomy for treating bronchogenic cancer. METHOD: From 1980 to 1994, 110 patients underwent bronchial sleeve lobectomy for bronchogenic cancer. In 45 patients, preoperative investigations contraindicated pneumonectomy, whereas in 65 other patients, sleeve resection was performed without functional necessity. The most common procedures were sleeve lobectomy of the right upper lobe (64%), and of the left upper lobe (21%). Sixteen patients (15%) underwent additional arterial vascular resection. Seven patients had microscopic invasion of the bronchial margin without the possibility of further resection in six with regard to their limited respiratory function. Tumors were staged as follow: 32 stage IB (all T2 N0), 57 stage IIB (57T2 N1), and 17 stage IIIA (eight, T3N1; nine, T2N2), whereas four patients had an in situ cancer (four stage 0). RESULTS: Operative mortality was 2.75%. The 5- and 10-year actuarial survival rates were, respectively, 39 and 22% for the entire group. The 5-year actuarial survival rates were, 60% in stage IB, 30% in stage IIB, and 27% in stage IIIA. Four factors significantly influenced survival (P<0.05): nodal stage, arterial resection, invasion of the bronchial stump and poor functional respiratory status contraindicating pneumonectomy. CONCLUSIONS: In our experience, sleeve resection for stage I provides comparable survival to that of standard resection at equal stage. However, in patients with pathologically N1 disease, who can tolerate a pneumonectomy, a randomized study is mandatory to confirm that sleeve lobectomy can be performed without the risk of decreasing long-term survival. In our study, patients who required an associated vascular resection demonstrated a poor survival.     

Postoperative external small bowel fistulas: a study of a consecutive series of patients treated with intravenous hyperalimentation.

A consecutive series of 25 patients who developed external small bowel fistula within 2 weeks of abdominal surgery is described. Half the patients had a primary diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease and the fistula arose usually as a result of direct trauma to the bowel or the breakdown of an anastomosis. All the patients were treated conservatively with total bowel rest and intravenous hyperalimentation. In 15 (60 per cent) spontaneous fistula closure occurred, in an average period of 32 days. In 8 patients the fistula failed to close and surgery was performed, but was effective in only 3 cases. Thus the fistula eventually closed in 18 patients. Five patients died, all from intra-abdominal sepsis. Of the 8 patients with a primary diagnosis of Crohn's disease, 3 died, 2 have a persistent fistula, 1 has a permanent ileostomy and spontaneous closure occurred in only 2.     

Results of esophagogastrectomy for carcinoma in cirrhotic patients. A series of 23 consecutive patients

Esophagogastrectomy for carcinoma of the esophagus or cardia has been performed in 23 patients with histologically proven hepatic cirrhosis. All but two patients were classified as Child's class A and all but three had a prothrombin time over 60% of normal values. Twenty-two esophagogastrostomies were performed through a separate abdominal and right thoracic approach in 15 patients, a left thoracoabdominal approach in five patients, and without thoracotomy in two patients. One patient had a colon interposition. Six patients died after operation (26%) as a result of anastomotic leakage in two patients, hepatorenal in three patients and portal thrombosis in one patient. The type of procedure did not influence mortality. The most common postoperative complication was the development of ascites (65%), and when associated with hepatorenal syndrome there was a significant mortality (p less than 0.05). Sepsis was present in the terminal stages of all nonsurvivors. A prothrombin time less than or equal to 60% of normal values was the only significant preoperative predictive factor of mortality, with none of the three patients surviving below this level (p less than 0.05). It is concluded that the presence of cirrhosis is not a contraindication to esophagogastrectomy for carcinoma when curative resection can be undertaken. Hepatic reserve is the determinant factor of operative prognosis. Operative risk is acceptable if patients are classified as Child's class A and prothrombin time is over 60% of normal values. Operation should be delayed when acute alcoholic hepatitis is present. Intraoperative discovery of cirrhosis is not a contraindication to resection where the above criteria are met. This strict selection allows one to anticipate a lower mortality rate.