The effects of oral pregabalin on post-Lichtenstein herniorrhaphic pain: a randomized clinical trial.

Background Pregabalin is a gamma-aminobutyric acid analog which seems to be effective in different neuropathic pains, as well as in incisional and inflammatory injuries. This study evaluated the effectiveness and safety of pregabalin on pain relief post herniorrhaphy. Methods In this randomized clinical trial, 60 men were chosen for unilateral inguinal herniorrhaphy under spinal anesthesia. The participants were randomly divided into two groups. The investigation (pregabalin) group received 300 mg of oral pregabalin 2 h before and 150 mg of pregabalin 12 and 24 h after surgery in addition to routine postoperative medication and 1 mg/kg of pethidine as needed. The control (placebo) group received placebo capsules similar to the investigation group, as well as routine medication and 1 mg/kg of pethidine as needed. All surgeries were done with the same technique. Post-surgery pain was evaluated in the walking and lying positions with a visual analog scale at 12 and 24 h and at 3 and 7 days after the surgery. Pethidine consumption and adverse effects of pregabalin were also assessed. Results The investigation group had less pain and lower visual analog scale scores at 12 and 24 h and also at 3 days after surgery and consumed less pethidine compared to the control group (p<0.05). Conclusions Pregabalin reduces pain and opioid consumption in the first 3 days after surgery. The adverse effects of pregabalin are limited to the first 12 h after surgery. Pregabalin can be suggested for pain relief, but it should be used with caution in the elderly.

Correcting Flank Skin Laxity and Dog Ear Plus Aggressive Liposuction: A Technique for Classic Abdominoplasty in Middle-Eastern Obese Women.

BACKGROUND: Nowadays obesity is a common problem as it leads to abdominal deformation and people's dissatisfaction of their own body. This study has explored using a new surgical technique based on a different incision to reform the flank skin laxity and dog ear plus aggressive liposuction on women with abdominal deformities. METHODS: From May 2014 to February 2016, 25 women were chosen for this study. All women had a body mass index more than 28 kg/m2, flank folding, bulging and excess fat, abdominal and flank skin sagging and laxity. An important point of the new technique was that the paramedian perforator was preserved. RESULTS: All women were between 33 and 62 years old (mean age of 47±7.2 years old). The average amount of liposuction aspirate was 2,350 mL (1700-3200 mL), and the size of average excised skin ellipse was 23.62×16.08 cm (from 19×15 to 27×18 cm). Dog ear, skin laxity, bulging and fat deposit correction were assessed and scored in two and four months after the surgery. CONCLUSION: Aggressive abdominal and flank liposuction can be safely done when paramedian perforator is preserved. This has a good cosmetic result in the abdomen and flank and prevents bulging in the incision end and flank. Using this abdominoplasty technique is recommended on patients with high body mass indexes.

Reconstructing a Giant Frontal Osteoma With Porex.

Osteomas are the most common benign tumors of the paranasal sinuses. They are usually localized in the frontal sinus. Giant osteomas of the frontal sinuses are very rare but readily extend into the intraorbital or intracranial cavity, causing serious complications. This is a report of a 14 year-old boy with a bulging in frontal area and asymptomatic giant osteoma of the frontal sinuses. He had a history of minor trauma that had a bulging after 3 months. However, he referred to a plastic surgeon after 15 months. Computed tomography of the sinuses revealed a 3.5 × 6 cm extremely dense bony mass in the frontal sinus that extended into the left orbit and ethmoid sinus. A bicoronal frontal flap was raised with a V-shaped skin incision starting from the tragus placed 5 cm posterior to the hairline. The osteoma was resected completely in the frontal sinus and the anterior wall of frontal sinus was reconstructed with Porex. The patient has not had any complications until the time of writing this report. Titanium mesh may still be a valuable option, but Medpore Porex has shown to be quite effective in this case.

Comparison of the Application of Allogeneic Fibroblast and Autologous Mesh Grafting With the Conventional Method in the Treatment of Third-Degree Burns.

