Surgical treatment of active prosthetic valve endocarditis. Results in 66 patients

The results of combined medical and surgical management of 66 patients with active prosthetic valve endocarditis (APVE) are analyzed. Between 1970 and 1985, 3510 patients were operative survivors of mitral, aortic or double mitral-aortic valve replacement. Cumulative follow-up was 15,640 patient-years (mean 4.4 years). The overall annual incidence of reoperation for APVE was 0.42 +/- 0.05% (0.34 +/- 0.08% for biological and 0.46 +/- 0.06% for mechanical prostheses, p = n.s.). Early APVE occurred in 21 patients and 45 patients had late APVE. Indications for surgery were heart failure in 92%, systemic emboli in 5% and persistent sepsis in 3% of patients. Overall operative mortality (less than 30 days) was 38% (25/66). (Early APVE 52% and late APVE 31%). Anatomical location, valve design and number of prostheses implanted did not correlate with a higher operative risk. Overall endocarditis-related mortality was 56% (37/66). Uni and multivariate stepwise logistic regression analysis identified: 1) date of surgery (p = 0.01), 2) renal failure (p = 0.03) and 3) early APVE (p = 0.03) as predictors of endocarditis-related death. Actuarial survival at 1, 5 and 10 postoperative years was 41 +/- 6%, 30 +/- 6% and 24 +/- 7% respectively. This study confirms the high lethality of APVE. However, with adequate and aggressive combined medical and surgical management, some patients can be saved.     

Perfluorochemicals as US contrast agents for tumor imaging and hepatosplenography: preliminary clinical results

In animals, perfluorochemicals (PFCs) are effective ultrasound (US) contrast agents that produce hepatic, splenic, and tumor enhancement. The use of Fluosol-DA 20%, an emulsion of perfluorodecalin and perfluorotripropylamine, was studied in nine non-critically ill patients with cancer who had liver lesions. US studies without Fluosol were compared with studies obtained 24, 48, and 72 hours after Fluosol infusion. Vital signs and extensive laboratory analyses are performed before and after Fluosol infusion. Liver metastases from colonic, pancreatic, and gastric carcinoma exhibited rim or diffuse enhancement after a Fluosol dose of 1.6 g/kg or greater. Fluosol produced echogenic enhancement of the liver and spleen relative to kidney at a dose of 2.4 g/kg, allowing the detection of nonenhancing lesions. In addition, Fluosol at a dose of 1.6 g/kg or greater allowed detection of lesions not seen before contrast medium was administered in three of the seven patients studied. There was a mild increase in the level of serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase in two patients, one given 2.4 and the other 3.2 g/kg of Fluosol. Mild and transient allergic reactions without change in vital signs were experienced by two patients.     

The nitric oxide pathway in pre-eclampsia: pathophysiological implications

Pre-eclampsia, one of the most significant health problems inhuman pregnancy, complicates 6-7% of all gestations and is theleading cause of fetal growth retardation, infant morbidityand mortality, premature birth and maternal death. Recent researchimplicates free radicals in the pathophysiology of pre-eclampsia.This review covers the biochemistry of nitric oxide (NO) andpossible interactions with other free radicals. Studies in therat show that pregnancy is associated with enhanced productionand responsiveness to NO in both reproductive tissues and bloodvessels. Rats infused with N^G-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester(L-NAME, a NO synthase inhibitor) have been used as an animalmodel of pre-eclampsia, and the effects of steroid hormoneson blood pressure in this model have been tested. Results suggestthat pre-eclampsia may be a state of NO deficiency. However,in humans there seem to be contradictions regarding the involvementof NO in maternal adaptation to pregnancy. It is suggested thatNO may be one of several systems that act in concert to maintaina symbiotic relationship between mother and fetus. However,the input of each system may be genetically determined.     

Surgical sperm retrieval and intracytoplasmic sperm injection as treatment of obstructive azoospermia

Male genital tract obstructions may result from infections, previous inguinal and scrotal surgery (vasectomy) and congenital bilateral absence of the vas deferens (CBAVD). Microsurgery can sometimes be successful in treating the obstruction. In other cases and in cases of failed surgical intervention, the patient can be treated by microsurgical or percutaneous epididymal sperm aspiration (MESA, PESA) or testicular sperm extraction (TESE) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). We present the results of 39 ICSI procedures for obstructive azoospermia in 24 couples. The aetiology of the obstruction was failed microsurgery in 11 patients, CBAVD in nine and genital infections in four. Sperm retrieval was accomplished via MESA in four cases, PESA in 18 cases and via TESE in 11 cases. TESE was only applied when PESA failed to produce enough spermatozoa for simultaneous ICSI. In six patients, the ICSI procedure was performed with cryopreserved spermatozoa after an initial PESA procedure. Fertilization occurred in 47% of the metaphase II oocytes; embryo transfer was performed in 92% of procedures and resulted in a clinical pregnancy in 13/39 procedures. Ongoing pregnancy was achieved in 10/39 procedures. One pregnancy was terminated early after prenatal investigation showed a cytogenetic abnormality (47,XX+18, Edwards syndrome). The other nine pregnancies resulted in the live birth of 10 children, without any congenital abnormalities. Epididymal and testicular retrieved spermatozoa were successfully used for ICSI to treat obstructive azoospermia, and resulted in an ongoing pregnancy in 10 of 24 couples (41.6%) after 39 ICSI procedures, a success rate of 25.6% per treatment cycle and of 27.7% per embryo transfer.      

A National Survey of Breast Surgeons and Radiation Oncologists on Contemporary Axillary Management in Mastectomy Patients

Annals of Surgical Oncology - Management of axillary lymph nodes in breast cancer has undergone significant change over the past decade through landmark clinical trials. This study aimed to assess...     

Testing a new health indicator: Using avoidable causes of death and life expectancy for Spain between 1975–1986

The concept of avoidable cause of death serves as the basis for measuring the quality and diversity of a health care system. In this study the authors propose a new way to use this kind of mortality by combining with the concept of life expectancy to obtain what they call life expectancy free of avoidable mortality (LEFAM).This indicator was 76.9 in 1986 in Spain while life expectancy was 75.83. If these deaths were avoidable there would be a gain of 1.09 years per person born. There is an important difference between the would-be male gain of 1.76 years and the would-be female gain of 0.6. In the ecological study, LEFAM would better explain the year to year changes of the resources in the health sector, measured in terms of the human resources (R = 0.96), the hospital beds per thousand persons (R = –0.86), and would also increase the relation with other health indicators such as infant mortality rate (R = –0.98) and mortality rate (R = 0.59) as compared with life expectancy alone.     

Varus deformity of the distal end of the femur secondary to a focal fibrous lesion

Severe unilateral varus deformity of the distal end of the femur secondary to a focal fibrous lesion is reported. It is a malformative process rare at this level, this being the first report of it in the radiological literature. The conventional radiograph is pathognomonic and CT is useful in the confirmation of the fibrous tissue. Osteotomy is indicated only if the deformity progresses or the angle of varus is severe.