Bupivacaine 0.5% versus ropivacaine 0.75% wound infiltration to decrease postoperative pain in total thyroidectomy, a prospective controlled study

Aim. Control of postoperative pain is one of the most important concerns for both the patients and the surgical team. In this regard the efficacy of wound infiltration with local analgesia and the most proper drugs to be used are not settled. We conducted our study trying to investigate this point in a prospective randomized double blinded manner. Methods. With inclusion criteria of: age (1865 y), volume 90 min, incision length >10 cm, neck dissection decided during surgery and a postoperative complication within the first 24 hours. Sixty patients planned for total thyroidectomy under general anesthesia were enrolled in the study in three groups with twenty patients assigned randomly to each one: group (A) a control group in which no wound infiltration was done, group (B) in which preoperative wound infiltration with 10 mL bupivacaine 0.5% was done, and group (C) in which preoperative wound infiltration with 10 mL ropivacaine 0.75% was done. Postoperative pain was evaluated by Visual Analogue Score (VAS) with a scale of (0-10) at 1 hour, 4 hours, 8 hours and 16 hours. Results. The postoperative pain experienced by all the patients reached a maximum point at 1 hour postoperatively then started to decrease to be minimal at 8 hours and almost negligible at 16 hours. Ropivacaine group showed a statistically significant decrease in pain perception at 1 hour postoperatively (P=0.028), bupivacaine group showed also a decrease in pain perception at 1 hour but it was not statistically significant. At 4 hours of opération and after; neither ropivacaine nor bupivacaine showed an effect on pain perception. Conclusion. The benefit of local wound infiltration with local analgesia in decreasing postoperative pain is limited to a short period after surgery in which the use of ropivacaine 0.75% is recommended over pubivaccaine 0.5%

Primary small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the breast: a report of two cases and review of the literature

Primary neuroendocrine carcinomas of the breast are extremely rare. Neuroendocrine tumors mainly occur in the broncopolmonary system and gastrointestinal tract. The diagnosis of small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (SCNC) of the breast can only be made if a non mammary site is excluded or if an in situ component can be found. We are going to describe two cases and to discuss their clinical, radiological and pathological manifestations. Introduction: Neuroendocrine tumors are rare and slow-growing neoplasias derived from neuroendocrine cells. We describe two cases of small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the breast and discuss their clinical, radiological and pathological manifestations. Case report: Our patients are two Italian females (38 and 36 year-old) with no family history of breast disease. In both cases the diagnosis was confirmed after surgery, when immunohistochemistry revealed a neuroendocrine differentiation of the tumor. The patients are alive and disease free after more than ten years of follow-up. Conclusion: Primary neuroendocrine carcinomas of the breast are extremely rare. The diagnosis of SCNC of the breast can only be made if a non mammary site is excluded or if an in situ component can be found. After surgery, a strict follow-up including octreotide scan should be performed and this doesn’t differ from the one of the usual breast carcinoma

Primary small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the breast: a report of two cases and review of the literature

Primary neuroendocrine carcinomas of the breast are extremely rare. Neuroendocrine tumors mainly occur in the broncopolmonary system and gastrointestinal tract. The diagnosis of small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (SCNC) of the breast can only be made if a non mammary site is excluded or if an in situ component can be found. We are going to describe two cases and to discuss their clinical, radiological and pathological manifestations. Introduction: Neuroendocrine tumors are rare and slow-growing neoplasias derived from neuroendocrine cells. We describe two cases of small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the breast and discuss their clinical, radiological and pathological manifestations. Case report: Our patients are two Italian females (38 and 36 year-old) with no family history of breast disease. In both cases the diagnosis was confirmed after surgery, when immunohistochemistry revealed a neuroendocrine differentiation of the tumor. The patients are alive and disease free after more than ten years of follow-up. Conclusion: Primary neuroendocrine carcinomas of the breast are extremely rare. The diagnosis of SCNC of the breast can only be made if a non mammary site is excluded or if an in situ component can be found. After surgery, a strict follow-up including octreotide scan should be performed and this doesn’t differ from the one of the usual breast carcinoma

Sentinel node radioguided biopsy in surgical management of the medullary thyroid carcinoma. A case report.