Wound healing is a multipart process involving different cell types and growth factors. Third-degree burns are usually treated by early excision and skin grafting. Tissue engineering has been developed in this field in response to limitations associated with autografts. Allogeneic fibroblasts on meshed split thickness skin grafts (STSGs) are known to have useful properties in wound healing and can be used to construct a new model of living skin substitute. Fourteen patients were chosen from June 2009 until December 2010 as the sample for this study. After debridement and wound excision, meshed STSG was used to cover the entire wound. Alloskin (allofibroblasts cultured on a combination of silicone and glycosaminoglycan) was applied on one side and petroleum jelly-impregnated gauze (Iran Polymer and Petrochemical Institute) was applied on the other. The healing time, scar formation, and pigmentation score were assessed for the patients. All analyses were undertaken with SPSS 17 software. Alloskin demonstrated good properties compared to petroleum jelly-impregnated gauze. The average healing time and hypertrophic scar formation were significantly different between the two groups. In addition, the skin pigmentation score in the alloskin group was closer to normal. Alloskin grafting, including fibroblasts on meshed STSG, may be a useful method to reduce healing time and scar size and may require less autologous STSG in extensive burns where a high percentage of skin is burned and there is a lack of available donor sites.

Complex technique of large sural flap: an alternative option for free flap in large defect of the traumatized foot.

The distally based sural fasciocutaneous flap has become a main part of the reconstruction of the lower leg, heel and foot. However, perfusion problems and venous congestion have been reported. Over the past decade, several flap modifications have been reported to improve flap viability and to solve a myriad of reconstructive needs. The purpose of this paper is to describe our experience in harvesting the reversed large sural flap from the proximal and middle third of the leg for large defects on the foot. We applied the extended reversed sural flap from the proximal third of the leg in traumatized patients which had large defects on their foot. The technique was done in 3 parts: 1- the flaps were designed in the proximal third of the leg five centimeter lipofascial tissue was protected around the pedicle in distal part; 3- The pivot point was located in seven to eight cm proximal the lateral malleolus before the first fasciocutaneous perforators arising from the peroneal artery. Sural flaps from the proximal and middle third of the leg were designed in13 patients who had large defects on their foot. No flap necrosis or split thickness skin graft loss occurred. The flaps healed by the 3rd week excluding two patients. This study supports the application of our technique as a safe, easy and useable method in large defects of the foot. The results showed low rates of ischemia, venous congestion, dehiscence, infection and flap necrosis. Proximal extended and large distally based sural flap is an alternative to free tissue transfer for large defect reconstruction of the foot.

Parachute technique: a complimentary method in zone II tendon repair.

Flexor tendon lacerations still represent a challenging problem for the hand and the plastic surgeon, particularly in zone II. Many techniques have been devised accordingly to make the surgery of this zone easier. Hence, we too have devised an added complementary technique (ie, the parachute technique) to the common surgical techniques of the tendon repair to ease the repairing process and improve the outcomes. In this study, 79 patients, from whom 21 patients had 2 injured fingers, with flexor tendon injury in zone II (ie, 100 fingers) underwent this new technique. Finally, the results were hopeful. Thus, this complementary parachute technique combined with an early active mobilization with almost full range of flexion and extension, starting on the first postoperative day, resulted in improved outcomes compared with both passive mobilization and gentle active mobilization with a limited range of motion (ie, "controlled"). The Strickland formula (total active motion) system was used to evaluate the functional results of the flexor tendon repair. Finally, this technique is applicable for tendon repairs, and is shown to produce good results in their hands.

Purse-string suture as a complementary technique with conventional flaps in repairing fingertip amputation.

