Medicine
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Laparoscopy-assisted gastrectomy (LAG) has gained international acceptance for the treatment of early gastric cancer (EGC). However, the use of laparoscopic surgery in the management of advanced gastric cancer (AGC) has not attained widespread acceptance. This retrospective large-scale patient study in a single center for minimally invasive surgery assessed the feasibility and safety of LAG for T2 and T3 stage AGC. ⋯ The 5-year overall survival (OS) rates were 85.38%, 79.70%, 57.81%, 34.60% and 88.31%, 75.49%, 56.84%, 33.08% in patients with stage Ib, IIa, IIb, and IIIa, respectively, in the LAG and OG groups. There were no statistically significant differences in the OS rate for patients with the same TNM stage between the 2 groups. LAG with radical LN dissection is a safe and technically feasible procedure for the treatment of AGC staged below T3.
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In this study, we investigated which N staging system was the most accurate at predicting survival in pancreatic cancer patients. Lymph node (LN) metastasis is known to be one of the important prognostic factors in resected pancreatic cancer. There are several LN evaluation systems to predict oncologic impact. ⋯ In univariate analysis, pN stage (pN0 vs pN1: 17.5 months vs 7.9 months, P = 0.001), LNR (<0.08 vs ≥0.08: 17.5 months vs 4.4 months, P < 0.001), and N-LNmet (#N = 0 vs #N = 1 vs #N≥2: 17.5 months vs 11.0 months vs 6.4 months, P = 0.002) had a significant effect on DFS, whereas the pN stage (pN0 vs pN1: 35.3 months vs 16.7 months, P = 0.001), LNR (<0.08 vs ≥0.08: 37.1 months vs 15.0 months, P < 0.001), and N-LNmet (#N = 0 vs #N = 1 vs #N≥2: 35.3 months vs 18.4 months vs 16.4 months, P = 0.001) had a significant effect on DSS. In multivariate analysis, N-LNmet (#N≥2) was identified as an independent prognostic factor of oncologic outcome (DFS and DSS: Exp (β) = 2.83, P = 0.001, and Exp (β) = 3.17, P = 0.001, respectively). Absolute number of lymph node metastases predicted oncologic outcome in resected left-sided pancreatic cancer patients.
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The classical therapeutic indication for type B aortic dissection is based on either medication or open surgery; medication therapy is recommended for relatively stable uncomplicated type B aortic dissection. With improvements in endovascular repair and the potential risk of disease progression, it is now necessary to evaluate the requirement for revision of the therapeutic choice of uncomplicated type B aortic dissection based on morphological features and time window. Data from 252 patients diagnosed as uncomplicated type B aortic dissection from 1992 to 2015 were analyzed retrospectively. ⋯ With improvements in aortic remodeling techniques, endovascular repair has been shown to improve long-term survival rates of patients with uncomplicated aortic dissection. Considering the potential risk of death, we recommend that patients with visceral artery involvement and a false/true lumen ratio over 0.7 should receive endovascular repair aggressively. Furthermore, delayed endovascular repair in the chronic phase does not improve the long-term outcome of uncomplicated type B aortic dissection.
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Replantation is a prime indication for distal digital amputation, as it helps restore hand aesthetics and functions; however, venous anastomosis is often not feasible. Previous studies used systemic anticoagulation in distal digital artery only anastomosis replantation surgery to improve replantation success rate, however, which yielded limited level of clinical evidence. This study aimed to compare controlled continuous heparinization (CCH) and intermittent bolus heparinization (IBH) for surgical outcome and clinical variables after single distal digital artery only anastomosis replantation surgery. ⋯ Multivariable logistic regression analysis with potent univariate variables (P < .10) revealed that CCH was a statistically significant variable in replantation success rate (P = 0.004). Neither the major bleeding complications nor the significant decrease in patients' platelet levels were observed in both groups. Our study suggests that CCH after artery-only anastomosis replantation surgery in Zone I and II distal digital replantation is a safe method to improve the replantation success rate and may provide a guideline for use of the anticoagulation method following artery-only anastomosis distal digital replantation surgery.
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Diabetes mellitus is associated with increased risk of pneumonia, and 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23) is recommended for prevention of pneumonia. However, the effectiveness of PPV23 remains unclear in the older diabetic patients who usually have compromised immune function. We used data extracted from the Taiwanese National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) from 2000 to 2009 to conduct a population-based retrospective cohort study, comparing the incidence of pneumococcal diseases among PPV23-vaccinated and propensity-score matched PPV23-unvaccinated groups in diabetic elderly. ⋯ Receiving both vaccines could bring better protection in IPD, hospitalization, visits of emergency department, and respiratory failure. PPV23 vaccination was effective in prevention of pneumococcal diseases and reduction of medical utilization in diabetic elderly aged 75 and more. Receiving both vaccines resulted in better outcomes than PPV vaccination alone.