Annals of surgery
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Forty-seven patients treated by at least 28 days of thoracic duct drainage (TDD) before cadaveric renal transplant are compared with 63 patients treated with standard immunosuppression. The TDD patients were begun on half the dosage of steroids, and at 30 days were receiving approximately two-thirds the dose that the non-TDD patients received. ⋯ The patient survival rates were not significantly different between the two groups. TDD pretransplant favorably affects cadaveric renal allograft survival for at least five years.
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Three patients with the obesity hypoventilation syndrome and one patient with the sleep apnea syndrome underwent gastroplasty for weight reduction. A tracheostomy was also performed in the patient with sleep apnea. The PaO2 rose from an average of 51 +/- 9 to 71 +/- 5 torr and the PaCO2 fell from an average of 51 +/- 21 to 41 +/- 6 torr within two to ten months following bariatric surgery. ⋯ All four patients have returned to productive lives in society. Given proper pre- and postoperative care, patients with respiratory insufficiency tolerate the operation well. Respiratory insufficiency associated with morbid obesity should be considered an indication for the gastroplasty procedure, rather than a contraindication as previously suggested.