The British journal of surgery
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass versus laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy: 5-year outcomes of merged data from two randomized clinical trials (SLEEVEPASS and SM-BOSS).
Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) and Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) are both effective surgical procedures to achieve weight reduction in patients with obesity. The trial objective was to merge individual-patient data from two RCTs to compare outcomes after LSG and LRYGB. ⋯ Although LRYGB induced greater weight loss and better amelioration of hypertension than LSG, there was no difference in remission of T2DM, obstructive sleep apnoea, or QoL at 5 years. There were more complications after LRYGB, but the individual burden for patients with complications was similar after both operations.
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Histopathological outcomes, such as lymph node yield and margin positivity, are used to benchmark and assess surgical centre quality, and are reported annually by the National Oesophago-Gastric Cancer Audit (NOGCA) in England and Wales. The variation in pathological specimen assessment and how this affects these outcomes is not known. ⋯ Preparation and histopathological assessment of specimens varies significantly across institutions. This challenges the validity of currently used surgical quality metrics for oesophageal and other tumours.
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Comparative Study
Comparison of multimodal analgesia with thoracic epidural after transthoracic oesophagectomy.
Thoracic epidural analgesia (TEA) has been regarded as the standard of care after oesophagectomy for pain control, but has several side-effects. Multimodal (intrathecal diamorphine, paravertebral and rectus sheath catheters) analgesia (MA) may facilitate postoperative mobilization by reducing hypotensive episodes and the need for vasopressors, but uncertainty exists about whether it provides comparable analgesia. This study aimed to determine whether MA provides comparable analgesia to TEA following transthoracic oesophagectomy. ⋯ MA is less effective than TEA at controlling pain, but this difference may not be clinically significant. However, fewer patients experienced hypotension or required vasopressor support with MA; this may be beneficial within an enhanced recovery programme.
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The COVID-19 response required the cancellation of all but the most urgent surgical procedures. The number of cancelled surgical procedures owing to Covid-19, and the reintroduction of surgical acivirt, was modelled. ⋯ As a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic, provision of elective surgery will be delayed and associated with increased healthcare costs.