Effects of prolonged waiting time on visual outcomes of patients with pediatric cataract in a Tertiary Public Hospital

Background@#Pediatric cataract is one of the most common preventable cause of childhood blindness worldwide. Early and timely intervention of pediatric cataract is important to maximize the visual outcomes and start prompt visual rehabilitation.@*Objectives@#This study aimed to determine the average time from the day of initial consult at the outpatient clinic to the day of the cataract surgery and compare the effects of delayed surgery on visual outcomes of patients.@*Methods@#This is a retrospective chart review of medical records from January 2015 to June 2022. The dates of the different steps in the process up to the day of intervention were noted and the average interval duration and the total waiting time were determined. Patients operated on within 2 weeks from initial consult was defined as no delay while those operated >2 weeks had delayed surgery. Pre-operative and post-operative best corrected log MAR visual acuity were compared within each group to determine if delay in surgical intervention has a significant effect on the visual outcomes of patients.@*Results@#Median age at initial consult was 4.9 years while median age at surgery was 5.2 years. Ninety-nine (99) patients had developmental cataract and 123 patients had bilateral cataract. Leukocoria was the most common chief complaint (63.45%). Pre-operatively, 94 patients had strabismus, 49 had eye preference, 48 had nystagmus, and 43 had amblyopia in the diagnosis. There was significantly faster admission to cataract surgery during the pandemic compared to pre-pandemic period but there was no difference in the total waiting time. Patients with congenital cataract had the least total waiting time followed by developmental, and rubella cataract. There is no significant difference in visual outcomes between patients operated without delay and with delay.@*Conclusion@#There is delayed age at diagnosis and surgery of pediatric cataract patients in the Philippine General Hospital. Early surgery did not reflect better visual outcomes compared to delayed surgery probably due to delay in consultation of patients.

Early fixation versus delayed fixation in cervical spine trauma patient with absent cough reflex in view of intensive care unit stay and cost effectiveness

Background: This study was conducted in GMC Jammu to evaluate ICU stay and cost effectiveness in patients with cervical spine trauma undergoing early fixation (within 24-72 hours after trauma) versus late fixation (delayed fixation after applying traction and waiting for return of cough reflex).Methods: Retrospective and prospective study was done by collecting data from admission register and patient follow-up during 2016-2019. 50 patients were admitted as cervical spine trauma, out of which 38 were operated upon and ten managed conservatively. 15 patients were operated within 72 hours of admission with absent cough reflex and 23 were put on cervical traction and operated upon after return of cough reflex.Results: Average ICU stay for 15 patients (4 females 11 males) immediately operated ranged from 10 to 15 days along with prolonged mechanical ventilation. Average ICU stay for 23 patients (16 males and 7 females) operated after returning of cough reflex ranged from 3-4 days with considerably decreased requirement of mechanical ventilation.Conclusions: Delayed fixation of cervical spine after returning of cough reflex shortens post-operative ICU stay and is considerably more cost effective than early fixation.

Application value of early and delayed laparoscopic cholecystectomy after percutaneous transhepatic gall-bladder drainage in 65 years of age or older patients with severe acute cholecystitis: a prospective analysis / 中华消化外科杂志

