A pain in the foot: a case of anti-phospholipid syndrome

Anti-phospholipid syndrome is an autoimmune condition characterised by antibodies directed against phospholipids. It most commonly manifests with obstetric complications (e.g., recurrent miscarriage) or a predisposition to vascular thromboses. It affects approximately three to four people per 100,000, usually young females. This case report details a male patient who presented with symptoms suggestive of peripheral vascular disease. During the patient’s operation for a femoral-posterior tibial bypass, the consultant vascular surgeon, Mr Daragh Moneley, Beaumont Hospital, made a surprising discovery. A presentation of this case won the Royal College of Physicians in Ireland Council Medal 2008.</p

Quality of life following minimally invasive hysterectomy compared to abdominal hysterectomy: a metanalysis

Objective: The aim of this meta-analysis is to review quality of life (QoL) in patients who underwent simple minimally invasive (MIS) hysterectomy compared to abdominal hysterectomy (AH) for benign conditions or endometrial cancer. Methods: A literature search was performed of electronic databases including Cochrane, Medline, Pubmed, Pubmed Central, clinicaltrials.gov and Embase from study inception until December 2019. Search terms included “QoL”, “minimally invasive surgery” “laparoscopic hysterectomy” “abdominal hysterectomy”. The literature search was performed using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Results were reported as mean differences or pooled odds ratios (OR) with 95 % confidence intervals (95 % CI). Results: A total of 4988 citations were reviewed; 9 studies comprising 3116 patients were selected for the analysis. Publications reporting QoL in patients undergoing simple MIS hysterectomy compared to AH were included. 9 studies reporting 3 different QoL assessment tools were included: EuroQoL five dimensions visual analogue scale (EQ-5D-VAS), Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General (FACTG) and Short Form-36 (SF-36). For EQ-5D, patients in the MIS group had a significantly higher QoL compared to those in the AH group at 1 week (OR 9.82, 95 % CI 4.61–15.03, p = 0.0002) and 4 weeks (OR 4.83 95 % CI 0.71–8.95, p = 0.02) post-operatively. Similarly, for FACT-G, at 1 week and at 4 weeks post operatively, patients in the MIS group reported a significantly higher score compared to those in the AH group (1 week: OR 6.39, 95 % CI 3.16–9.61, p = 0.0001, 4 weeks: OR 6.33, 95 % CI 3.55–9.12, p

Students' participation in collaborative research should be recognised

Letter to the editor