An overview of existing mesothelioma registries worldwide,and the need for a US Registry

The association between asbestos exposure, mainly in occupational settings, and malignant mesothelioma has been well established; this has prompted several countries to establish mesothelioma epidemiologic surveillance programs often at the request of national agencies. This review compares currently existing mesothelioma registries worldwide to develop a concept model for a US real-time case capture mesothelioma registry. Five countries were identified with a mesothelioma specific registry, including Italy, France, UK, Australia, and South Korea. All, except the UK, used interviews to collect exposure data. Linkage with the national death index was available or was in future plans for all registries. The registries have limited information on treatment, quality of life, and other patient-centered outcomes such as symptoms and pain management. To thoroughly collect exposure data, “real-time” enrollment is preferable; to maximize the capture of mesothelioma cases, optimal coverage, and a simplified consent process are needed.     

Mucinous adenocarcinoma arising from chronic perianal fistula

Perianal mucinous adenocarcinoma is a rare tumour which may be associated with long‐standing chronic perianal sepsis. Early diagnosis is challenging and is based on a high index of clinical suspicion and specific histological features. Definitive treatment is surgical, in the form of an abdomino‐perineal resection. We hereby describe a case of a perianal mucinous adenocarcinoma arising from long‐standing recurrent perianal fistula and complement this with a brief review of the literature pertaining in particular to the management of this condition.     

A Prospective Randomized Trial of Steroid-Free Maintenance Regimens in Kidney Transplant Recipients—An Interim Analysis

We compared three maintenance immunosuppressive regimens in a rapid discontinuation of prednisone protocol. From March 1, 2001, through December 31, 2003, 239 first and second kidney transplant recipients (166 LD; 73 DD) were randomized. All recipients were treated with Thymoglobulin; all received steroids intraoperatively and for 5 days postoperatively. Randomization was to cyclosporine-mycophenolate mofetil (n = 85); high-level tacrolimus (TAC) (8-12 ng/mL)-low-level sirolimus (SRL) (3-7 ng/mL) (n = 72); or low-level TAC (3-7 ng/mL)-high-level SRL (8-12 ng/mL) (n = 82). We found no difference at 24 months between groups in patient, graft, death-censored graft, or acute rejection-free graft survival, or in kidney function. Wound complications were more common in SRL-treated recipients (p = 0.02); we found no other differences between groups in complication rates. Our data suggest that excellent patient and graft survival and low rejection rates can be obtained using a variety of maintenance protocols without prednisone.     

创伤后迟发性脑肿胀的临床特点与治疗

目的 探讨创伤后迟发性脑肿胀的临床特点、发病机制与治疗。方法 回顾性分析1998年1月～2005年6月年收治的17例迟发性脑肿胀患者的临床特点和救治情况。结果 所有颅脑损伤患者采用保守治疗后均有好转，但于伤后5-10d出现恶化，CT复查有脑肿胀，经加强综合脱水等治疗后16例治愈，1例死亡。结论 迟发性脑肿胀好发于对冲性额、颞叶挫裂伤伴明显蛛网膜下腔出血、硬膜下薄层血肿及早期CT有脑肿胀者。其发病机制可能与创伤后的迟发性脑血管痉挛、微循环障碍、静脉回流障碍及甘露醇作用下降等因素有关。此类患者病情隐蔽性强，应加强观察、积极行CT复查，如能早期明确诊断，保守治疗多数效果良好。     

Retrorenal colon: implications for percutaneous diskectomy

It has been recommended that computed tomography (CT) with the patient prone be performed in every patient undergoing percutaneous diskectomy; this would enable detection of a retrorenal location of the colon, which could interfere with the percutaneous procedure. In this evaluation of 346 prone CT studies, only one patient (0.29%) was found to have retrorenal or retropsoas bowel that would have been perforated at diskectomy. Because of this extremely low prevalence, the performance of prone CT in every patient undergoing percutaneous lumbar diskectomy is not believed to be necessary.