Decision analysis model of incisional hernia after open abdominal surgery

Background The incidence rate of incisional hernias after open surgery has been reported to be higher than that of port site hernias after laparoscopic surgery. No studies have compared the costs for the health care system in treating those two types of hernia. Methods A systematic review was conducted to obtain the baseline data, and a decision analysis model was created to simulate the occurrence and recurrence of incisional and port site hernias. Results The overall risk of having incisional hernias was eight-times higher than that of having port site hernias (7.4% vs 0.9%). A cost savings of ￡93 per patient can be generated for the health care system in the UK. Similar results were obtained for Germany, Italy and France. Conclusions The additional treatment costs for incisional hernia should be taken into account when the costs of a surgery performed by open approach are compared with by laparoscopy.     

Allergic fungal sinusitis— A clinico-pathological study

The co-existence of fungal elements in allergic nasal Polyposis, has given rise to a distinct clinical entity known as ‘Allergic fungal sinusitis ’ (AF’S). Many a time, these fungal elements may not be diagnosed pre-operatively by routine diagnostic nasal endoscopy or CT scan of paranasal sinuses, due to the florid presentation of nasal polyps, which usually obscure the underlying fungal pathology. The diagnosis is often made intra-operatively. The post-operative confirmation of AFS is by histopathology, fungal smear, fungal culture, allergic murin study and fungal specific IgE titres. We report a series often such cases done in our institution, which highlight that AFS should be considered as a differential diagnosis in Sinonasal Polyposis cases, for their effective management.     

糖尿病患者超声乳化白内障吸除手术的临床观察

目的:探讨糖尿病患者进行超声乳化白内障吸除联合人工晶状体植入手术的临床效果。方法:50例(61只眼)糖尿病患者(设为A组)和同期163例(174只眼)血糖正常患者(设为B组)接受超声乳化白内障吸除联合人工晶状体植入手术。糖尿病患者手术前通过饮食疗法、口服药物或肌注胰岛素治疗,使空腹血糖降到 10mmol/L以下。术后随访 1～28个月(平均 8.6个月),复查视力、裂隙灯及眼底检查。结果:术后矫正视力≥0.5者,A组为77.1%;B组为80.5%。两组经统计学处理差异无显著性(P>0.05)。两组术中出现后囊破裂及术后发生角膜水肿和前房渗出等并发症的差异无显著性(P>0.05 )。结论:糖尿病患者进行超声乳化白内障吸除手术前只要有效控制血糖,其手术效果与对照组患者相同。但术后血糖的控制仍然十分重要。眼科学报2003;19:98-100。     

子宫动脉栓塞治疗子宫肌瘤89例报告

目的 评价子宫动脉栓塞术治疗子宫肌瘤的近期疗效。方法 89例子宫肌瘤患者，采用Seldinger技术分别作左右子宫动脉主干插管检查和栓塞治疗，栓塞剂采用聚乙稀醇颗粒(PVA)或白芨混合颗粒。结果 72例(80．9％)完成随访，随访时间1～28个月。有94．1％(64／68)的患者月经复常；治疗后瘤体缩小25．2％～76．8％(M=41．3％)。除了术中术后疼痛(65例)和发热(16例)外，有2例因肌瘤坏死行子宫切除术，1例出现卵巢早衰。结论 子宫动脉栓塞术治疗子宫肌瘤的近期疗效满意，远期疗效尚待进一步观察。     

Technical Considerations in Laparoscopic Fundoplication

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a common disease and can be successfully treated by laparoscopic fundoplication. This article describes the technique of laparoscopic surgery for GERD with a focus on operative pitfalls.     