The main aim of the treatment in fingertip amputations is to establish the functional and aesthetic construction of the fingertip. The aim of this study is to discuss how to use purse-string suture as a complementary technique accompanying conventional flaps repair in fingertip amputation. Fifty-four patients with fingertip amputations on the nail bed referred to our center for fingertip reconstruction. From which 41 patients who had at least one-third of their nail remained (to preserve the nail) were chosen to undergo this new technique. Patient's satisfaction of the achieved functional results (in case of pain and motion) was as follows: 32 responded excellent, 8 good, and 1 fair. Also, patient's satisfaction of the achieved aesthetic results were Excellent = 7 and Good = 2 in females (n = 9) and Excellent = 19, Good = 7 and Fair = 6 in males (n = 32). 93% (38 patients) of the patients had two-point discriminationof less than 3 mm. No flap necrosis was observed in this study. The flap donor site was covered by primary closure (in 24 cases), secondary intention (in 11 cases), and skin graft (in 6 cases). The nail and finger contour are important for achieving a satisfying aesthetic and functional result. We believe that this new complementary technique could be an easy way for reaching this end. It is recommended that this technique be applied to all fingertip injuries to preserve the nail.

Spontaneous conversion of fibrous dysplasia into osteosarcoma.

Spontaneous degeneration of sarcomatosis of fibrous dysplasia is a rare phenomenon in adolescence. Fibrous dysplasia is often a deforming and devastating condition that begins in childhood and accounts for approximately 7.5% of the benign bone neoplasms. Approximately 50% to 100% of patients with polyostotic disease and 10% with monostotic disease have craniofacial involvement. This report is about a 16-year-old adolescent boy who had rapid facial mass growth and diplopia at the time of his referral to our center. The patient had been diagnosed with fibrous dysplasia a year earlier, and since the first diagnosis, he was submitted to only 1 surgical intervention, which had been followed by recurrence. The main clinical findings were a bilateral zygomatic mass, saddling of the nasal dorsum, diplopia, superior and inferior gaze, and numbness in the right inferior orbital nerve. The patient had a high level of serum alkaline phosphatase. The diagnosis of osteosarcoma was established by biopsy, and the patient underwent surgical treatment. His postsurgery results were good, and he did not experience a relapse until 1 year after surgery. Unfortunately, 6 months after the recurrence of his condition, he died of uncontrollable local spread.

Re-creation of the Inframammary Fold, Breast Mound, and Projection by the Latissimus Dorsi Musculocutaneous Flap in Burned Breasts.

OBJECTIVE: Some of the most difficult problems to solve in a postburn breast are the correction of the breast mound deficiency, contour, and projection deformity, which are often associated with an anterior trunk scar. The aim of this study was to describe our experiences of postburn breast reconstruction by the island latissimus dorsi musculocutaneous flap (LDMCF). METHOD: Operative procedures were planned after measuring the volume, dimensions, sternal notch-to-nipple distance, deviation, asymmetry, contour, and projection. Scar contracture release was carried out and complete muscle elevation was performed in all patients. The size of the skin paddle depended on the envelope deficiency. Afterward, LDMCF was transferred by a subcutaneous tunneling, and the muscle was sutured in retroglandular, inferomedial, and inferolateral ways to shape the inframammary fold (IMF) contour, breast mound, and projection. The skin of the flap was trimmed to match the envelope deficiency. RESULT: A total of 9 burned patients (11 breasts), who had burnt anterior trunks due to scalds and flame, entered the study. They were reconstructed by LDMCF. The patients achieved breast contour (re-creating the IMF), projection, and breast mound increase. The means of breast mound and projection increase were about 140 mL and 2.5 cm, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that the method used for reconstructing the burned breast depends on the patient's clinical presentation. For the patients with anterior trunk scar who have breast mound deficiency, IMF, and projection deformity, LDMCF is one of the best options of reconstruction.

Comparisons of medicinal leech therapy with venous catheterization in the treatment of venous congestion of the sural flap.

