Pyloric and gastric preservation with pancreatoduodenectomy

Pyloric and gastric-preserving pancreatic resection was performed in 35 patients with no mortality. Twenty-seven patients were followed for at least 8 months postoperatively and are reported herein in detail. This variation in the Whipple procedure is associated with a satisfactory weight gain after operation for benign disease, does not produce the usual postgastrectomy digestive symptoms, and so far jejunal or anastomotic ulceration has not been a problem. We believe this variation of the Whipple procedure is the operation of choice for benign disease and for certain types of periampullary malignant growth.     

Cogan's syndrome: a systemic vasculitis.

Nonsyphilitic interstitial keratitis with vestibuloauditory dysfunction (Cogan's syndrome) is a rare clinical entity. We have reviewed 53 cases (including one of our own) of this disease. In 72 per cent of the affected patients there was an underlying systemic process, often a vasculitis. Ten per cent had fatal or near fatal aortic valvular disease, which has been shown to be amenable to surgical intervention. Other systemic manifestations have included congestive heart failure, gastrointestinal hemorrhage, adenopathy, splenomegaly, hypertension, musculoskeletal involvement and eosinophilia. The clinical course is extremely variable, ranging from months to over 15 years with a minimal five year survival of 28 per cent. Medical therapy with corticosteroids has been beneficial but has only limited effect on symptoms of vestibuloauditory dysfunction. Cogan's syndrome appears to be a manifestation of a systemic disorder which is often apparent only after long-term follow-up.     

High-dose gallium imaging in lymphoma

The role of gallium-67 imaging in the management of patients with lymphoma, traditionally assessed using low tracer doses and the rectilinear scanner, was assessed when using larger doses (7 to 10 mCi) and a triple-peak Anger camera. Gallium scan results in 51 patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and 21 patients with Hodgkin's disease were compared with simultaneous radiologic, clinical, and histopathologic reports. Subsequent disease course was also evaluated in light of radionuclide findings. Sensitivity and specificity of the scans were 0.90 or greater for both non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and Hodgkin's disease, and overall accuracy by site was 96 percent. Although there are insufficient numbers of pretreatment scans to allow any conclusions, our data suggest that newer approaches to gallium scanning in treated patients are (1) highly specific in all lymphomas and most sensitive in high-grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and Hodgkin's disease; (2) valuable in assessing the mediastinum in both non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and Hodgkin's disease; and (3) helpful adjuncts to computed tomographic scanning and ultrasonography in assessing abdominal node disease.     

Argon laser treatment of lentigo maligna

A 64-year-old man had an irregularly pigmented lentigo maligna over the bridge of his nose. Melanin readily absorbs argon light, and the superficial location of this pool of epidermal and appendageal chromophore suggested that laser therapy might permit relatively selective lesion destruction. Argon laser surgery was performed on Nov. 9, 1981, and the treated site had remained clear to the time of writing. Selected patients with pigmented lesions may respond well to argon laser radiation, but close posttreatment clinical and histologic assessment is essential.     

Effect of nurses' attitudes on hospital-based abortion procedures in Massachusetts

Our study explored a largely unacknowledged obstacle to abortion access in Massachusetts: the unwillingness of nurses to staff abortion procedures. Evidence suggests that nurses tend to be more likely to oppose abortion than other medical professionals. However, the attitudes and practices of hospital-based nurses regarding abortion have not been thoroughly investigated. We collected qualitative information from physicians and nurse managers to understand how nurses' attitudes affect hospital-based abortion services in Massachusetts. We surveyed key respondents at all hospitals in Massachusetts where abortion services are available to any woman who requests them. Of the 20 individuals who responded (87%), 17 were physicians and 3 were nurse managers. We found that over half of physician respondents believed that the unavailability or unwillingness of nurses to staff abortions is a slight or moderate problem, and nearly a quarter of physician respondents characterized it as a large or very large problem. Thus, nurses' attitudes towards abortion and their unwillingness to assist with procedures may hinder patient access to abortion services.     

Noninvasive assessment of left ventricular performance in patients with ischemic heart disease: Ear densitographic study during uninterrupted treadmill exercise

