Fatal Retroperitoneal Bleeding Caused by Metastasis of a Sigmoid Carcinoma

Retroperitoneal bleeding is relatively rare and a potentially life-threatening condition with significant mortality. Early recognition requires a high index of suspicion. Increased life expectancy, the widespread use of anticoagulants, and the rise of endovascular interventions have caused an increase in the incidence of retroperitoneal bleeding. We present a case of a 74-year-old woman who died because of retroperitoneal bleeding caused by retroperitoneal metastasis of a sigmoid carcinoma with angioinvasive growth into a lumbar artery. In addition we discuss etiology, diagnostic management, and treatment strategy

Successful Reversal of Acute Kidney Failure by Ultrasound-Accelerated Thrombolysis of an Occluded Renal Artery

Purpose. To describe the treatment of renal artery thrombosis with ultrasound-accelerated thrombolysis and discuss the management of prolonged renal ischemia. Case. A 76-year-old patient with a single functional kidney, mild chronic renal impairment, and a recent history of endovascular repair of a thoracoabdominal aneurysm with an aortic branch graft presented with acute flank pain, anuria, and renal failure. The side branch from the aortic stent graft to his single, right, functional kidney appeared to be completely thrombosed. Symptoms had started after cessation of oral anticoagulants because of a planned mastectomy for breast cancer. After identification of the occlusion, ultrasound-accelerated thrombolysis was started 19 hours after the onset of anuria. Angiography, 4 hours after beginning of therapy, already showed partial dissolution of the thrombus and angiographic control after 18 hours showed complete patency of the renal artery side branch. Despite a long period of ischemia, renal function was completely recovered. Conclusion. In patients with acute renal ischemia due to thrombosis of the renal artery, complete recovery of function can be achieved with ultrasound-accelerated thrombolysis, even after prolonged periods of ischemia

Fatal Retroperitoneal Bleeding Caused by Neurofibromatosis: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

A young female was brought into the emergency department with pulseless electrical activity (PEA) after local resection of neurofibromateous lesions. Chest ultrasonography was normal. Abdominal ultrasonography was not performed. After successful resuscitation a total body CT-scan was performed to rule out potential bleeding sources. However, haemodynamic instability reoccurred and the scan had to be aborted at the thoracoabdominal level. No thoracic abnormalities were found. Resuscitation was reinitiated and abdominal ultrasonography was performed, showing a large amount of abdominal fluid. A progressive fall in haemoglobin was noted. Emergency laparotomy was performed, revealing a large retroperitoneal haematoma. Despite ligation and packing, bleeding continued. Postoperative angiography showed active bleeding from a branch of the left internal iliac artery, which could be successfully coiled. Unfortunately, the patient died five days later due to irreversible brain damage. Revision of an MRI scan made one year earlier showed a 10 cm large retroperitoneal neurofibromatous lesion exactly at the location of the current bleeding. This case shows that patients with neurofibromatosis might develop spontaneous life-threatening bleeding from retroperitoneal located lesions. Furthermore, it points out the necessity of focused assessment with ultrasonography of the abdomen in all patients with PEA of unknown origin

Towards a standardised informed consent procedure for live donor nephrectomy:the PRINCE (Process of Informed Consent Evaluation) project-study protocol for a nationwide prospective cohort study

Introduction: Informed consent is mandatory for all (surgical) procedures, but it is even more important when it comes to living kidney donors undergoing surgery for the benefit of others. Donor education, leading to informed consent, needs to be carried out according to certain standards. Informed consent procedures for live donor nephrectomy vary per centre, and even per individual healthcare professional. The basis for a standardised, uniform surgical informed consent procedure for live donor nephrectomy can be created by assessing what information donors need to hear to prepare them for the operation and convalescence. Methods and analysis: The PRINCE (Process of Informed Consent Evaluation) project is a prospective, multicentre cohort study, to be carried out in all eight Dutch kidney transplant centres. Donor knowledge of the procedure and postoperative course will be evaluated by means of pop quizzes. A baseline cohort (prior to receiving any information from a member of the transplant team in one of the transplant centres) will be compared with a control group, the members of which receive the pop quiz on the day of admission for donor nephrectomy. Donor satisfaction will be evaluated for all donors who completed the admission pop-quiz. The primary end point is donor knowledge. In addition, those elements that have to be included in the standardised format informed consent procedure will be identified. Secondary end points are donor satisfaction, current informed consent practices in the different centres (eg, how many visits, which personnel, what kind of information is disclosed, in which format, etc) and correlation of donor knowledge with surgeons' estimation thereof. Ethics and dissemination: Approval for this study was obtained from the medical ethical committee of the Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, on 18 February 2015. Secondary approval has been obtained from the local ethics committees in six participating centres. Approval in the last centre has been sought. Results: Outcome will be published in a scientific journal

