Frozen section analysis of esophageal endoscopic mucosal resection specimens in the real-time management of Barrett's esophagus.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The aim of this study was to assess the validity of frozen section analysis of endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) specimens from Barrett's esophagus as compared with permanent sections for the detection of neoplasia. Frozen sections help to give immediate feedback for surgical procedures. It has not been determined whether EMR can be adequately interpreted by using frozen sections to aid endoscopists in completely resecting neoplastic lesions. METHODS: EMR specimens from Barrett's esophagus with high-grade dysplasia (HGD) and/or carcinoma were tested by frozen section. Pathologists evaluated EMR specimens for the depth of invasion as well as the appearance of clear margins of resection. The kappa statistic was calculated to assess the degree of agreement between the frozen section and permanent section diagnoses. RESULTS: Twenty-three consecutive patients underwent 30 EMRs with frozen section diagnosis. Frozen section revealed a carcinoma in 7 specimens (23%) and dysplasia in 20 (66%). Permanent sections found carcinoma in 8 specimens (26%), dysplasia in 19 specimens (63%), and normal or nondysplastic Barrett's esophagus in the remainder. The kappa statistic for the depth of invasion of EMR specimens was 0.93 (near perfect agreement). The kappa statistic for the margins of the EMR specimens was 0.80 (excellent agreement). CONCLUSIONS: This study indicated that frozen section analysis of esophageal EMR specimens is valid as compared with permanent section. This technique might allow rapid evaluation about the degree and depth of involvement of cancers. This allows physicians to make decisions regarding further therapy if margins are involved or decrease the use of EMR for histologically benign-appearing lesions.     

Assessment of ventricular dyssynchrony: global or regional function?

A common cliché states that if you stand still every10 years, you will find yourself in the forefront of fashion.Thus it seems with the analysis of ventricular function. Ithas been recognized for many years that incoordinate or non-uniformcontraction reduces global left ventricular (LV) function. Wiggersdemonstrated in 1922 that stimulation from a ventricular focusrather than supraventricular produced a reduced pulse pressure,prolonged isometric contraction, and systolic ejection timein normal hearts. Although regional wall motion abnormalitieswere recognized early in ischaemic heart disease, it was alsodemonstrated later that it occurs in dilated or hypertrophiccardiomyopathy.¹ However, the realization that asynchronouswall motion due to delayed activation such as in the presenceof a left bundle branch block profoundly affected global functiondid not take place until more recently.² Developments in cardiacimaging     

Down's syndrome and the acquisition of phonology by Cantonese-speaking children

ABSTRACT. The phonological abilities of two groups of 4–9-year-old intellectually impaired Cantonese-speaking children are described. Children with Down's syndrome did not differ from matched non-Down's syndrome controls in terms of a lexical comprehension measure, the size of their phoneme repertoires, the range of sounds affected by articulatory imprecision, or the number of consonants, vowels or tones produced in error. However, the types of errors made by the Down's syndrome children were different from those made by the control subjects. Cantonese-speaking children with Downs syndrome, as compared with controls, made a greater number of inconsistent errors, were more likely to produce non-developmental errors and were better in imitation than in spontaneous production. Despite extensive differences between the phonological structures of Cantonese and English, children with Downs syndrome acquiring these languages show the same characteristic pattern of speech errors. One unexpected finding was that the control group of non-Down's syndrome children failed to present with delayed phonological development typically reported for their English-speaking counterparts. The argument made is that cross-linguistic studies of intellectually impaired children's language acquisition provide evidence concerning language-specific characteristics of impairment, as opposed to those characteristics that, remaining constant across languages, are an integral part of the disorder. The results reported here support the hypothesis that the speech disorder typically associated with Down's syndrome arises from impaired phonological planning, i.e. a cognitive linguistic deficit.     

Symptoms and health status before and six weeks after open cholecystectomy: a European cohort study.ECHSS Group. European Collaborative Health Services Study Group.