INTRODUCTION: Medullary thyroid cancer is a rare carcinoma. Surgery is the only curative treatment and since cervical lymphnodes metastases are frequent and can occur at an early stage, a standardized central lymphnode dissection is associated to total thyroidectomy. However, the extent of lymphadenectomy to the lateral neck lynphnodes remains debated. To reduce the extent of lymphnode excision, the sentinel node biopsy has been used as an accurate technique to assess the status of the lymphnodes in the regional drainage basin in solid tumors, and more recently, in thyroid carcinoma. In this case report, we show the utility of the radioguided biopsy of the sentinel lymphnode in the surgical management of the medullary thyrod cancer. CASE REPORT: We present the case of a 24-year-old Caucasian, Italian woman with a sporadic medullary thyroid microcarcinoma occasionally detected by neck ultrasound and diagnosed by high serum calcitonin level and fine needle aspiration cytology. There was no ultrasound evidence of lymphnode involvement both in central and lateral compartment of the neck. We performed a preoperative mapping of the the sentinel lymphnodes by the injection of technetium-99m radiolabelled albumin nanocolloids in the thyroid nodule. Then our patient underwent total thyroidectomy combined with radioguided biopsy of the sentinel lymphnodes. Histology confirmed the presence of the medullary thyroid cancer and revealed micrometastases only in two sentinel lymphnodes detected in right lateral compartment of the neck so an ipsilateral lateral neck dissection besides the central neck dissection was performed at the end of operation. Basal and pentagastrin-stimulated serum calcitonin level was undetectable during the follow-up investigations. CONCLUSION: This is the first reported case that shows the utility of the radioguided SLN biopsy for the accurate staging of the cervical lymphnode involvement in patient with sporadic medullary thyroid microcarcinoma. Total thyrodectomy and central neck dissection is recommended for all patients with medullary thyroid carcinoma, but the indication for the lateral neck dissection is still controversial. The radioguided SLN biopsy technique could be a useful tool to perform the dissection only in those patients with proven lateral neck lymphnode involvement and reduce the extention of the lateral lymphnode excision and the incidence of related complications

Colorectal carcinoma and folate

Abstract More than a million people a year worldwide develops colorectal cancer (CRC), with a mortality rate close to 33%. Most of the CRC cases are sporadic, only 25% of the patients have a family history of the disease, and major genes causing syndromes predisposing to CRC only account for 5-6% of the total cases. The following subtypes can be recognized: MIN (microsatellite instability), CIN (chromosomal instability), and CIMP (CpG island methylator phenotype). CRC arises from an accumulation of genetic and epigenetic alterations such as DNA methylation, which is able to modulate gene expression. Several studies in the literature show a possible correlation between an altered methylation in the promoter of tumor suppressor genes, proto-oncogenes, genes involved in DNA repair and the CRC risk; it has also been observed a global DNA hypomethylation, especially in the presence of a low folate uptake. Epigenetic changes are reversible, then could be interesting to evaluate on their relationship with dietary factors (as well as folates) and the genetic background of the individuals, for the development of novel strategies for cancer prevention. KEY WORDS: Colorectal cancer, Epigenetic, Folate

Minimally invasive video-assisted thyroidectomy (MIVAT) from A to Z

A minimal access procedure does not necessarily mean that it is minimally invasive. However, as its name implies, MIVAT is a truly minimally invasive treatment modality. The advantages it offers over its conventional counterpart are indeed related to its minimally invasive nature. Furthermore, this nature has not compromised its ability to accomplish its purpose both safely and effectively. Ever since its introduction in the late 1990s, MIVAT has been progressively evolving. The indications for this procedure, which was initially surrounded by skepticism, have been expanding. Benign thyroid pathology is now considered only one of its indications among others. This article provides a detailed description of this minimally invasive, maximally effective and patient satisfying procedure so that it may be adopted by more surgeons around the globe for better patient care and to also encourage the development of further future advancements

Minimally invasive video-assisted thyroidectomy: reflections after more than 2400 cases performed

BACKGROUND: The minimally invasive video-assisted approach was developed for primary hyperparathyroidism in 1997 and the year after for thyroid disease. Since then, the technique has been adopted worldwide, and indications moved from the initial benign disease to low-risk and intermediate-risk carcinoma, demonstrating a level of oncologic radicality comparable to the conventional open approach when inclusion criteria are strictly respected. METHODS: Between 1998 and 2014, 2412 minimally invasive video-assisted thyroidectomies (MIVAT) were performed in our department. The indication for surgery in 825 patients (34.3 %) was a malignant tumor, in particular, a papillary carcinoma in 800 patients. Among them, 528 patients operated on between 2000 and 2009 had a mean complete follow-up of 7.5 (standard deviation, 2.3) years. RESULTS: A total thyroidectomy was performed in 1788 patients (74.1 %) and a hemithyroidectomy in 564 (23.4 %). Also performed was central compartment lymphadenectomy in 31 patients (1.3 %) and parathyroidectomy for the presence of a solitary parathyroid adenoma in 29 (1.2 %). Mean duration of the procedure was 41 (standard deviation, 14) minutes. After a mean follow-up of 7. 5 years, 528 patients who underwent MIVAT for low-risk or intermediate-risk papillary carcinoma presented a cure rate of 85 % (undetectable thyroglobulin), comparable with the 80 % rate reported in patients who had undergone open thyroidectomy during the same period. CONCLUSIONS: After a long experience and a considerable number of procedures performed in a single center, MIVAT is confirmed as a safe operation, with a complication rate comparable with open thyroidectomy. MIVAT offers a cure rate for the treatment of low-risk and intermediate-risk malignancies that is comparable with an open procedure when inclusion criteria are strictly respected