Surgical Treatment of Renal Fibromuscular Dysplasia in a Young Child

During a routine checkup in a 10-year-old male with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, blood pressure of 180/120 mmHg was found. Physical examination was completely normal. Ultrasound examination showed poststenotic dilatation of the left renal artery which was confirmed by CT-angiography showing a short, high grade stenosis of the left renal artery. Percutaneous Transluminal Angioplasty of the stenosis was not successful and therefore the stenosis was excised with reimplantation of the renal artery in the aorta. Pathological examination of the excised segment showed media-type Fibromuscular Dysplasia (FMD). Six years after surgery, the kidney is completely normal regarding size and function. There are no signs of restenosis of the left renal artery. Nevertheless, the hypertension remained although less severe and requiring less medication

Endovascular Treatment of Aortic Stump Rupture After Extra-anatomic Aortoduodenal Fistula Repair is not a Definitive Treatment: A Case Report and Literature Review

Introduction: Endovascular treatment of an aortic stump rupture is technically feasible. Whether this is a definitive treatment or a bridge to further surgery is unknown. Report: Previously a Case of an aortic stump rupture following extra-anatomic repair of a recurrent aortoduodenal fistula (ADF), which was successfully treated endovascularly by placement of an Amplatzer® Vascular Plug was described. The patient survived this acute procedure, but four years later was admitted with fever and back pain. Imaging revealed progressive enlargement of the aortic stump. A re-exploration was performed with removal of the infected aortic stump including the Amplatzer plug. A new aortic stump was created together with resection of an adherent part of the duodenum. The patient was discharged after five months and was able to survive for two more years without any recurring vascular complications. Discussion: This Case demonstrates that after four years, endovascular treatment was not a definitive treatment for aortic stump rupture. Endovascular treatment should be followed by definitive treatment when the patient is fit for surgery, especially in cases of ADF. If the patient is unfit for surgery, conservative treatment with culture based antibiotics is a reasonable alternative. Positive obstinacy lengthened the survival of this patient with eight years of reasonably good quality life

Catheter Directed Thrombolysis Protocols for Peripheral Arterial Occlusions: a Systematic Review

Objective: Catheter directed thrombolysis (CDT)for peripheral arterial occlusions is a well established alternative to thrombo-embolectomy in patients with (sub)acute limb ischaemia. However, protocols are heterogeneous and need optimisation to improve results and lower bleeding risks. The objective was to review the results and outcomes of different CDT protocols for patients with peripheral arterial occlusions. Data sources: Electronic information sources (MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane)and reference lists were searched to identify studies reporting results of CDT of peripheral arterial occlusions. Methods: Two independent observers performed study selection, quality assessment and data extraction. Primary outcomes were treatment duration, success rates, and bleeding complications. Secondary outcomes were mortality and amputation rates. Results: One hundred and six studies were included: 19 randomised controlled trials (RCTs), 38 prospective studies, 48 retrospective studies, and one mixed cohort study. The studies comprised a total number of 10,643 cases of which 9877 received CDT for lower extremity arterial occlusion, with a mean treatment duration of 21.4 h (95% confidence interval [CI]21.0–21.8), an angiographic patency of 75% (95% CI 74.6–75.1), and freedom from amputation rate of 91% (95% CI 90.3–90.7). Pooled results showed a thrombolysis duration with high dose protocols of 21.9 h (95% CI 21.4–22.5)and 32.7 h with low dose protocols, with bleeding rates of 16.7% (95% CI 16.3–17.1)and 13.4% (95% CI 12.8–14.0), respectively. Weighted mean results for all RCTs and prospective cohorts of >100 cases analysed separately, showed comparable results to all observational cohorts pooled. Bleeding complications occurred in 18% (95% CI 17.8–18.3)of patients and remain an important risk of CDT. Conclusion: CDT is an effective treatment for peripheral arterial occlusions, the main concern is bleeding complications. Although no formal meta-analysis could be performed, the pooled results suggest that lower doses of fibrinolytics lead to similar success rates at a cost of longer treatment duration but with less bleeding. There is large variation in treatment protocols and the available literature suffers from absence of reporting standards and high heterogeneity