Longer Operative Time Results in a Higher Rate of Subsequent Periprosthetic Joint Infection in Patients Undergoing Primary Joint Arthroplasty

Background

Whether prolonged operative time is an independent risk factor for subsequent surgical site infection (SSI) and periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) following total joint arthroplasty (TJA) remains a clinically significant and underexplored issue. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between operative time and the risk of subsequent SSI and PJI in patients undergoing primary TJA.

Tyrosinemia type 1 in pediatric nephrology: Not always straightforward

The main clinical features of tyrosinemia type 1 usually appear in the first months of life, including fever, diarrhea, vomiting, liver involvement, growth failure, and renal proximal tubulopathy with subsequent hypophosphatemic rickets. An early diagnosis is crucial in order to provide specific management and to prevent complications. Here, we report on two cases referred primarily to pediatric nephrologists for the diagnosis of “neonatal tubulopathy” and management of “X-linked hypophosphatemia (XLH),” respectively. Our aim is to emphasize that (1) even a mixed tubulopathy can reveal tyrosinemia, and (2) tyrosinemia is a classic differential diagnosis of XLH that should not be forgotten, especially in the era of the anti-FGF23 burosumab.     

Rapid identification of atypical variant of plasma butyrylcholinesterase by PCR.

Human butyrylcholinesterase is the enzyme responsible of mivacurium and succinylcholine metabolism, which may be significantly impaired when mutation Asp70Gly is found in patients. We describe a simple PCR method for the detection of this variant. Thirteen out of sixteen patients tested after prolonged apnea were positive for the presence of this mutation (50.0% homozygotes and 31.3% heterozygotes), suggesting that this test contributes to the explanation of some clinical events and to their prevention in relatives of these patients.     

Aneurisma de aorta abdominal infrarrenal en asociación con riñón en herradura: aportación de un caso

We review the association between surgically resolvable aortic disease and horseshoe kidney with a discussion of diagnostic problems and therapeutic options.Male patient 81 years of age with horseshoe kidney and an abdominal aortic aneurysm that was discovered by chance in an abdominal ultrasound during a check-up for his prostate condition.A retroperitoneal approach was used in order to resect the aneurysm and perform an aorto-aortic bypass with no complications occurring. Two years after the diagnosis, the patient is still asymptomatic from a vascular point of view.The co-presence of horseshoe kidney and aortic disease needing surgical correction is infrequent, but it significantly increases the technical complexity of aortic reconstruction. A literature review is included.     

Effects of Intermittent Femoral Nerve Injections of Bupivacaine, Levobupivacaine, and Ropivacaine on Mitochondrial Energy Metabolism and Intracellular Calcium Homeostasis in Rat Psoas Muscle

Background: Long-acting local anesthetics cause muscle damage. Moreover, long-acting local anesthetics act as uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation in isolated mitochondria and enhance sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ release. The aim of the study was to evaluate effects of perineural injections of local anesthetics on mitochondrial energetic metabolism and intracellular calcium homeostasis in vivo.

Methods: Femoral nerve block catheters were inserted in adult male Wistar rats. Rats were randomized and received seven injections (1 ml/kg) of bupivacaine, levobupivacaine, ropivacaine, or isotonic saline at 8-h intervals. Rats were killed 8 h after the last injection. Psoas muscle was quickly dissected from next to the femoral nerve. Local anesthetic concentrations in muscle were determined. Oxidative capacity was measured in saponin-skinned fibers. Oxygen consumption rates were measured, and mitochondrial adenosine triphosphate synthesis rate was determined. Enzymatic activities of mitochondrial respiratory chain complexes were evaluated. Local calcium release events (calcium sparks) were analyzed as well as sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium content in saponin-skinned fibers.

Results: Eight hours after the last injection, psoas muscle concentration of local anesthetics was less than 0.3 [mu]g/g tissue. Adenosine triphosphate synthesis and adenosine triphosphate-to-oxygen ratio were significantly decreased in the muscle of rats treated with local anesthetics. A global decrease (around 50%) in all of the enzyme activities of the respiratory chain was observed. Levobupivacaine increased the amplitude and frequency of the calcium sparks, whereas lower sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium content was shown.