Clinical Impact of Prophylactic Antibiotic Treatment for Self-Expandable Metallic Stent Insertion in Patients with Malignant Colorectal Obstruction

Purpose. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of prophylactic antibiotics (PA) for reducing the infectious complications and the potential risk factors responsible for the infectious complications after stent insertion for malignant colorectal obstruction. Methods. We performed a retrospective review of 224 patients who underwent self-expandable metallic stent (SEMS) insertion for malignant colorectal obstruction from May 2004 to December 2012. Results. There were 145 patients in the PA group and 79 in non-PA group. The CRP level in PA group was significantly higher than that in non-PA. Abdominal tenderness and mechanical ileus were significantly more frequent in PA group than those in non-PA. The frequency of post-SEMS insertion fever, systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), and bacteremia was not significantly different between PA and non-PA groups. In multivariate analysis, the CRP level was risk factor related to post-SEMS insertion SIRS. However, in propensity score matching analysis, there was no independent risk factor related to post-SEMS insertion fever, SIRS, and bacteremia. Conclusion. The use of PA in patients with malignant colorectal obstruction may be not effective to prevent the development of infectious complications after SEMS insertion

BODY COMPOSITION IN HEMODIALYSIS AND PERITONEAL DIALYSIS PATIENTS

Bioimpedance analysis is a reliable technique for determining post dialysis target weight. Using this technique, we can understand body fluid status easier and conveniently. Moreover this technique can be used for check nutrition status and nutritional status of dialysis patients. We compared the body fluid status and nutrition status between hemodialysis (HD) patients and peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients by BCM (Body composition monitor) technique. We studied 48 (30 males and 18 females) PD patients, 21 (10 males and 11 females) HD patients. Body composition monitoring (BCM, Fesenitus Medical Care, Germany) was used as a tool for the analysis of bioimpedance. Extracellular water, Total body water, Intracellular water, Overhydration, E/I, Lean tissue mass, Fat Tissue mass was measured and those results were compared between two groups. HD patients were more hydrated than PD patients (61.9% vs. 35.4%) and nutritional status such as LTI was poorer than peritoneal dialysis patients (11.7±1.7 vs. 15.3±2.6). Although total body water is more abundant in peritoneal patients (29.4±5.5L vs. 35.9±6.2L), Extracellular water and intracellular water ratio was relatively higher in Hemodialysis patients (E/I 0.98±0.13 vs. 0.87±0.12). The nutrition status was better in PD patients by comparing the percent of lean tissue mass (LTM%) between two groups (LTM% 52.1±10.6% vs. 66.8±11.3). In conclusions, Hemodialysis patients were more hydrated with poorer nutrition status than peritoneal dialysis patients, but, due to the significant difference of age between two groups, further study should be required

Blue Light Upregulates Auxin Signaling and Stimulates Root Formation in Irregular Rooting of Rosemary Cuttings

Irregular rooting of rosemary stem cuttings, causing differences in either stem maturation or responses to growth conditions, restricts uniform production. Here, rooting efficiency of apical, middle, and basal cuttings from rosemary stems was evaluated by controlling light conditions to prevent irregular rooting. The types of light applied to the cuttings were natural sunlight (NSL), fluorescent, red, and blue (BL) light. Among these light sources, BL significantly induced root growth of not only basal cuttings, but also apical and middle cuttings, whereas NSL induced poor root formation in apical and middle cuttings. In particular, the roots of apical cuttings exposed to BL grew twice as fast as those exposed to other types of light. The overexpression of BL-induced IAA synthetic genes confirmed the rooting patterns. IAA synthetic genes were significantly upregulated by BL in the apical and middle cuttings. Irradiating with 50 μmol photons m−2 s−1 BL resulted in similar root production levels among the cutting positions with high biomass, guaranteeing the successful production of uniform cuttings. Thus, the application of proper high-intensity BL promoted healthy, similar-quality rosemary cuttings among stem cutting positions