INTRODUCTION: The originally described distally based sural flap technique has a risk of partial or total flap necrosis as high as 25%. The purpose of this study was to compare the medicinal leech therapy (MLT) with venous catheterization (VC) for blood volume removal, infection, wound dehiscence, and flap necrosis in the distally based sural flap with venous congestion. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty-six conventional distally based sural flaps with venous congestion during reconstructive surgeries were randomly divided into two groups, MLT group and VC group. The results of comparisons were analyzed using SPSS software (SPSS for Windows Ver.11.5). RESULTS: There were significant differences in terms of the average volume of removed blood (53.6cc vs.172.2cc), infection (10.7% vs. 34.6%), wound dehiscence (10.7% vs. 42.3%), flap necrosis (3.6% vs. 19.2%), and nursing (7.8 vs. 5.19) and patient's satisfaction (8.03 vs. 5.6) in the VC group and MLT group, respectively. Although local heparin irrigation was performed in the VC group, the catheter was exchanged in 10 patients due to obstruction by clot. CONCLUSION: It is recommended that the VC be used for congested pedicled flaps instead of leech therapy, as VC is more effective, easy, and safe in blood removal, and it has less complication.

Unusual presentation of peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumor of the maxilla.

The peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumor (pPNET) is a rare and highly malignant soft tissue neoplasm in children and young adults. Fewer than 10 reported cases of pPNET of maxilla are available in the English literature. A 28-year-old woman was presented with the pPNET of the maxilla and metastasis. Two years after diagnosis, she experienced diplopia, and then magnetic resonance imaging was done, which showed a mass in the optic chiasma and parasellar region. The typical appearance resembled large noncalcified soft tissue masses in the magnetic resonance image and computed tomographic scan of the maxilla. Diagnosis was established by immunohistochemical features. She was treated with surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and gamma knife. She was under close observation since then (approximately 8 mo), and there has been no recurrence of tumor up to now.

End-to-side anastomosis for limb salvage in the single artery of a traumatized extremity.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this article is to describe and highlight our experience of end-to-side anastomosis technique in such cases for limbs salvage in the single artery of a traumatized extremity with free-flap transfer. METHODS: Thirty-two traumatized patients in need of free-flap transfer for their extremity reconstruction were referred to our hospital from March 2006 to November 2008. Angiography was performed in all patients. A single artery was confirmed in 11 cases (Gustilo IIIC). End-to-side anastomosis was applied for limb salvage in single-artery extremity reconstruction, such as preserving recipient's flow and preserving donor's flow in 11 patients. RESULTS: The anastomosis arteries included the popliteal artery (n=3), posterior tibial artery (n=2), peroneal artery (n=5) and radial artery (n=1). The mean time from the injury to the flap reconstruction was 34 days. All patients had severe fracture or bone deficit plus soft tissue defect. Postoperative hospital stay was 12-18 days. Time interval between the injury and referral was 27-45 days. Split thickness skin graft was performed in eight patients. CONCLUSION: Free-flap transfer by end-to-side anastomosis for limb salvage with a single artery is a safe procedure, so a vein graft and T and Y shape anastomosis are not necessary.

Comparing early oral feeding with traditional oral feeding in upper gastrointestinal surgery.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Due to the lack of interest in using early oral feeding and the need for a trial study in this regard, this study aimed to compare the outcome of early oral feeding and traditional oral feeding in patients with upper gastrointestinal surgery. METHODS: Fifty-two patients who underwent upper gastrointestinal surgery were randomly assigned into two groups in a consecutive manner as either the early oral feeding group or traditional oral feeding group. Tolerance of oral feeding, ileus, nausea and vomiting, post-operative stay, and complications were recorded. RESULTS: Tolerance of oral feeding for the two groups was 24 (92.3%) in the early oral feeding group and 21 (91.3%) in the traditional oral feeding group (p=0.89). The post-operative hospital stays were 5.62 and 8.04 days in the early oral feeding and traditional oral feeding groups, respectively (p<0.0001). There were significant differences between the two groups in terms of the time of the first gas passing/defecation, the post-operative hospital stays, starting time of oral feeding, and satisfaction regarding early nasogastric tube removal. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study show that early oral feeding is a safer and more cost-effective procedure in upper gastrointestinal surgery.

