The safety and feasibility of simultaneous robotic repair of an inguinal hernia during robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: This study intended to assess the safety and feasibility of performing concurrent robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) and robotic inguinal hernia repair (RIHR). METHOD: We systematically searched the PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Library database up to the year 2020 to identify studies that assessed patients who underwent RALP and RIHR in the same settings. RESULTS: Thirteen studies were considered suitable for a systematic review and seven for Meta-analysis. RALP and RIHR were associated with significantly longer operative time. RIHR added on average 26 min to the operation time (8, 45 95% CI, p = 0.005, I2 97%). Concurrent RALP and RIHR was not associated with a higher incidence of blood loss (-13, 6 95% CI, p = 0.43, I2 18%), length of stay (-0.08, 0.06 95% CI, p = 0.73, I2 0%) or early postoperative complications. CONCLUSION: Concurrent robotic repair of an inguinal hernia during RALP appears feasible and safe. Urologists should be encouraged to repair hernias encountered during RALP keeping in mind possible complications including wound infection, mesh infection, chronic inguinal pain and recurrence of hernia.

Is primary ureteroscopy an alternative to emergency stenting in terms of quality and cost?

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this article was to investigate quality and cost benefits of managing urolithiasis by primary ureteroscopic procedures (P-URS) during index admission to hospital. With the rise in prevalence of urolithiasis, the focus has shifted to manage these patients during their first admission rather than using temporary measures like emergency stenting (ES) or nephrostomies which are followed by deferred ureteroscopic procedures (D-URS). We compared results of P-URS, D-URS and ES procedures in terms of quality and cost benefits. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Data was collected retrospectively for all P-URS, D-URS and ES procedures performed during year 2019. A total of 85 patients underwent ES while as 138 patients underwent elective URS (26 had P-URS and 112 had D-URS). The quality assessment was based in relation to patient factors including- number of procedures per patient, number of days spent at hospital, number of days off work. Cost analysis included theatre and hospital stay expenses, loss of working days. RESULTS: This study revealed that the average hospital stay of patients on index admission who had a ES was 1.35 days (Total 3.85) and who had P-URS was 1.78 days (Total 2.78). Overall, additional expenditure in patients who did not undergo primary URS was in the range of 1800-2000€ (excluding loss of work for patients, who needed to return for multiple procedures). CONCLUSIONS: We conclude approach of P-URS and management of stones in index admission is very effective in both improving quality of patients as well as bringing down cost expenditure effectively.

Poly (ADP-Ribose) Polymerase Inhibitors: Talazoparib in Ovarian Cancer and Beyond.

Genetic complexity and DNA damage repair defects are common in different cancer types and can induce tumor-specific vulnerabilities. Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors exploit defects in the DNA repair pathway through synthetic lethality and have emerged as promising anticancer therapies, especially in tumors harboring deleterious germline or somatic breast cancer susceptibility gene (BRCA) mutations. However, the utility of PARP inhibitors could be expanded beyond germline BRCA1/2 mutated cancers by causing DNA damage with cytotoxic agents in the presence of a DNA repair inhibitor. US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved PARP inhibitors include olaparib, rucaparib, and niraparib, while veliparib is in the late stage of clinical development. Talazoparib inhibits PARP catalytic activity, trapping PARP1/2 on damaged DNA, and it has been approved by the US FDA for the treatment of metastatic germline BRCA1/2 mutated breast cancers in October 2018. The talazoparib side effect profile more closely resembles traditional chemotherapeutics rather than other clinically approved PARP inhibitors. In this review, we discuss the scientific evidence that has emerged from both experimental and clinical studies in the development of talazoparib. Future directions will include optimizing combination therapy with chemotherapy, immunotherapies and targeted therapies, and in developing and validating biomarkers for patient selection and stratification, particularly in malignancies with 'BRCAness'.

Cognitive training: How can it be adapted for surgical education?

BACKGROUND: There is a need for new approaches to surgical training in order to cope with the increasing time pressures, ethical constraints, and legal limitations being placed on trainees. One of the most interesting of these new approaches is "cognitive training" or the use of psychological processes to enhance performance of skilled behaviour. Its ability to effectively improve motor skills in sport has raised the question as to whether it could also be used to improve surgical performance. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the current evidence on the use of cognitive training within surgery, and evaluate the potential role it can play in surgical education. METHODS: Scientific database searches were conducted to identify studies that investigated the use of cognitive training in surgery. The key studies were selected and grouped according to the type of cognitive training they examined. RESULTS: Available research demonstrated that cognitive training interventions resulted in greater performance benefits when compared to control training. In particular, cognitive training was found to improve surgical motor skills, as well as a number of non-technical outcomes. Unfortunately, key limitations restricting the generalizability of these findings include small sample size and conceptual issues arising from differing definitions of the term 'cognitive training'. CONCLUSIONS: When used appropriately, cognitive training can be a highly effective supplementary training tool in the development of technical skills in surgery. Although further studies are needed to refine our understanding, cognitive training should certainly play an important role in future surgical education.

Adams-Oliver syndrome.

A new-born male baby with typical features of Adams-Oliver syndrome (AOS) is described. Adams-Oliver syndrome is the association of aplasia cutis congenita with terminal transverse limb reduction defects with or without cutis marmorata telangiectatica congenita. The patient presented with brachydactyly involving all the digits of his hands and shortening of both big toes along with aplasia cutis on the scalp. There was no systemic involvement. The patient was placed on regular follow-up.