Objective To investigate the application value of early and delayed laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) after percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage (PTGD) in 65 years of age or older patients with severe acute cholecystitis.Methods The prospective study was conducted.The clinical data of 80 patients with severe acute cholecystitis who were admitted to Shanxi Dayi Hospital of Shanxi Academy of Medical Sciences from May 2016 to January 2018 were collected.All patients were divided into two groups by random number table,including patients undergoing LC 72 h later after extubation of PTGD in the PTGD + early LC group,and patients undergoing LC 5-14 days later after extubation of PTGD in the PTGD + delayed LC group.Observation indicators:(1) surgical situations;(2) analysis of liver function before and after LC in the two groups;(3) analysis of serum-related inflammatory factors before and after LC in the two groups;(4) follow-up situations.Patients were followed up by outpatient examination or telephone interview to detect the postoperative complications in the postoperative three months up to April 2018.Measurement data with normal distribution were represented as Mean ± SD,and comparison between groups was done using the paired t test.Count data were represented as absolute number,and comparison between groups was analyzed using the chi-square test or Fisher exact probability.Results Eighty patients were screened for eligibility,including 41 males and 39 females,aged from 65 to 70 years,with an average age of 67 years.There were 40 patients in the PTGD + early LC group and 40 in the PTGD + delayed LC group,respectively.(1) Surgical situations:the operation time,volume of intraoperative blood loss,and duration of postoperative hospital stay were (52± 15) minutes,(29± 11) mL,(18.9± 1.6) days in the PTGD + early LC group,and (88± 13)minutes,(69± 11)mL,(27.7±4.8)days in the PTGD + delayed LC group,respectively,showing significant differences in the above indicators between the two groups (t =11.668,16.219,11.000,P＜0.05).(2) Analysis of liver function before and after LC in the two groups:the levels of aspartate transaminase (AST),alanine aminotransferase (ALT),gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT),and total bilirubin (TBil) of PTGD + early LC group were (53 ± 11) U/L,(203 ±40) U/L,(128± 22) U/L,(19± 6)U/L,(86±21)μmol/L before LC,and (26±5)U/L,(83±23)U/L,(29±3)U/L,(11±5)U/L,(27± 7) μmol/L at 24 hours after LC,showing significant differences in the above indicators before and after LC (t =12.562,16.448,28.199,6.478,16.857,P＜0.05).The levels of AST,ALT,GGT,and TBil of PTGD + delayed LC group were (54± 12) U/L,(203±48) U/L,(130±24) U/L,(19±6) U/L,(85±20) μmol/L before LC,and (29±5) U/L,(151±36) U/L,(53±7)U/L,(17±3)U/L,(31±8)μmol/L at 24 hours after LC,showing significant differences in the above indicators before and after LC (t =13.622,5.481,2.169,1.988,15.855,P＜0.05).There was no significant difference in the levels of AST,ALT,ALP,GGT,TBil before LC between the two groups (t=0.389,0.000,0.389,0.000,0.218,P＞0.05),meanwhile,there were significant differences in the levels of AST,ALT,ALP,GGT,TBil after LC between the two groups (t =2.683,10.067,19.931,6.508,2.380,P＜0.05).(3) Analysis of serum-related inflammatory factors before and after LC in the two groups:the levels of interleukin-1 (IL-1),interleukin-6 (IL-6),high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (CRP),interleukin-10 (IL-10),and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) of PTGD + early LC group were (71 ±9) ng/L,(82±9)ng/L,(137±16)ng/L,(75±6)ng/L,(67±9)μg,/L before LC,and (87±13)ng/L,(97±9)ng/L,(81± 19)ng/L,(145±6)ng/L,(85±6)μg/L at 24 hours after LC,showing significant differences in the above indicators before and after LC (t ==6.400,7.454,14.259,52.175,10.525,P＜0.05).The levels of IL-1,IL-6,high-sensitivity CRP,IL-10,and TNF-α of PTGD + delayed LC group were (71±9) ng/L,(82± 10) ng/L,(145±28)ng/L,(75±6)ng/L,(67±10) μg/L before LC,and (145±7)ng/L,(135±16) ng/L,(101±1S)ng/L,(146±9) ng/L,(113±10)μg/L at 24 hours after LC,showing significant differences in the above indicators before and after LC (t =41.079,17.766,8.360,41.525,27.578,P ＜ 0.05).There was no significant difference in the levels of IL-1,IL-6,high-sensitivity CRP,IL-10,and TNF-α before LC between the two groups (t =0.000,0.000,1.569,0.000,0.000,P＞0.05),meanwhile,there were significant differences in the levels of IL-1,IL-6,high-sensitivity CRP,and TNF-α after LC between the two groups (t=24.844,13.092,4.833,15.185,P＜0.05).(4) Follow-up situations:80 patients were followed up for 3 months.Two patients in the PTGD + early LC group had postoperative complications,including 1 of bile duct injury and 1 of incisional infection;9 patients of PTGD + delayed LC group had postoperative complications,including 3 of bile duct injury,3 of multiple organ failure,2 of incisional infection,1 of death.There was a significant difference in the postoperative complication between the two groups (x2 =5.165,P＜0.05).Conclusion Early LC after PTGD can effectively shorten operation time,reduce volume of intraoperative blood loss,shorten duration of postoperative hospital stay,protect liver function,reduce the expression of serum inflammatory factors at 24 hours after surgery,and reduce postoperative complications.

Orbital Wall Fracture Repair: The Results of Early and Delayed Surgery

PURPOSE: To investigate the surgical results of early and delayed repair of orbital wall fracture after multiple subgrouping of patients by time between the operation and injury. METHODS: Eighty-eight eyes of 88 patients who underwent orbital wall fracture repair from January 2002 to December 2014 and who were followed up for more than 3 months postoperatively were included in this study. We divided the 88 patients into three groups: Early surgery group (surgery within 2 weeks after the injury), slightly delayed surgery group (surgery between 3 weeks and 2 months after the injury), delayed surgery group (surgery after 2 months of the injury). Preoperative and postoperative ocular motility, diplopia, and the degree of enophthalmos were analyzed retrospectively. RESULTS: The early surgery group consisted of 30 eyes; slightly delayed surgery group, 42 eyes; and delayed surgery group, 16 eyes. The mean duration between injury and surgery was 8.6 +/- 22.5 weeks in all patients, 1.5 +/- 0.5 weeks in the early surgery group, 3.5 +/- 1.3 weeks in the slightly delayed surgery group, and 35.3 +/- 44.7 weeks in the delayed surgery group. All patients were followed up for a mean of 12.9 +/- 10.8 weeks. Gaze limitation in all directions showed improvement in all groups, with the most shown in up gaze limitation. There were no significant differences in the degree of improvement between preoperative and postoperative gaze limitation among the three groups. Enophthalmos improved as well, without any significant differences among the three groups. CONCLUSIONS: Improvement in ocular motility limitation and enophthalmos after orbital wall fracture repair did not vary significantly according to the duration between the surgery and injury. Therefore, surgical repairment even for old orbital fractures may successfully treat enophthalmos or diplopia and relieve symptoms.

