The Journal of surgical research
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Pediatric patients who undergo liver transplantation are at higher risk of developing vascular complications when compared to adult liver transplant recipients. The consequences of hepatic artery thrombosis (HAT) or portal vein thrombosis (PVT) can cause significant morbidity and mortality. We examined pediatric liver transplant recipients who developed vascular thrombosis and the presence of thrombophilia. ⋯ All pediatric liver transplant recipients who developed any vascular thrombosis were also found to have thrombophilia. Recipients who were smaller in size were at significantly higher risk of developing vascular thrombosis. Lower weight recipients with thrombophilia may benefit from arterial reconstruction with a conduit to decrease the risk of vascular thrombosis.
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With the development of thoracic surgeries, one-lung ventilation (OLV) has been routinely used to facilitate surgical exposure. However, OLV can cause lung injury during the surgical process and becomes an important factor affecting the outcomes. To date, effective treatments for the prevention of lung injury caused by OLV are lacking. Hydrogen has been demonstrated to have effective protection against tissue injuries caused by oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis. This study investigated the efficacy of hydrogen water consumption on the prevention of lung injury induced by OLV in rats. ⋯ Our data demonstrated that hydrogen water consumption ameliorated OLV-induced lung injury, and it may exert its protective role by its anti-inflammation, antioxidation and reducing NF-κB activity in the lung tissues.
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Multicenter Study
Detecting severe injuries of the upper body in multiple trauma patients.
The clavicle limits the upper thoracic cage and connects the body and upper extremities. The clavicle is easy to examine and is visible on standard emergency room radiographs. We hypothesized that clavicular fracture in polytrauma patients would indicate the presence of further injuries of the upper extremities, head, neck, and thorax. ⋯ A clinically relevant coincidence of clavicular fractures with injuries of the chest and upper extremity was found. As clavicular fractures can be diagnosed easily, it might also help to reduce the incidence of missed injuries of the chest and upper extremity. Therefore, special attention should be paid on thoracic as well as upper extremity injures during the second and tertiary surveys in case of clavicular fractures.
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Several scar-scoring scales exist to clinically monitor burn scar development and maturation. Although scoring scars through direct clinical examination is ideal, scars must sometimes be scored from photographs. No scar scale currently exists for the latter purpose. ⋯ The modified scar scale is a simple, reliable, and useful scale for evaluating photographs of burn patients.