Ruptured pseudocyst of pancreas presenting with paraplegia: a case report

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The impact of immediate breast reconstruction on the time to delivery of adjuvant therapy: the iBRA-2 study

Background: Immediate breast reconstruction (IBR) is routinely offered to improve quality-of-life for women requiring mastectomy, but there are concerns that more complex surgery may delay adjuvant oncological treatments and compromise long-term outcomes. High-quality evidence is lacking. The iBRA-2 study aimed to investigate the impact of IBR on time to adjuvant therapy. Methods: Consecutive women undergoing mastectomy ± IBR for breast cancer July–December, 2016 were included. Patient demographics, operative, oncological and complication data were collected. Time from last definitive cancer surgery to first adjuvant treatment for patients undergoing mastectomy ± IBR were compared and risk factors associated with delays explored. Results: A total of 2540 patients were recruited from 76 centres; 1008 (39.7%) underwent IBR (implant-only [n = 675, 26.6%]; pedicled flaps [n = 105,4.1%] and free-flaps [n = 228, 8.9%]). Complications requiring re-admission or re-operation were significantly more common in patients undergoing IBR than those receiving mastectomy. Adjuvant chemotherapy or radiotherapy was required by 1235 (48.6%) patients. No clinically significant differences were seen in time to adjuvant therapy between patient groups but major complications irrespective of surgery received were significantly associated with treatment delays. Conclusions: IBR does not result in clinically significant delays to adjuvant therapy, but post-operative complications are associated with treatment delays. Strategies to minimise complications, including careful patient selection, are required to improve outcomes for patients

Breast cancer management pathways during the COVID-19 pandemic: outcomes from the UK ‘Alert Level 4’ phase of the B-MaP-C study

Abstract: Background: The B-MaP-C study aimed to determine alterations to breast cancer (BC) management during the peak transmission period of the UK COVID-19 pandemic and the potential impact of these treatment decisions. Methods: This was a national cohort study of patients with early BC undergoing multidisciplinary team (MDT)-guided treatment recommendations during the pandemic, designated ‘standard’ or ‘COVID-altered’, in the preoperative, operative and post-operative setting. Findings: Of 3776 patients (from 64 UK units) in the study, 2246 (59%) had ‘COVID-altered’ management. ‘Bridging’ endocrine therapy was used (n = 951) where theatre capacity was reduced. There was increasing access to COVID-19 low-risk theatres during the study period (59%). In line with national guidance, immediate breast reconstruction was avoided (n = 299). Where adjuvant chemotherapy was omitted (n = 81), the median benefit was only 3% (IQR 2–9%) using ‘NHS Predict’. There was the rapid adoption of new evidence-based hypofractionated radiotherapy (n = 781, from 46 units). Only 14 patients (1%) tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 during their treatment journey. Conclusions: The majority of ‘COVID-altered’ management decisions were largely in line with pre-COVID evidence-based guidelines, implying that breast cancer survival outcomes are unlikely to be negatively impacted by the pandemic. However, in this study, the potential impact of delays to BC presentation or diagnosis remains unknown

A Simple Technique Using Peri-Prosthetic Irrigation Improves Implant Salvage Rates in Immediate Implant-Based Breast Reconstruction

Background and objectives: Implant-related complications leading to implant loss contribute to major morbidity in immediate breast reconstruction (IBR). Various techniques have been advocated to improve rates of reconstruction salvage. The objective of our study was to assess if a peri-prosthetic irrigation system was an effective adjunct to the conventional wash-out technique in improving reconstruction salvage rates. Methods: The study included patients who had immediate implant-based breast reconstruction from January 2015 to November 2020. The conventional technique of reconstruction salvage, using debridement, wash-out, and implant/expander exchange with systemic use of antibiotics, was performed for patients undergoing exploration for infection until May 2019. A simple technique using a continuous peri-prosthetic irrigation system with vancomycin (1 g/L normal saline over 24 h) for 2 days was added as an adjunct to the conventional technique. Treatment details and clinical outcomes were compared between the groups. The study was approved by the Clinical Governance department. Results: During the study period, 335 patients underwent IBR. A total of 65 patients (19.4%) returned to the theatre due to post-operative complications, of which 45 (13.4%) were due to infection. A conventional technique was used in 38 (84.4%) patients, and peri-prosthetic irrigation was used as an adjunct in 7 patients (15.6%). A total of 16 (42.1%) in the conventional group and all 7 (100%) in the irrigation group had successful reconstruction salvage. No patients had complications due to antibiotic irrigation. Conclusions: The peri-prosthetic irrigation system is a simple, safe, and effective adjunct to conventional techniques in improving reconstruction salvage in IBR

A novel enzyme immunoassay specific for ABCA1 protein quantification in human tissues and cells

ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1) mediates the transport of cholesterol and phospholipids from cells to lipid-poor HDL and maintains cellular lipid homeostasis. Impaired ABCA1 function plays a role in lipid disorders, cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis, and metabolic disorders. Despite the clinical importance of ABCA1, no method is available for quantifying ABCA1 protein. We developed a sensitive indirect competitive ELISA for measuring ABCA1 protein in human tissues using a commercial ABCA1 peptide and a polyclonal anti-ABCA1 antibody. The ELISA has a detection limit of 8 ng/well (0.08 mg/l) with a working range of 9-1000 ng/well (0.09-10 mg/l). Intra- and interassay coefficient of variations (CVs) were 6.4% and 9.6%, respectively. Good linearity (r = 0.97-0.99) was recorded in serial dilutions of human arterial and placental crude membrane preparations, and fibroblast lysates. The ELISA measurements for ABCA1 quantification in reference arterial tissues corresponded well with immunoblot analysis. The assay performance and clinical utility was evaluated with arterial tissues obtained from 15 controls and 44 patients with atherosclerotic plaques. ABCA1 protein concentrations in tissue lysates were significantly lower in patients (n = 24) as compared with controls (n = 5; 9.37 +/- 0.82 vs. 17.03 +/- 4.25 microg/g tissue; P < 0.01). The novel ELISA enables the quantification of ABCA1 protein in human tissues and confirms previous semiquantitative immunoblot results

Management of Hinchey II diverticulitis.

Colonic diverticulosis can either be asymptomatic or present with complications resulting in significant morbidity and mortality. A key presentation of complicated disease is abscess formation (Hinchey type II). The natural course of this is unclear and therefore treatments range from conservative approach with antibiotics and percutaneous guided drainage (PCD) to surgery. There is no clear consensus on the exact management strategy. A Medline based literature search specifically looking at studies dealing with Hinchey type II diverticulitis and its management was carried out. For comparison, five-year retrospective data of diverticular abscesses from our institution was collected and the outcome analysed. Various studies have looked into this aspect of the disease, elaborating on the significance of the size and location of the abscesses, the role of PCD, recurrence rates and the controversies regarding the need for elective surgery. Conservative treatment with antibiotics alone is effective in a majority of cases with a role for PCD in large safely accessible abscesses. Variable recurrence rates have been reported in literature and elective surgery should be planned for selected groups of patients