Appraisal of a modified medial canthal plication for treating laxity of the medial lower eyelid.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of modified medial canthal tendon plication technique for correcting laxity of the medial end of the lower eyelid. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Eleven patients (9 males and 2 females, 21 eyes), with an age range of 31-80 years, having laxity of the medial end of the lower lid of varying degrees were enrolled in this study. These patients presented with complaints of watering, recurrent redness, photophobia and foreign body sensation. After grading the amount of lower lid laxity, plication was performed. In patients in whom laxity was associated with ectropion, the severity of lower lid ectropion was also graded. In patients with ectropion of Grade II or more, additional procedures for its correction were performed before undertaking plication. The patients were followed up 6 months post-operatively and re-assessed for laxity, recurrence of symptoms and complications of plication. RESULTS: All the lids were evaluated for the amount and extent of laxity of lower lid. Twelve (57%) eyes had Grade I, 9 (43%) had Grade II (and none Grade III) laxity of the lower lid. Twelve eyes had laxity restricted to the medial end and 9 eyes had laxity of the entire length of the lower lid. Some eyes also had an associated ectropion. Among the 21 eyes, 4 eyes (22%) had Grade 1, 11 (61%) had Grade 2, 6 (17%) Grade 3 and none Grade 4 ectropion. In the lids with associated ectropion, additional procedures had been performed. In 1 eye, the medial canthus was anchored to the tendon and this patient had poor apposition of the lower lid to the globe. Hence, in the remaining 20 eyes, the medial canthus was anchored to the orbital periosteum. The mean change in eyelid length was 2.6 mm (measured from medial to lateral canthus) from pre-operative status (33+/-3.4 mm) to the post-operative status (30+/-2.9 mm) this being statistically significant. An overriding of the lower lid was seen in 2 eyes (10%), and a residual gap between the lower lid and globe was noticed in 15 (71%) eyes. Some eyes had uncorrected symptoms including epiphora (3 eyes; 14%), redness (2 eyes; 10%), and photophobia (1 eye; 5%). All were those in which the lateral end was lax. None had a recurrence of foreign body sensation. CONCLUSION: Plication is easy, effective and quick for correcting laxity of the lower lid when restricted predominantly to the medial end. Correct identification of anatomical landmarks and appropriate tension of sutures is vital to achieve proper apposition of the lower lid to the globe.     

Transient recurrence of pressure regurgitation following successful conventional external dacryocystorhinostomy.

PURPOSE: To report a patient with transient recurrence of lacrimal pressure regurgitation following a successful conventional external dacryocystorhinostomy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A 22-year-old female, who had undergone conventional external dacryocystorhinostomy, presented 3 days later with a recurrence of pressure regurgitation. The patient's symptoms disappeared spontaneously 7 days later. Serial naso-endoscopic examination was used to find the cause. RESULTS: Endoscopic examination showed an oedematous posterior nasal mucosal remnant obstructing the lacrimal drainage pathway. On account of its peculiar location, shape and movements, and the surgically induced tissue oedema, this mucosal remnant misdirected the fluid coming through the canalicular system away from the nasal cavity into the lacrimal pocket. Ten days later, due to healing fibrosis, this flap adhered permanently to the lateral nasal wall and the patient's symptoms disappeared spontaneously. CONCLUSION: Nasal endoscopy is a simple, quick and convenient technique for diagnosing the cause of obstruction in the lacrimal drainage system. The surgeon should aim for large anterior lacrimal and anterior nasal mucosal flaps, and every remnant of posterior flaps should be excised during dacryocystorhinostomy.     

Assessing the quality of clinical and administrative data extracted from hospitals: the General Medicine Inpatient Initiative (GEMINI) experience

ObjectiveLarge clinical databases are increasingly used for research and quality improvement. We describe an approach to data quality assessment from the General Medicine Inpatient Initiative (GEMINI), which collects and standardizes administrative and clinical data from hospitals.MethodsThe GEMINI database contained 245 559 patient admissions at 7 hospitals in Ontario, Canada from 2010 to 2017. We performed 7 computational data quality checks and iteratively re-extracted data from hospitals to correct problems. Thereafter, GEMINI data were compared to data that were manually abstracted from the hospital’s electronic medical record for 23 419 selected data points on a sample of 7488 patients.ResultsComputational checks flagged 103 potential data quality issues, which were either corrected or documented to inform future analysis. For example, we identified the inclusion of canceled radiology tests, a time shift of transfusion data, and mistakenly processing the chemical symbol for sodium (“Na”) as a missing value. Manual validation identified 1 important data quality issue that was not detected by computational checks: transfusion dates and times at 1 site were unreliable. Apart from that single issue, across all data tables, GEMINI data had high overall accuracy (ranging from 98%–100%), sensitivity (95%–100%), specificity (99%–100%), positive predictive value (93%–100%), and negative predictive value (99%–100%) compared to the gold standard.Discussion and ConclusionComputational data quality checks with iterative re-extraction facilitated reliable data collection from hospitals but missed 1 critical quality issue. Combining computational and manual approaches may be optimal for assessing the quality of large multisite clinical databases.     

