An outcomes study: Outpatient versus inpatient hernia repairs

The objective of this study was to investigate the quality of clinical outcomes in the surgical setting. Results of the study showed that there is no difference in infection rates between inpatient and outpatient hernia repair patients

Fabrication and Assessment of 3D Printed Anatomical Models of the Lower Limb for Anatomical Teaching and Femoral Vessel Access Training in Medicine

For centuries, cadaveric dissection has been the touchstone of anatomy education. It offers a medical student intimate access to his or her first patient. In contrast to idealized artisan anatomical models, it presents the natural variation of anatomy in fine detail. However, a new teaching construct has appeared recently in which artificial cadavers are manufactured through three-dimensional (3D) printing of patient specific radiological data sets. In this article, a simple powder based printer is made more versatile to manufacture hard bones, silicone muscles and perfusable blood vessels. The approach involves blending modern approaches (3D printing) with more ancient ones (casting and lost-wax techniques). These anatomically accurate models can augment the approach to anatomy teaching from dissection to synthesis of 3D-printed parts held together with embedded rare earth magnets. Vascular simulation is possible through application of pumps and artificial blood. The resulting arteries and veins can be cannulated and imaged with Doppler ultrasound. In some respects, 3D-printed anatomy is superior to older teaching methods because the parts are cheap, scalable, they can cover the entire age span, they can be both dissected and reassembled and the data files can be printed anywhere in the world and mass produced. Anatomical diversity can be collated as a digital repository and reprinted rather than waiting for the rare variant to appear in the dissection room. It is predicted that 3D printing will revolutionize anatomy when poly-material printing is perfected in the early 21st century. (C) 2015 American Association of Anatomists

Fabrication and Assessment of 3D Printed Anatomical Models of the Lower Limb for Anatomical Teaching and Femoral Vessel Access Training in Medicine

For centuries, cadaveric dissection has been the touchstone of anatomy education. It offers a medical student intimate access to his or her first patient. In contrast to idealized artisan anatomical models, it presents the natural variation of anatomy in fine detail. However, a new teaching construct has appeared recently in which artificial cadavers are manufactured through three-dimensional (3D) printing of patient specific radiological data sets. In this article, a simple powder based printer is made more versatile to manufacture hard bones, silicone muscles and perfusable blood vessels. The approach involves blending modern approaches (3D printing) with more ancient ones (casting and lost-wax techniques). These anatomically accurate models can augment the approach to anatomy teaching from dissection to synthesis of 3D-printed parts held together with embedded rare earth magnets. Vascular simulation is possible through application of pumps and artificial blood. The resulting arteries and veins can be cannulated and imaged with Doppler ultrasound. In some respects, 3D-printed anatomy is superior to older teaching methods because the parts are cheap, scalable, they can cover the entire age span, they can be both dissected and reassembled and the data files can be printed anywhere in the world and mass produced. Anatomical diversity can be collated as a digital repository and reprinted rather than waiting for the rare variant to appear in the dissection room. It is predicted that 3D printing will revolutionize anatomy when poly-material printing is perfected in the early 21st century. (C) 2015 American Association of Anatomists

iPTF 16hgs: A Double-peaked Ca-rich Gap Transient in a Metal-poor, Star-forming Dwarf Galaxy

Calcium-rich gap transients represent an intriguing new class of faint and fast-evolving supernovae that exhibit strong [Ca ii] emission in their nebular phase spectra. In this paper, we present the discovery and follow-up observations of a faint and fast-evolving transient, iPTF 16hgs, that exhibited a double-peaked light curve. Exhibiting a Type Ib spectrum in the photospheric phase and an early transition to a [Ca ii] dominated nebular phase, iPTF 16hgs shows properties consistent with the class of Ca-rich gap transients, with two important exceptions. First, while the second peak of the light curve is similar to other Ca-rich gap transients, the first blue and fast-fading peak (declining over ≈2 days) is unique to this source. Second, we find that iPTF 16hgs occurred in the outskirts (projected offset of ≈6 kpc ≈ 1.9 R_(eff)) of a low-metallicity (≈0.4 Z_⊙), star-forming, dwarf spiral galaxy. Deep limits from late-time radio observations suggest a low-density environment for the source. If iPTF 16hgs shares explosion physics with the class of Ca-rich gap transients, the first peak can be explained by the presence of 0.01 M_⊙ of ^(56)Ni in the outer layers the ejecta, reminiscent of some models of He-shell detonations on WDs. However, if iPTF 16hgs is physically unrelated to the class, the first peak is consistent with shock cooling emission (of an envelope with a mass of ≈0.08 M_⊙ and radius of ≈13 R_⊙) in a core-collapse explosion of a highly stripped massive star in a close binary system