Ultrasound-guided central venous cannulation in bariatric patients

Background: Central venous catheterization may be difficult in morbidly obese patients because anatomic landmarks are often obscured. Methods: We evaluated the efficacy and safety of ultrasound-guided central venous cannulation in 55 patients undergoing bariatric surgery. The usefulness of ultrasonic examination combined with intraatrial electrocardiogram as a diagnostic tool for catheter misplacement was studied. Results: Preliminary ultrasound examination of the neck vessels demonstrated anatomical variations in the position of internal jugular vein in 19 cases and four unrecognized asymptomatic thromboses of the right internal jugular vein. Central venous catheterization was successful in all 55 patients, in 51 with single skin puncture, and in 42 with single vein puncture. In three cases in whom the catheter was misplaced, this was detected by bedside ultrasonic examination during the procedure and immediately corrected by real-time echographic visualization. No arterial puncture, no hematoma, and no pneumothorax occurred in any patient. Successful catheter placement was also confirmed in all patients by post-operative chest X-ray. No evidence of infection or thrombosis subsequently was noted. Conclusions: The use of ultrasound guidance may increase the success rate and decrease the incidence of complications associated with central venous cannulation. The advantages of this approach is visualization of the anatomical structures at puncture site prior to skin puncture and the ability to track needle and guide-wire placement during the procedure. With its high accuracy in detecting catheter misplacement, bedside ultrasonic examination combined with intraatrial electrocardiogram may further decrease morbidity associated with misplaced central venous catheters. © 2009 Springer Science + Business Media, LLC

Pros-IT CNR: an Italian prostate cancer monitoring project

Aims: The Pros-IT CNR project aims to monitor a sample of Italian males \ue2\u89\ua518\uc2 years of age who have been diagnosed in the participating centers with incident prostate cancer, by analyzing their clinical features, treatment protocols and outcome results in relation to quality of life. Methods: Pros-IT CNR is an observational, prospective, multicenter study. The National Research Council (CNR), Neuroscience Institute, Aging Branch (Padua) is the promoting center. Ninety-seven Italian centers located throughout Italy were involved. The field study began in September 1, 2014. Subjects eligible were diagnosed with biopsy-verified prostate cancer, na\uc3\uafve. A sample size of 1500 patients was contemplated. A baseline assessment including anamnestic data, clinical history, risk factors, the initial diagnosis, cancer staging information and quality of life (Italian UCLA Prostate Cancer Index; SF-12 Scale) was completed. Six months after the initial diagnosis, a second assessment evaluating the patient\ue2\u80\u99s health status, the treatment carried out, and the quality of life will be made. A third assessment, evaluating the treatment follow-up and the quality of life, will be made 12\uc2 months after the initial diagnosis. The 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th assessments, similar to the third, will be completed 24, 36, 48 and 60\uc2 months after the initial diagnosis, respectively, and will include also a Food Frequency Questionnaire and the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly. Discussion: The study will provide information on patients\ue2\u80\u99 quality of life and its variations over time in relation to the treatments received for the prostate cancer