Minimally invasive and endoscopic versus open necrosectomy for necrotising pancreatitis: a pooled analysis of individual data for 1980 patients

Minimally invasive surgical necrosectomy and endoscopic necrosectomy, compared with open necrosectomy, might improve outcomes in necrotising pancreatitis, especially in critically ill patients. Evidence from large comparative studies is lacking. We combined original and newly collected data from 15 published and unpublished patient cohorts (51 hospitals; 8 countries) on pancreatic necrosectomy for necrotising pancreatitis. Death rates were compared in patients undergoing open necrosectomy versus minimally invasive surgical or endoscopic necrosectomy. To adjust for confounding and to study effect modification by clinical severity, we performed two types of analyses: logistic multivariable regression and propensity score matching with stratification according to predicted risk of death at baseline (low: <5%; intermediate: ≥5% to <15%; high: ≥15% to  <35%; and very high: ≥35%). Among 1980 patients with necrotising pancreatitis, 1167 underwent open necrosectomy and 813 underwent minimally invasive surgical (n=467) or endoscopic (n=346) necrosectomy. There was a lower risk of death for minimally invasive surgical necrosectomy (OR, 0.53; 95% CI 0.34 to 0.84; p=0.006) and endoscopic necrosectomy (OR, 0.20; 95% CI 0.06 to 0.63; p=0.006). After propensity score matching with risk stratification, minimally invasive surgical necrosectomy remained associated with a lower risk of death than open necrosectomy in the very high-risk group (42/111 vs 59/111; risk ratio, 0.70; 95% CI 0.52 to 0.95; p=0.02). Endoscopic necrosectomy was associated with a lower risk of death than open necrosectomy in the high-risk group (3/40 vs 12/40; risk ratio, 0.27; 95% CI 0.08 to 0.88; p=0.03) and in the very high-risk group (12/57 vs 28/57; risk ratio, 0.43; 95% CI 0.24 to 0.77; p=0.005). In high-risk patients with necrotising pancreatitis, minimally invasive surgical and endoscopic necrosectomy are associated with reduced death rates compared with open necrosectom

Complicated intra-abdominal infections in a worldwide context: an observational prospective study (CIAOW Study)

Peer reviewe

Complicated intra-abdominal infections worldwide : the definitive data of the CIAOW Study

Peer reviewe

Real-time sample entropy predicts life-saving interventions after the Boston Marathon bombing

Identifying patients in need of a life-saving intervention (LSI) during a mass casualty event is a priority. We hypothesized that real-time, instantaneous sample entropy (SampEn) could predict the need for LSI in the Boston Marathon bombing victims. Severely injured Boston Marathon bombing victims (n = 10) had sample entropy (SampEn) recorded upon presentation using a continuous 200-beat rolling average in real time. Treating clinicians were blinded to real-time results. The correlation between SampEn, injury severity, number, and type of LSI was examined. Victims were males (60%) with a mean age of 39.1 years. Injuries involved lower extremities (50.0%), head and neck (24.2%), or upper extremities (9.7%). Sample entropy negatively correlated with Injury Severity Score (r = −0.70; P = .023), number of injuries (r = −0.70; P = .026), and the number and need for LSI (r = −0.82; P = .004). Sample entropy was reduced under a variety of conditions.SampEn (mean ± SD)PAmputation, n = 50.7 ± 0.3No amputation, n = 51.9 ± 0.8.027Transfusion, n = 50.7 ± 0.3No transfusion, n = 51.9 ± 0.8.027Intubation, n = 60.8 ± 0.3No intubation, n = 42.1 ± 0.7.027Vasopressors, n = 70.8 ± 0.3No vasopressors, n = 32.4 ± 0.3.004 Sample entropy strongly correlates with injury severity and predicts LSI after blast injuries sustained in the Boston Marathon bombings. Sample entropy may be a useful triage tool after blast injury

Delayed laparotomy after selective non-operative management of penetrating abdominal injuries

Main concern during the practice of selective non-operative management (SNOM) for abdominal stab wounds (SW) and gunshot wounds (GSW) is the potential for harm in patients who fail SNOM and receive a delayed laparotomy (DL). The aim of this study is to determine whether such patients suffer adverse sequelae because of delays in diagnosis and treatment when managed under a structured SNOM protocol. 190 patients underwent laparotomy after an abdominal GSW or SW (5/04-10/12). Patients taken to operation within 120 min of admission were included in the early laparotomy (EL) group (n =153, 80.5 %) and the remaining in the DL group (n =37, 19.5 %). Outcomes included mortality, hospital stay, and postoperative complications. The median time from hospital arrival to operation was 43 min (range: 17-119) for EL patients and 249 min (range: 122-1,545) for DL patients. The average number and type of injuries were similar among the groups. Mortality and negative laparotomy were observed only in the EL group. There was no significant difference in the hospital stay between the groups. The overall complications were higher in the EL group (44.4 vs. 24.3 %, p =0.026). DL was independently associated with a lower likelihood for complications (OR 0.39, 95 % CI 0.16-0.98, p =0.045). Individual review of all DL patients did not reveal an incident in which complications could be directly attributed to the delay. In a structured protocol, patients who fail SNOM and require an operation are recognized and treated promptly. The delay in operation does not cause unnecessary morbidity or mortality

