Locally advanced perforated appendiceal cancer: Case report and review.

Appendiceal cancers may be difficult to diagnose even after comprehensive investigation. This report of locally advanced perforated appendiceal adenocarcinoma attached to the terminal ileum, cecum, and rectosigmoid illustrates the management challenges that require comprehensive knowledge of pathologic variations and range from simple appendectomy to cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy.

A statewide assessment of surgical site infection following colectomy: the role of oral antibiotics.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the utility of adding oral nonabsorbable antibiotics to the bowel prep prior to elective colon surgery. SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA: Bowel preparation prior to colectomy remains controversial. We hypothesized that mechanical bowel preparation with oral antibiotics (compared with without) was associated with lower rates of surgical site infection (SSI). METHODS: Twenty-four Michigan hospitals participated in the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative-Colectomy Best Practices Project. Standard perioperative data, bowel preparation process measures, and Clostridium difficile colitis outcomes were prospectively collected. Among patients receiving mechanical bowel preparation, a logistic regression model generated a propensity score that allowed us to match cases differing only in whether or not they had received oral antibiotics. RESULTS: Overall, 2011 elective colectomies were performed over 16 months. Mechanical bowel prep without oral antibiotics was administered to 49.6% of patients, whereas 36.4% received a mechanical prep and oral antibiotics. Propensity analysis created 370 paired cases (differing only in receiving oral antibiotics). Patients receiving oral antibiotics were less likely to have any SSI (4.5% vs. 11.8%, P = 0.0001), to have an organ space infection (1.8% vs. 4.2%, P = 0.044) and to have a superficial SSI (2.6% vs. 7.6%, P = 0.001). Patients receiving bowel prep with oral antibiotics were also less likely to have a prolonged ileus (3.9% vs. 8.6%, P = 0.011) and had similar rates of C. difficile colitis (1.3% vs. 1.8%, P = 0.58). CONCLUSIONS: Most patients in Michigan receive mechanical bowel preparation prior to elective colectomy. Oral antibiotics may reduce the incidence of SSI.

The role of endoscopic colon surveillance in the transplant population.

PURPOSE: Long-term immunosuppression increases the risks of developing certain malignancies. This study examines the effects of long-term immunosuppression on the development of metachronous adenomatous polyps and attempts to formulate a sound surveillance plan for these individuals. METHOD: A retrospective analysis was performed of all solid organ transplant patients at Henry Ford Hospital from 1989 to 1999, with a specific focus on endoscopic evaluation and outcomes after three years of surveillance. Comparison was made to an age-matched and gender-matched control group from the same endoscopic database. Variables were compared using the chi-squared test, Fisher's exact probability test, and Hochberg's test. RESULTS: A total of 992 solid organ transplants were performed. Two hundred twenty-nine (23 percent) of the transplant recipients underwent pretransplant colonoscopy, of which 178 patients (78 percent) were age 50 years or older. Seventy-four (32 percent) of the prescreened population had polyps, of which 45 patients (61 percent) had adenomas. Twenty-seven patients (36 percent) had synchronous polyps, of which 12 patients (16 percent) had synchronous adenomas. At 3-year follow-up 59 patients (80 percent) had metachronous polyps. Twenty-eight patients (38 percent) had metachronous adenomas. Eleven patients (15 percent) with hyperplastic polyps on initial colonoscopy developed adenomas. The control group consisted of 25 females and 50 males with a mean age of 65.5 +/- 1.1 years. Fifty-one patients (68 percent) had adenomas on endoscopy. Twenty-four patients (32 percent) had synchronous lesions, of which 13 patients (17 percent) had synchronous adenomas. Sixty-one patients (84 percent) developed metachronous lesions, of which 33 patients (43 percent) had metachronous adenomas at 3 years. There was no difference in the polyp size or histology between the two groups. There was no statistically significant difference between the transplant patients and the control group in all analyses. CONCLUSION: Because of an equivalent incidence of adenomatous polyps compared with the general population, current screening criteria should be used in patients posttransplant. Transplant patients are not more likely to develop metachronous polyps than the general population. Therefore, posttransplant polyp surveillance should not be more frequent than currently recommended for nontransplant patients with adenomatous polyps.

Diversion Colitis.

Management of the patient with diversion colitis is dependent upon both patient and disease-related factors. Patients in whom diversion is not permanent, who desire stoma closure, and who have an acceptable surgical risk should undergo re-establishment of intestinal continuity. Asymptomatic, high-risk surgical candidates need only undergo periodic, regular endoscopic surveillance of both the functional and nonfunctional large bowel according to currently accepted screening guidelines. Most symptomatic patients in whom the diversion is permanent can be treated successfully with steroid enemas, 5-aminosalicylic acid enemas or suppositories, or short-chain fatty acid enemas. If diversion is permanent, medical treatment is unsuccessful, and symptoms persist, acceptable surgical candidates should undergo resection of the excluded bowel.