Among 738 consecutive patients with chest pain referred for exercise testing, only 17 men fulfilled strict criteria for this pilot study: (1) achievement of at least 90 percent of age-predicted maximal heart rate or etectrocardtographic criteria for a positive test; (2) subsequent coronary anglography; (3) exclusion of prior heart disease; and (4) absence of medication. Measurements of systolic time intervals obtained with ear densitography during early exercise differentiated 10 patients with coronary artery disease (Group 1) from 17 men (7 patients plus 10 normal volunteers) with normal coronary arteries (Group 2). Despite nearly identical heart rate and blood pressure responses In both groups, men In Group 1 had a significantly greater reduction of preelection period (PEP) at 1 minute and 4 minutes as well as a greater decrease hi PEP/LVET (left ventricular ejection time) ratio. Differences were most significant when expressed as percent change of $\text{PEP}\text{LVET}$ ratio from control value (p <0.001 at both 1 minute and 4 minutes). After 4 minutes, men in Group 1 had no further decrease in $\text{PEP}\text{LVET}$ ratio and in 8 of the 10 men $\text{PEP}\text{LVET}$ ratio then increased to peak exercise. By contrast, $\text{PEP}\text{LVET}$ ratio continued to decrease to peak exercise in men In Group 2. The early floor in $\text{PEP}\text{LVET}$ ratio In Group 1 represents limited functional reserve and the subsequent increase suggests functional deterioration. Thus, densHographic systolic time interval measurements during uninterrupted exercise in unmedlcated subjects appear to improve the sensitivity and specificity of the conventional treadmill test.     

Topographic changes in the left ventricle after experimentally induced myocardial infarction in the rat

The factors that determine the thickness of transmural myocardial infarcts are unknown. Therefore, the relation between the size and thickness of transmural infarcts in 67 rats 21 days after occlusion of the left main coronary artery was studied. On examination of histologic sections, infarct size was determined by planimetry and expressed as a percentage of the left ventricular (LV) area, and thickness was expressed as a percentage of noninfarcted ventricular septal wall thickness. The circumferential length of the infarcted ventricle was measured in millimeters, as well as the circumferential length of the noninfarcted ventricular septum. Septal wall thickness was similar in rats with transmural infarcts and in sham-operated rats. No significant correlation was observed between infarct size and thickness (r = 0.10) or between circumferential length of the infarct and infarct thickness (r = 0.17). However, large (greater than or equal to 20% of the left ventricle, n = 37) and small (less than 20% of the left ventricle, n = 30) infarcts which were similarly thin (37 +/- 1% and 34 +/- 2% of septal wall thickness, respectively) affected LV topography differently. Large infarcts resulted in a 23% greater loss of myocardium (p less than 0.001), greater expansion of the LV cavity (18 +/- 9 mm2 compared with 14 +/- 1 mm2 in small infarcts, p less than 0.005), and lengthening of the septal wall (7.2 +/- 1.1 mm and 6.7 +/- 1.0 mm in large and small infarcts, respectively [p less than 0.05], and 6.3 +/- 0.1 mm in shams). Increase in cavity area and septal length in infarcted ventricles suggested a volume overload hypertrophy, which at 3 weeks was nonetheless inadequate to provide as much normal muscle as was present in sham-operated rats. In an additional 9 rats with subendocardial infarctions (involving less than 75% of the LV wall from endocardium to epicardium), the LV walls were thicker (94 +/- 5% of septal wall thickness, compared with 35 +/- 1% for transmural infarcts, p less than 0.001) and an inverse correlation was observed between infarct size and thickness. In conclusion, neither the size of a transmural infarct in rat nor the circumferential length of infarction determines the thickness of the infarct; however, infarct size does affect LV topography by increasing LV cavity area and the length of the noninfarcted septal wall. Subendocardial infarcts result in less myocardial thinning than do transmural infarcts.     

Cardiokymography during exercise testing: A new device for the detection of coronary artery disease and left ventricular wall motion abnormalities

The cardiokymograph (CKG) is a device that has been shown to reflect left ventricular (LV) wall motion abnormalities. Its accuracy in detecting coronary artery disease (CAD) during treadmill exercise testing was assessed in 204 consecutive patients undergoing coronary arteriography. Of the 188 patients with a technically adequate CKG, 146 (78%) had significant CAD. The sensitivity and specificity were similar for both the exercise electrocardiogram (ECG) (66% and 86%, respectively) and the exercise CKG (73% and 95%, respectively). An abnormal exercise CKG was significantly more common In patients with 3-vessel CAD than in those with 1-vessel disease (97% versus 52%, respectively;p < 0.001) and in patients with left anterior descending disease than in those without (85% versus 26%, respectively; p < 0.001). Seventy patients showed both an abnormal exercise ECG and CKG; all had CAD and 86% had multivessel CAD. Forty-eight patients demonstrated a normal exercise ECG and CKG; 29% had CAD but only 6% had multivessel CAD. Among 55 patients who had simultaneous exercise radionuclide ventriculography, new septal or apical wall motion abnormalities were found in 79% (23 of 29) of patients with an abnormal CKG compared with 19% (5 of 26) of patients with a normal CKG (p < 0.001). Thus, the CKG during exercise testing accurately reflects LV wall motion abnormalities and can be used to improve the diagnostic accuracy of exercise testing as an additional marker of myocardial ischemia.