The impact of open cholecystectomy on patients' symptoms and health status and their level of satisfaction has been examined to provide a basis for comparison with newer rival treatments. A prospective cohort study using patient and surgeon completed questionnaires before and six weeks after surgery was carried out in 14 general hospitals in eight European countries. Five hundred and eighty three patients were recruited consecutively in 1990 to 1991. Information on their symptoms, general health status, activities of daily living, and satisfaction with their care were collected. After surgery 42.8% of patients reported that they were free of symptoms. Symptoms varied in their responsiveness to surgery--six weeks after surgery 89% of those who had complained of vomiting had improved, 81% of nausea, 69% of loss of appetite, 65% of abdominal pain, and 51% of flatulence. In contrast 28.1% of patients still suffered from flatulence and 23.5% continued to complain of abdominal pain. Most patients' (62.7%) general health improved, 28% were unchanged, and 9.3% were worse. After surgery most patients reported no restrictions in their normal social activities (75-90% depending on the activity) and most (89.5%) felt the results of their operation had been as expected or better than expected. Most patients undergoing open cholecystectomy reported an improvement in their symptoms, health status, and social functioning. This was reflected in their high level of satisfaction. Some patients, however, gained no benefit and a small proportion were worse than before surgery.     

pH control in rat skeletal muscle during exercise,recovery from exercise,and acute respiratory acidosis

We used ³¹P magnetic resonance spectroscopy to compare the response of rat skeletal muscle to three kinds of proton load. During exercise (tetanic sciatic nerve stimulation), protons from lactic acid were buffered passively and consumed by net hydrolysis of phosphocreatine (PCr). During recovery from exercise, the pH-dependent efflux of protons produced by PCr resynthesis could be partially inhibited by amiloride or 4,4′-diisothiocyanostilbene-2,2′-disulphonate (DIDS), implicating both sodiudproton and bicarbonatelchloride exchange, but was not inhibited by simultaneous respiratory acidosis. In early recovery, up to 30% of proton efflux was mediated by lactatelproton cotransport. During acute respiratory acidosis at rest, the eventual change in muscle pH was consistent with passive buffering and was unaffected by amiloride or DIDS, implying no significant contribution of proton fluxes.     

Enhancement of in vivo and in vitro immune functions by a conformationally biased,response-selective agonist of human C5a: Implications for a novel adjuvant in vaccine design

A conformationally biased, agonist of human C5a_65–74 (EP67) was assessed for its adjuvant activities in vitro and in vivo. EP67 induced the release of the inflammatory (Th1) type cytokines from C5a receptor (CD88)-bearing antigen presenting cells (APC). EP67 did not induce the release of these cytokines from splenic APCs obtained from C5a receptor knockouts (CD88^−/−). Serum from mice immunized with EP67–ovalbumin (OVA) contained high OVA-specific antibody (Ab) titers [IgG1, IgG2a (IGg2c), IgG2b]. Mice receiving OVA alone produced only IgG1 Abs, indicating the ability of EP67 to induce a Th1-like Ab class switch. Spleen cell cultures from wild type mice but not CD88^−/− mice showed an enhanced OVA-specific proliferative response in vitro. These results indicate the ability of EP67 to drive a Th1-mediated immune response and its potential use as a unique adjuvant.     

Surgical complications of continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis

Surgical experience with 260 consecutive patients with chronic renal failure receiving continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) at one medical center from 1980 to 1989 is reviewed. Patients received CAPD for a mean of 24.2 months (range: 3 days to 91 months). Catheter longevity consistently improved in all but 1 year from 1984 to 1989, as did exit-site and tunnel infections. Of 311 catheters inserted, 151 (49%) required removal, of which 111 (74%) were attributed to peritonitis. Cumulative patient survival was 80%, 60%, and 53% at 1, 2, and 3 years, respectively. Diabetic patients had statistically significant lower survival rates. Additional complications including catheter leakage, catheter malposition, catheter obstruction, and abdominal wall hernias were negligible. Although CAPD is not free from serious complications, our data show remarkable improvement since 1980 in catheter longevity, hospital stay, and infection rates.