Tuberculosis of the hip in children: A retrospective analysis of 27 patients

Background:

We retrospectively evaluated the pretreatment radiological presentation and the clinicoradiological outcome at the completion of 1 year chemotherapy in osteoarticular tuberculosis of hip in children to prognosticate correlation between them.

Materials and Methods:

We retrospectively analyzed the clinical and plain radiographic findings in 27 patients with an age of 12 years or younger in whom hip tuberculosis was diagnosed and treated between 2006 and 2010. The diagnosis was based on histopathology in 14 and clinicoradiological basis in 13 patients. The pre and post treatment plain radiographs were evaluated according to Shanmugasundaram radiological classification and our observations regarding unclassified cases which were not fit in this classification were suggested. The functional outcome at the completion of chemotherapy was assessed using modified Moon''s criteria.

Results:

The male female ratio was 11:16. The left hip was involved more frequently than the right (17:10). The average age was 7.37 years (range, 2-12 years). In the pretreatment radiographs, 9 hips were normal, 6 traveling, 4 dislocating, 1 protrusio acetabuli, 3 atrophic and 4 unclassified types (3 triradiate; 1 pseudarthrosis coxae). There were no Perthes and mortar pestle at the initial presentation. Posttreatment, the types changed to 9 normal, 3 Perthes, 1 protrusio acetabuli, 1 atrophic, 4 mortar pestle and 9 unclassified types (3 triradiate, 3 pseudarthrosis coxae and 3 ankylosed). There were 37% excellent, 18.5% good, 26% fair and 18.5% poor results. The prognosis was best with initial “triradiate” and normal types and worst with posttreatment atrophic and “ankylosed” types.

Conclusions:

The Shanmugasundaram radiological types accurately predict prognosis only in normal types and “triradiate” pattern. The functional outcome is independent of radiological morphology of the hip in smaller children.     

Perioperative cardiovascular system failure in South Asians undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass is associated with prolonged inflammation and increased Toll-like receptor signaling in inflammatory monocytes

Background

South Asian ethnicity is an independent risk factor for mortality after coronary artery bypass. We tested the hypothesis that this risk results from a greater inflammatory response to cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB).

Methods

This was a single-site prospective cohort study. We compared the inflammatory response to CPB in 20 Caucasians and 17 South Asians undergoing isolated coronary artery bypass grafting surgery.

Results

Plasma levels of proinflammatory cytokines (interleukin [IL]-6, IL-8, IL-12, interferon gamma, and tumor necrosis factor) and anti-inflammatory mediators (IL-10 and soluble TNF receptor I) were measured. The Toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling pathway was examined in peripheral blood monocytes by flow cytometry, measuring surface expression of TLR2, TLR4, and coreceptor CD14 and activation of downstream messenger molecules (interleukin-1 receptor-associated kinase 4, nuclear factor kappa from B cells (NF-κB), c-Jun amino-terminal kinase, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase, and Protein Kinase B). South Asians had persistently higher plasma levels of IL-6 and exhibited increased TLR signaling through the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase and Protein Kinase B pathways in inflammatory monocytes after CPB. This increased inflammatory response was paralleled clinically by a higher sequential organ failure assessment score (5.1 ± 1.4 versus 1.5 ± 1.6, P = 0.027) and prolonged cardiovascular system failure (23.5% versus 0%) 48 h after CPB.

Conclusions

South Asians develop an exacerbated systemic inflammatory response after CPB, which may contribute to the higher morbidity and mortality associated with coronary artery bypass in this population. These patients may benefit from targeted anti-inflammatory therapies designed to mitigate the adverse consequences resulting from this response.     

Impact of single immunosuppressive drug withdrawal on lymphocyte immunoreactivity

Background

Chronic rejection is a major cause of graft loss in kidney transplant recipients. Nonadherence to drug therapy is a well-recognized cause of chronic rejection leading to long-term graft dysfunction and failure for transplant recipients. Immunosuppressive medications with short half-lives that require frequent dosing, such as tacrolimus, complicate transplant regimens and may increase noncompliance. Regimens could be simplified using drugs with long half-lives requiring once-daily administration, such as sirolimus. The impact of missing doses of single agents has not been studied extensively. Erratic compliance or temporary discontinuation of immunosuppressive drugs may have significant implications for chronic rejection.

Methods

Our study evaluated the impact of single drug withdrawal of commonly used immunosuppressive agents (sirolimus and tacrolimus) on lymphocyte responses. We analyzed lymphocyte proliferation, cytokine secretion, and adenosine triphosphate generation using a crossover study design with normal healthy patients. Lymphocyte proliferation was assessed using 5-bromo-2-deoxyuridine incorporation, and T cell function was analyzed by examining adenosine triphosphate generation.

Results

Our results indicate that sirolimus exerts prolonged suppression of lymphocyte proliferation and decreased interleukin 17A that lasts up to 48 h after drug withdrawal. In comparison, tacrolimus did not have a similar effect on lymphocyte proliferation or interleukin 17A secretion.

Conclusion

Future analysis of sirolimus in diverse transplantation populations merits investigation.