S Afr J Surg
-
Minimally invasive techniques are now well established in paediatric surgery. Training has traditionally been based on an apprenticeship model, as for open surgery. ⋯ Simulation to learn and improve skills is by no means a new concept, but has been suggested as a way to address the above issues because it provides an ideal platform for acquiring the necessary skills for modern laparoscopic surgery. This paper explores some of the current issues of learning minimally invasive surgical skills in a simulated environment, and suggests that such simulation should not be seen in isolation but as a part of a wider and encompassing curriculum of learning for the 21st-century surgeon.
-
The proportion of death and disability related to trauma is increasing in Third-World countries. Thoracic trauma is significantly involved, but few data are available on this issue in African countries with specific local conditions. ⋯ Chest trauma can be managed in our Cameroonian environment, with morbidity and mortality comparable with that of Western countries. Diagnosis must still rely on physical examination, chest radiographs and thoracic echography, which are affordable tools.
-
Damage control surgery (DCS) has become well established in the past decade as the surgical strategy to be employed in the unstable trauma patient. The aim of this study was to determine which factors played a predictive role in determining mortality in patients undergoing a damage control laparotomy. ⋯ The overall survival of patients after damage control procedures for abdominal trauma was excellent (73%). The main factors that are useful in deciding when to initiate DCS are age, base excess, pH and the core temperature.