Current treatment options for advanced choriocarcinoma on the basis of own case and review of the literature

Choriocarcinoma is one of rare neoplasms of female reproductive organs. In the last decade only a few cases of this disease have been registered in Poland. The paper presents the current principles of diagnosis and treatment options for this rare disease based on the authors’ clinical experience (description of the case) and literature review. This paper provides basic information on epidemiology, FIGO classification, and also discusses the chemotherapy regimens used in the medical treatment of choriocarcinoma. Surgical options were also considered. A thematic review of the most important papers published in international journals in recent years has also been made

Upper extremity surface electromyography signal changes after laparoscopic training

Introduction: Objective measures of laparoscopic skill in training are lacking. Aim: To evaluate the changes in the surface electromyography (sEMG) signal during laparoscopic training, and to link them to intracorporeal knot tying. Material and methods: Ten right-handed medical students (6 female), aged 25 ±0.98, without training in laparoscopy, were enrolled in the study. With no additional training, they tied intracorporeal single knots for 15 min. Then underwent laparoscopic training and redid the knot tying exercise. During both events, sEMG was recorded from 8 measurement points on the upper extremities and neck bilaterally. We analyzed changes in sEMG resulting from training and tried to find sEMG predictive parameters for higher technical competence defined by the number of knots tied after the training. Results: The average number of knots increased after the training. Significant decreases in activity after the training were visible for the non-dominant hand deltoid and trapezius muscles. Dominant and non-dominant hands had different activation patterns. Differences largely disappeared after the training. All muscles, except for the dominant forearm and non-dominant thenar, produced a negative correlation between their activities and the number of tied knots. The strongest anticorrelation occurred for the non-dominant deltoid (r = –0.863, p < 0.05). Relatively strong relationships were identified in the case of the non-dominant trapezius and forearm muscles (r = –0.587, r = –0.504). Conclusions: At least for some muscle groups there is a change in activation patterns after laparoscopic training. Proximal muscle groups tend to become more relaxed and the distal ones become more active. Changes in the non-dominant hand are more pronounced than in the dominant hand

Therapeutic options in radiation-induced rectovaginal fi stula

A pathological communication between the rectum and the vagina, referred to as rectovaginal fistula, can develop as a result of a number of factors. Fistula caused by ionizing energy treatment, which belongs to the most serious late radiation-induced complications, is a special type of this abnormality. This type of fistulas are classified as complex fistulas. Their surgical treatment is very difficult and shows poor efficacy as well as high rate of recurrence. Therefore, it is still a serious and current problem of women after radiation therapy for gynecologic cancer. The quality of life in patients with this complication is dramatically poor. Despite completed cancer treatment, women with radiation-induced rectovaginal fistula are often unable to resume their previous social roles, including work. Therefore, it is important to determine the optimal management strategy in these patients. Although it may seem impossible to develop a simple diagnostic and therapeutic algorithm due to different fistula locations and sizes, the knowledge on the basic management strategies increases the chance of success. A surgery using the transabdominal approach described by Parks is the primary surgical technique. However, new reports on repair techniques, particularly less invasive ones, occasionally occur in literature. Therefore, we present a current literature review of treatment options in radiation-induced rectovaginal fistulas.Do patologicznej komunikacji między odbytnicą a pochwą – zwanej przetoką odbytniczo-pochwową – może dojść na skutek działania wielu różnych czynników. Szczególnym rodzajem tego zaburzenia jest przetoka powstająca w wyniku leczenia energią jonizującą, czyli jedno z najcięższych późnych powikłań popromiennych. Przetoki te klasyfikuje się jako złożone, a leczenie chirurgiczne jest ekstremalnie trudne oraz wciąż cechuje się niską skutecznością i znaczącym odsetkiem nawrotów. To poważny i nadal aktualny problem kobiet po radioterapii nowotworów narządu rodnego. Jakość życia pacjentek, u których występuje to powikłanie, jest dramatycznie zła. Chore z popromienną przetoką odbytniczo-pochwową mimo zakończenia leczenia onkologicznego często nie mogą powrócić do swoich dotychczasowych ról społecznych, w tym do pracy zawodowej. Ważne jest zatem ustalenie optymalnego postępowania. Choć ze względu na różnice w lokalizacji i wielkości przetok niemożliwe wydaje się opracowanie prostego algorytmu diagnostyczno-terapeutycznego, to znajomość podstawowych zasad postępowania zwiększa szansę na powodzenie. Główną techniką zabiegową pozostaje operacja sposobem Parksa z dostępu przezbrzusznego. Co jakiś czas pojawiają się jednak w piśmiennictwie nowe doniesienia na temat technik naprawczych, szczególnie tych małoinwazyjnych, dlatego w artykule przedstawiono aktualny przegląd literatury dotyczącej leczenia popromiennych przetok odbytniczo-pochwowych

Możliwości leczenia popromiennych przetok odbytniczo-pochwowych

A pathological communication between the rectum and the vagina, referred to as rectovaginal fistula, can develop as a result of a number of factors. Fistula caused by ionizing energy treatment, which belongs to the most serious late radiation-induced complications, is a special type of this abnormality. This type of fistulas are classified as complex fistulas. Their surgical treatment is very difficult and shows poor efficacy as well as high rate of recurrence. Therefore, it is still a serious and current problem of women after radiation therapy for gynecologic cancer. The quality of life in patients with this complication is dramatically poor. Despite completed cancer treatment, women with radiation-induced rectovaginal fistula are often unable to resume their previous social roles, including work. Therefore, it is important to determine the optimal management strategy in these patients. Although it may seem impossible to develop a simple diagnostic and therapeutic algorithm due to different fistula locations and sizes, the knowledge on the basic management strategies increases the chance of success.A surgery using the transabdominal approach described by Parks is the primary surgical technique. However, new reports on repair techniques, particularly less invasive ones, occasionally occur in literature. Therefore, we present a current literature review of treatment options in radiation-induced rectovaginal fistulas