Maisonneuve fractures treated with delayed surgery / 中华创伤骨科杂志

Objective To study the clinical effects of delayed surgery for Maisonneuve fractures.Methods Between January 2006 to June 2011,we treated 21 patients with Maisonneuve fracture by delayed surgery.They were 18 men and 3 women,aged from 17 to 63 years (average,36.8 years).Rupture of inferior tibiofibular ligaments was complicated in all,lateral malleolus fracture in 17 cases,medial malleolus fracture in 14 cases,rupture of deltoid ligament in 7 cases,and posterior malleolus fracture in 15 cases.None of them got timely surgery due to complicated injuries,poor skin condition or missed diagnosis.Six patients had surgery after 2 weeks,11 after 3 weeks and 4 after 4 weeks.The interval from injury to surgery ranged from 14 to 32 days,averaging 21.3 days.Fractures of lateral,medial and posterior malleolus were treated with open reduction and internal fixation.Ruptures of deltoid ligament and anterior ligament of inferior tibiofibula were repaired and reconstructed.Functional recovery of the ankle joint was assessed using American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) scoring system.Results The patients were followed up for 10 to 18 months (average,12.3 months).All the fractures healed after an average time of 12.4 weeks (from 10 to 22 weeks).No infection or implant failure was observed in this group.The affected ankle restored inflexion basically to the range of the contralateral 6 months post-surgery,but was limited in the ranges of varus and valgus.Pain was extensively experienced.At the last follow-up,10 patients (47.6％) showed obvious disparity between the 2 sides,and 5 ones had lateral displacement of the talus and widened ankle mortise.AOFAS results were excellent in 5 cases,good in 9,fair in 4 and poor in 3,yielding a good to excellent rate of 66.7％.Conclusion Because delayed surgery increases the difficulties in surgery and functional recovery,early diagnosis and early surgery are crucial for treatment of Maisonneuve fractures to achieve satisfactory outcomes.

The Optimal Timing for Surgery in Well-differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma Detected during Pregnancy

PURPOSE: The optimal timing of a surgery for well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma detected during pregnancy remains controversial. This study was performed to determine the optimal timing of surgery for a well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma detected during pregnancy. METHODS: Betwwen July 1991 and June 2004, 20 cases diagnosed with a well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma during pregnancy were retrospectively analyzed. All 20 patients had undergone surgery. The patients were divided into three groups according to the timing of their surgery. Group I (n=9) had a thyroidectomy after delivery, group II (n=6) had a thyroidectomy during the second trimester, and group III (n=5) had a thyroidectomy after an abortion. Group III was excluded from the study as our particularly interest was in determining the optimal timing of surgery during pregnancy. RESULTS: No significant differences were noted between groups I and II with regard to age, tumor size, TNM stage and the timing of diagnosis. There were no TNM stage changes in group I, although a slight increase in tumor size during pregnancy was noted. There were no significant differences in the surgical outcomes between groups I and II with regard to types of operation, operation times, perioperative complications, length of hospital stays and treatment outcomes. CONCLUSION: The treatment of a well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma detected during pregnancy can be delayed until after delivery in most patients.

A Successful Operative Case of Delayed Repair for Acute Traumatic Aortic Rupture / 日本心臓血管外科学会雑誌

Although recent progress in surgery for acute traumatic rupture of the thoracic aorta is encouraging, hospital mortality remains high due to associated fatal lesions. Delayed repair of acute aortic rupture, after management of critical lesions, has been reported in the literature with increasing frequency. We present here a successful operative case of a 54-year-old-woman with acute traumatic aortic rupture. She was admitted to the intensive care unit with loss of consciousness, rib fracture and lung contusion in order to investigate additional critical lesions under strict control of systolic blood pressure under 120mmHg. After completion of all diagnostic procedures, aortic repair was performed 2 days after the accident. The intima of the aorta was found to be disrupted for two thirds of the circumference and pseudoaneurysm was diagnosed. A gelatin-coated vascular prosthesis with one branch was interposed under cardiopulmonary bypass during which general heparinization, systemic hypothermia (20°C) and retrograde brain perfusion method were used. She recovered uneventfully and was discharged 2 weeks after the operation.