Hepatic Hemangioma with Kasabach-Merritt Syndrome in an Adult Patient

Hemangiomas are the most common benign tumors of the liver. They are generally asymptomatic, but giant hemangiomas can lead to abdominal discomfort, bleeding, or obstructive symptoms. Kasabach-Merritt syndrome is a rare but life-threatening complication of hemangioma, characterized by consumptive coagulopathy with large vascular tumors. More than 80% of Kasabach-Merritt syndrome cases occur within the first year of life. However, there are few reports of Kasabach-Merritt syndrome with giant hepatic hemangioma in adults and, as far as we know, no reports of Kasabach-Merritt syndrome with hepatic hemangioma treated with first line medical treatment only. The most important treatment for this syndrome is removal of the large vascular tumor. However, surgical treatment entails risk of bleeding, and the patient’s condition can mitigate against surgery. We herein present a case of unresectable giant hepatic hemangioma with disseminated intravascular coagulopathy. The patient was a 60-year-old woman who complained of hematochezia, ecchymosis, and abdominal distension. She refused all surgical management and was therefore treated with systemic glucocorticoids and beta-blockers. After two weeks of steroid therapy, she responded partially to the treatment. Her laboratory findings and hematochezia improved. She was discharged on hospital day 33 and observed without signs of bleeding for three months. (Korean J Gastroenterol 2016;67:220-223

Benign Teratoma of the Thyroid Gland

Although pathology reports of thyroid tissue in ovarian teratomas are abundant, benign teratomas of the thyroid are extremely rare in adolescents and adults. Therefore, their clinical characteristics are still not well characterized. We report a case of a 54-year-old woman with a growing mass in her neck. Left lobectomy of the thyroid revealed it to be a benign thyroid teratoma composed of tissues from all three germ layers. Preoperative evaluations included thyroid ultrasonography (US), ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC), and computed tomography (CT) of the neck. A 4.7-cm, well defined, predominantly hypoechoic mass intermingled with hyperechoic internal lesions, was observed in the inferior portion of the left thyroid lobe with substernal extension on US. The posterior extent of the nodule was not visualized due to deep attenuation of the echo. US-guided FNAC failed to reveal any thyroid follicular cells, but suggested a benign cystic tumor. Neck CT hinted at the diagnosis of teratoma because the mass contained large amounts of fat, and the margin was well defined. Extrathyroidal extension and cervical lymphadenopathy were not seen. She underwent left thyroid lobectomy, and histologic examination confirmed benign thyroid teratoma. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case report of benign thyroid teratoma in Korea

Incidence, predictive factors, and clinical outcomes of acute kidney injury after gastric surgery for gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND: Postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI), a serious surgical complication, is common after cardiac surgery; however, reports on AKI after noncardiac surgery are limited. We sought to determine the incidence and predictive factors of AKI after gastric surgery for gastric cancer and its effects on the clinical outcomes. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study of 4718 patients with normal renal function who underwent partial or total gastrectomy for gastric cancer between June 2002 and December 2011. Postoperative AKI was defined by serum creatinine change, as per the Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes guideline. RESULTS: Of the 4718 patients, 679 (14.4%) developed AKI. Length of hospital stay, intensive care unit admission rates, and in-hospital mortality rate (3.5% versus 0.2%) were significantly higher in patients with AKI than in those without. AKI was also associated with requirement of renal replacement therapy. Multivariate analysis revealed that male gender; hypertension; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; hypoalbuminemia (<4 g/dl); use of diuretics, vasopressors, and contrast agents; and packed red blood cell transfusion were independent predictors for AKI after gastric surgery. Postoperative AKI and vasopressor use entailed a high risk of 3-month mortality after multiple adjustments. CONCLUSIONS: AKI was common after gastric surgery for gastric cancer and associated with adverse outcomes. We identified several factors associated with postoperative AKI; recognition of these predictive factors may help reduce the incidence of AKI after gastric surgery. Furthermore, postoperative AKI in patients with gastric cancer is an important risk factor for short-term mortality

Current Iodine Nutrition Status and Awareness of Iodine Deficiency in Tuguegarao, Philippines

The Philippines is one of the countries where adequate iodine status has been achieved. However, iodine deficiency still remains an important public health problem in this country. In this study, we evaluated iodine nutrition status and investigated an awareness status of iodine deficiency targeting high school students of Tuguegarao, Philippines. A total of 260 students provided samples for urinary iodine analysis, among which 146 students completed thyroid volume measurement by ultrasonography and answering the questionnaires. The median urinary iodine level was 355.3 µg/L and only 3.8% of the students were in the range of iodine deficiency status according to the ICCIDD criteria. Although 62.3% of students answered that they can list problems resulting from iodine deficiency, a majority of students (70.5%) were unable to identify problems other than goiter. They did not appreciate that adequate iodine levels are important during pregnancy and for development of children. 33.6% of students answered that they did not use iodized salt and the biggest reason was that they did not find it necessary. Based on these results, we suggest that a future strategy should be focused on vulnerable groups to completely eliminate iodine deficiency, including women at their reproductive ages and during pregnancy

In-hospital and 3-month mortality according to the AKI stages.

<p>In-hospital and 3-month mortality according to the AKI stages.</p