In vivo quantification of fluorescent molecular markers in real-time: A review to evaluate the performance of five existing methods

With the advent of molecular-targeted fluorescent markers, there is a renewed interest in fluorescence quantification methods that are based on continuous wave excitation and multi-spectral image acquisition. However, little is known about their in vivo quantification performance. We reviewed the performance of five selected methods by analytically describing these and varying input parameters of irradiance, excitation geometry, collection efficiency, autofluorescence, melanin content, blood volume, blood oxygenation and tissue scattering using optical properties representing those for human skin. We identified one method that corrects for variations in all parameters. This requires image acquisition before and after marker administration, under identical geometry. Hence, it is suited for applications where the site of interest can be relocated (e.g. anaesthetized animals and dermatology). For applications where relocation is not possible, we identified a second method where the uncertainty in the fluorescence signal was ±20%. Hence, use of these methods can substantially aid in vivo fluorescence quantification compared to use of the raw fluorescence signal, as this changed by more than 3 orders of magnitude. Since these methods can be computed in real-time, they are of particular interest for applications where direct feedback is critical, as diagnostic screening or image-guided surgery.     

Planning for minimally invasive unicompartmental knee arthroplasty

Unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA) is considered the treatment of choice in patients with single compartment arthritis of the knee at early stages or with osteonecrosis limited to one compartment. However, results in the literature are still controversial and it is a technically difficult procedure. The main goal of UKA is to restore the articular space of the afflicted compartment, without influencing the limb alignment. Selection of patients and pre-operative planning are crucial. The necessity to improve functional results and to reduce immobilization of the patients has led to the development of minimally invasive surgery. Applied to UKA, this approach reduces blood loss and surgical time, causes fewer symptomatic postoperative complications, and permits earlier recovery compared to the traditional incision. The shorter incision makes careful pre-operative planning essential. We briefly review the indications for UKA, the pre-operative clinical and radiological assessment, and the surgical procedure. Proocedings of the Consensus Conference “TSS in hip and knee replacement” (Rapallo, Italy 22–24 June 2006)     

鼻胃管胃肠减压在择期腹部手术中的应用价值

鼻胃管胃肠减压曾被常规应用于择期和急诊的腹部手术后，目的是预防急性胃扩张的发生、治疗梗阻、降低吻合口压力等。但是，鼻胃管置入也会带来一些副作用，如呼吸道并发症、胃-食道反流、体液和电解质的丢失、声带的损伤，以及越来越被重视的患者的不适感。近年来的研究结果也对择期的腹部手术后常规应用鼻胃管胃肠减压提出不同的看法。现重新评价应用鼻胃管胃肠减压的理论基础及相关临床研究的结果，并对鼻胃管胃肠减压在择期腹部手术中的价值作一综述。     

TSS and traditional surgery in hip and knee replacement

Surgery passes through a continuous evolution, thanks to the introduction of new technologies and techniques. Tissue-sparing surgery is a concept introduced in the last years to address prosthetic surgery to a more conservative fashion. We discuss the TSS decalogue with a critical eye, pointing out how traditional surgery is evolving in accordance with TSS statements. Proceedings of the Consensus Conference “TSS in hip and knee replacement”, Rapallo, Italy, 22–24 June 2006     

Switching from Tacrolimus to Sirolimus Halts the Appearance of New Sebaceous Neoplasms in Muir-Torre Syndrome

Little is known about the effects of immunosuppression on patients with hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC). We describe a kidney transplant recipient with unrecognized Muir-Torre syndrome in whom the administration of a tacrolimus-based regimen led to the eruption of multiple sebaceous tumors. The patient was later found to harbor an MSH2 mutation. Switching to a sirolimus-based regimen resulted in arrest of the disease. When the patient was switched back to tacrolimus, new facial lesions rapidly appeared. Switching again to sirolimus resulted again in halting the appearance of new lesions. This finding is in line with the known antiangiogenic activity of sirolimus and reports on the regression of cutaneous Kaposi's sarcoma in kidney transplant recipients switched from another immunosuppressive regimen to sirolimus. Further studies on the potential use of sirolimus for the treatment of de novo tumors in immunosuppressed kidney transplant recipients with HNPCC are warranted.