Management Outcome of Poor Grade Patients with Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to determine the treatment strategies for the poor grade patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage(SAH) with respect to the timing of surgery. METHODS: We have analyzed 51 patients of Hunt and Hess grade IV and V at admission among 140 SAH patients who were managed during recent three years. They were devided into two groups according to the interval between SAH and surgery: 30 early treatment group(operated within 3 days) and 21 delayed treatment group(6 delayed operation cases and 15 unoperated cases). RESULTS: Clinical outcome of early surgery group was favorable(Good or Fair) in 23 cases(76.7%) and unfavorable in 7 cases(23.3%, 2 Poor, 5 Dead). On the contrary, those of delayed surgery group or without surgery group was favorable in 4 cases(19.1%) and unfavorable in 17 cases(80.9%, 1 Poor, 16 Dead). Overall management outcome of poor grade SAH patients was favorable in 27 cases(52.9%), unfavorable in 24 cases(47.1%) and mortality rate was 41.2%. Unfavorable outcome in poor grade SAH patients was largely affected by the initial hemorrhage and subsequent development of intractable intracranial hypertension(Hunt and Hess grade IV: 5 cases, grade V: 8 cases), cerebral infarction(grade IV: 3 cases, grade V: 1), rebleeding(grade IV: 3 cases), and surgical complication(4 cases). CONCLUSION: An active treatment policy including early surgery might achieve a better outcome of poor grade SAH patients.

Management Outcome of Poor Grade Patients with Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to determine the treatment strategies for the poor grade patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage(SAH) with respect to the timing of surgery. METHODS: We have analyzed 51 patients of Hunt and Hess grade IV and V at admission among 140 SAH patients who were managed during recent three years. They were devided into two groups according to the interval between SAH and surgery: 30 early treatment group(operated within 3 days) and 21 delayed treatment group(6 delayed operation cases and 15 unoperated cases). RESULTS: Clinical outcome of early surgery group was favorable(Good or Fair) in 23 cases(76.7%) and unfavorable in 7 cases(23.3%, 2 Poor, 5 Dead). On the contrary, those of delayed surgery group or without surgery group was favorable in 4 cases(19.1%) and unfavorable in 17 cases(80.9%, 1 Poor, 16 Dead). Overall management outcome of poor grade SAH patients was favorable in 27 cases(52.9%), unfavorable in 24 cases(47.1%) and mortality rate was 41.2%. Unfavorable outcome in poor grade SAH patients was largely affected by the initial hemorrhage and subsequent development of intractable intracranial hypertension(Hunt and Hess grade IV: 5 cases, grade V: 8 cases), cerebral infarction(grade IV: 3 cases, grade V: 1), rebleeding(grade IV: 3 cases), and surgical complication(4 cases). CONCLUSION: An active treatment policy including early surgery might achieve a better outcome of poor grade SAH patients.

The Result of Delayed Operation in Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia

Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) in the past was considered a surgical emergency requiring immediate operation. Several groups now advocate preoperative stabilization and delayed surgery. The treatment strategy for CDH in this institution is delayed surgery after preoperative stabilization. The aim of this study was to evaluate the results of delayed surgery. A retrospective review of 16 neonates with CDH was performed. Surfactant, conventional mechanical ventilation, high frequency oscillation, and nitric oxide were utilized for preoperative stabilization as necessary. The difference in outcome between two groups differentiated by the duration of the preoperative stabilization periods with mechanical ventilation (8 hours) was determined. Chi-square test was used to analyze the data. There were 7 right-sided hernias and 9 left. The average duration of stabilization was 32.4 hours. Hepatic herniation through the defect was found in 6 cases and all died. The most common postoperative complication was pneumothorax. The mortality rate of the right side hernia was higher than the left (85.7% vs. 33.3%, p=0.036). Mortality rate of the group (N=8) whose preoperative stabilization period was 8 hours or less was better than that (N=6) whose preoperative stabilization period was more than 8 hours (25.0% vs. 83.3%, p=0.031). The overall mortality rate was 56.3%. The better prognosis was noticed in left side hernia, no liver herniation, or shorter preoperative stabilization period.

Treatment of bronchial ruptures by delayed surgery / 吉林大学学报(医学版)

Objective:To study the causes that resulted in delayed surgery for bronchial ruptures and the results.Methods:The cases with the bronchial ruptures by the delayed surgery last decade were retrospectively reviewed.The causes and unsatisfactory results were analysed.Results:The severe complications usually occurred after the delayed surgery and the results were not as satisfactory as those by early surgery.Conclusion:The bronchial ruptures ought to be operated in the early stage after being wounded.