Medicine
-
A vast majority of children with functional constipation respond to the standard medical treatment. However, a subset of patients may present with an unsatisfactory response and only minor improvement of symptoms. Transcutaneous posterior tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS) involves electrical stimulation of the posterior tibial nerve at the level of the ankle, transcutaneously through electrodes fixated on the overlying skin. Stimulation of the tibial nerve can modulate urinary and defecatory function through the stimulation of sacral nerves. Thus, transcutaneous PTNS can be considered a very promising, noninvasive, and safe method to be used in the pediatric age group. However, there is still no published study that has investigated its use in children for the treatment of intestinal constipation. This is a single-center, prospective, longitudinal, and interventional study designed to assess the applicability and clinical outcomes of transcutaneous PTNS in children with functional intestinal constipation. Children will be submitted to daily sessions of transcutaneous PTNS for a period of 4 weeks. All children will also be invited to participate in semistructured interviews, 1 in each of the 3 assessments: 1 week before the start of the intervention; immediately after the 4 weeks of intervention; and 4 weeks after the end of the intervention period. In these interviews, the aspects related to bowel habits and quality of life will be assessed. This project aims to evaluate the clinical outcomes of transcutaneous PTNS in children with functional intestinal constipation and the applicability of this kind of treatment. ⋯ This protocol intended to demonstrate the efficacy of this promising method to increase the number of bowel movements and the stool consistency, to reduce the number of episodes of retentive fecal incontinence, and to indirectly improve the overall quality of life.
-
Placenta previa and accreta with prior cesarean section is an extremely serious condition that is associated with maternal morbidity and mortality from obstetric hemorrhage. The aim of our study was to evaluate the efficacy and advantages of a novel surgical technique, parallel transverse uterine incisions (PTUI), during conservative cesarean delivery in patients with placenta previa and accreta. This was a retrospective cohort study including 124 pregnant women, who had at least 1 prior cesarean section and were diagnosed with anterior placenta previa and accreta between January 2014 and October 2017. ⋯ Moreover, cesarean hysterectomy (3.3% vs 21.9%; P = .002) and intensive care unit admission (1.7% vs 29.7%; P = .000) were significantly fewer among patients who underwent PTUI. Multivariable regression analyses further showed that the risk of intraoperative hemorrhage (β = -2343.299, P = .000) and cesarean hysterectomy (odds ratio = 0.027, P = .018) were both significantly decreased by PTUI. PTUI is a novel approach that may significantly reduce maternal complications, while preserving the uterus for patients with anterior placenta previa and accreta.
-
Comparative Study
Breastfeeding with and without the WHO/UNICEF baby-friendly hospital initiative: A cross-sectional survey.
The World Health Organization and United Nations Children's Fund's Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative is aimed at the global promotion, protection and support of breastfeeding. In this study, we compared breastfeeding-related information received, knowledge and behaviours among postpartum women in Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative accredited and non-accredited hospitals. We selected 10 hospitals: 9 non-accredited hospitals in the Campania region in southern Italy and one accredited hospital in the Piedmont region in northern Italy. ⋯ In general, both groups showed good basic knowledge about different aspects of breastfeeding. In both regions, about 90% reported that the information received during the antenatal classes simplified the breastfeeding experience. Our study confirms the importance of systematic promotion of breastfeeding and subsequent delivery of adequate support to maternity departments, in accordance with international guidelines.
-
Comparative Study
Comparison of survival outcomes of alcohol-related hepatocellular carcinoma with or without liver cirrhosis; a ten-year experience.
We evaluated overall survivals (OSs) of alcohol-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients without LC compared to those with LC. Between 2005 and 2015, 1343 patients were initially diagnosed as having HCC in our hospital. Of these, 186 alcohol-related HCC patients were enrolled in this study, and their medical records were retrospectively analyzed. ⋯ Multivariate analyses revealed that CTP class B (P < .001), CTP class C (P < .001), and tumor size (P = .006) were significant predictors for OS in cirrhotic patients, and that CTP class C (P = .002) and tumor size (P = .023) were significant predictors for OS in non-cirrhotic patients. OS was found to be better for non-cirrhotic than cirrhotic patients with alcohol-related HCC. Survivals of alcohol-related HCC patients without cirrhosis were comparable between patients with CTP class A and B.
-
The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of prophylactic intraoperative bilateral uterine or internal iliac artery embolization in planned cesarean for pernicious placenta previa in the third trimester of pregnancy. The patients with pernicious placenta previa were retrospectively included from January 2011 to May 2018, being divided into embolization group and control group. Intraoperative uterine artery embolization (UAE) or internal iliac artery embolization (IIAE) was undertaken to stop intrapartum and postpartum hemorrhage in embolization group. ⋯ Transient and self-remitted lumbosacral pain was present in 28 (95%, 28/32) patients and no other severe interventional complications were reported in embolization group. All babies in 2 groups were healthy at half to 5 years' follow-up. The prophylactic intraoperative embolization of bilateral UAE or IIAE may be an effective strategy to treat intractable peripartum hemorrhage and preserve the fertility in patients with pernicious placenta previa.