Causes and Consequences of Interrupted Enteral Nutrition

BACKGROUND: Malnutrition and underfeeding are major challenges in caring for critically ill patients. Our goal was to characterize interruptions in enteral nutrition (EN) delivery and their impact on caloric debt in the surgical intensive care unit (ICU). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a prospective, observational study of adults admitted to surgical ICUs at a Boston teaching hospital (March–December 2012). We categorized EN interruptions as “unavoidable” vs “avoidable” and compared caloric deficit between patients with ≥1 EN interruption (group 1) vs those without interruptions (group 2). Multivariable logistic regression was used to investigate the association of EN interruption with the risk of underfeeding. Poisson regression was used to investigate the association of EN interruption with length of stay (LOS) and mortality. RESULTS: Ninety-four patients comprised the analytic cohort. Twenty-six percent of interruptions were deemed “avoidable.” Group 1 (n = 64) had a significantly higher mean daily and cumulative caloric deficit vs group 2 (n = 30). Patients in group 1 were at a 3-fold increased risk of being underfed (adjusted odds ratio, 2.89; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.03–8.11), had a 30% higher risk of prolonged ICU LOS (adjusted incident risk ratio [IRR], 1.27; 95% CI, 1.14–1.42), and had a 50% higher risk of prolonged hospital LOS (adjusted IRR, 1.53; 95% CI, 1.41–1.67) vs group 2. CONCLUSIONS: In our cohort of critically ill surgical patients, EN interruption was frequent, largely “unavoidable,” and associated with undesirable outcomes. Future efforts to optimize nutrition in the surgical ICU may benefit from considering strategies that maximize nutrient delivery before and after clinically appropriate EN interruptions

The influence of anesthesia on heart rate complexity during elective and urgent surgery in 128 patients

As an emerging "new vital sign," heart rate complexity (by sample entropy [SampEn]) has been shown to be a useful trauma triage tool by predicting occult physiologic compromise and need for life-saving interventions. Sample entropy may be confounded by anesthesia possibly limiting its value intraoperatively. We investigated the effects of anesthesia on SampEn during elective and urgent surgical procedures. We hypothesized that SampEn is reduced by general anesthesia. With institutional review board-approved waiver of informed consent, 128 patients undergoing elective or urgent general surgery were prospectively enrolled. Real-time heart rate complexity was calculated using SampEn through electrocardiogram recordings of 200 consecutive beats in a continuous sliding-window fashion. We recorded SampEn starting 10 minutes before induction until 10 minutes after emergence from anesthesia. The time before induction of anesthesia was categorized as period 1, the time after induction and before emergence as period 2 (intraoperative), and the time after emergence as period 3. We analyzed SampEn changes as patients moved between the different periods and made 3 comparisons: from period 1 with period 2 (comparison A), from period 2 with period 3 (comparison B). We also compared period 1 with period 3 SampEn (comparison C). The mean SampEn value for all patients before induction of anesthesia was 1.55 ± 0.58. In each 1 of the 3, comparisons there was a decline in SampEn. Comparison A had a mean decrease of 0.53 ± 0.55 (P < .0001), comparison B had a decrease of 0.13 ± 0.52 (P < .0051), and the mean SampEn difference for comparison C was 0.66 ± 0.53 (P < .0001). Certain pharmacologics had significant effect on SampEn as did need for urgent surgery and American Society of Anesthesiologists class. Sample entropy decreases after induction of anesthesia and continues to decrease even immediately after emergence in patients without any immediately life-threatening conditions. This finding may complicate interpretation low complexity as a predictor of life-saving interventions in patients in the perioperative period

Self-expanding foam for prehospital treatment of intra-abdominal hemorrhage: 28-day survival and safety

Intracavitary noncompressible hemorrhage remains a significant cause of preventable death on the battlefield and in the homeland. We previously demonstrated the hemostatic efficacy of an in situ self-expanding poly(urea)urethane foam in a severe, closed-cavity, hepatoportal exsanguination model in swine. We hypothesized that treatment with, and subsequent explantation of, foam would not adversely impact 28-day survival in swine. Following a closed-cavity splenic transection, animals received either fluid resuscitation alone (control group, n = 6) or resuscitation plus foam treatment at doses of 100 mL (n = 6), 120 mL (n = 6), and 150 mL (n = 2). Foam was allowed to polymerize in situ and was explanted after 3 hours. The animals were recovered and monitored for 28 days. All 18 animals in the 100-mL, 120-mL, and control groups survived to the 28-day endpoint without complications. The 150-mL group was terminated after the acute phase (n = 2). En bloc explantation of the foam took less than 2 minutes and was associated with millimeter-sized remnant particles. All foam animals required some level of enteric repair (imbrication or resection). Excluding the aborted 150-mL group, all animals survived, with no differences in renal or hepatic function, serum chemistries, or semiquantitative abdominal adhesion scores. Histologic analysis demonstrated that remnant particles were associated with a fibrotic capsule and mild inflammation, similar to that of standard suture reaction. In addition, safety testing (including genotoxicity, pyrogenicity, and cytotoxicity) was performed consistent with the ISO-10993 standard, and the materials passed all tests. For a distinct dose range, 28-day recovery after foam treatment and explantation for noncompressible, intra-abdominal hemorrhage is not associated with significant physiologic or biochemical evidence of end-organ dysfunction. A foam volume exceeding the maximum tolerable dose was identified. Bowel repair is required to ensure survival