Epinephrine's effect in varying concentrations on the end artery organ in an animal model.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the concentration of epinephrine that causes end artery necrosis and ischemia. STUDY DESIGN: An experimental study. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: Animal Laboratory of Khordad Hospital, Tehran, Iran, from September 2007 to June 2008. METHODOLOGY: This study was done on 54 ear flaps from 9 rabbits [9 (rabbits) x2 (ears) x3 (splits) =54] divided into three groups of 18 ear flaps each. Nine of the ear flaps were randomized as control and nine of them were randomized as study group. The different concentrations of epinephrine and lidocaine 1% were injected in study groups but only 1% lidocaine was injected in control groups. Study group 1 received 1/200000, group 2 received 1/100000 and group 3 received 1/500000 concentration of epinephrine respectively. RESULTS: There was no evidence of necrosis in the control and study groups 1 and 2. However, 4 out of 9 of the ear flaps showed clear evidence of tissue necrosis in group 3. CONCLUSION: Injecting epinephrine in 1/200000 and 1/100000 concentrations had no side effect for the end artery of the rabbit ear flaps, but 1/50000 concentration is shown that it can cause tissue necrosis. Further studies need to be done in order to find out the effects of epinephrine with the same concentrations on the human end artery.

Preferred postpartum contraception methods and their practice among married women in Zanjan, Iran.

OBJECTIVES: To explore the preferences of women; once at the time of delivery and then three months later, in using contraceptive methods during post partum period. METHODS: A sample of 575 women who gave birth during July 2007 and February 2008 in Vali-Asre teaching hospital of Zanjan, were recruited and interviewed once after delivery and then three month later. The interview questions included demographic characteristic and questions assessing the tendency of mothers to use the contraceptives they preferred at time of delivery and three months later. RESULTS: According to 537 (93.4%) of interviewed mothers, they intended using at least one contraceptive after getting discharged from the hospital. This figure dropped to 438 (76.1%) three months after delivery. Women who expressed the desire to use minipill after delivery were 169 (29.3%). However this value rose to 187 (32.2%) three months later. The difference was not statistically significant. There was significant relationship between type of contraceptives used and women's age, number of children, place of residence and level of education three months following delivery. CONCLUSION: Results suggest that health care must focus extensively on giving necessary information and consultation to pregnant women also their partners to help to improve selection of most favourite and safe method of contraception.

Xenoderm versus 1% silver sulfadiazine in partial-thickness burns.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this clinical trial was to evaluate the effectiveness of using lyophilised porcine skin (Xenoderm) compared with 1% silver sulfadiazine (SSD) in partial-thickness burns with regard to wound infection, length of hospital stay, number of dressings and doses of analgesics used (oral and injection). METHODS: A total of 78 burns patients were included in this randomised study; their burns were caused by scalds or flames. They had second degree burns and had a burn area of 1060% of total body surface area (TBSA). Thirty-seven patients were treated with daily washing, followed by topical application of SSD dressing (the SSD group) and 39 with a biological dressing, i.e. Xenoderm (the Xenoderm group). The differences were evaluated using unpaired Student's t-test, Mann-Whitney U test and Chi-square test. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between the two groups with respect to age, gender, TBSA, cause of burn, and thickness of the burn or burn site. But there were significant differences regarding degree of wound infection, length of hospital stay, number of used dressings and given doses of analgesics. CONCLUSION: Xenoderm seems to be more effective than SSD dressing in terms of pain control, degree of wound infection, used wound dressings and length of hospital stay for partial-thickness burns. Prospective randomised studies are now necessary to compare possible reductions in the use of split thickness skin grafts and re-epithelialisation times.

Evaluate the outcome and identify predictive failure of outpatient laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the outcome of undertaking out-patient laparoscopic cholecystectomy (OLC) and identifying its predictive failures. METHODS: One hundred and forty-nine consecutive patients with symptomatic cholelithiasis scheduled for preplanned elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) from August 2004 to December 2006 were included in the study. Patients with associated severe diseases, ASA class III and IV who would have required post operative surgical care, residents of remote areas and other surgical reasoning were entered in Inpatient's Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy (ILC) group (n = 57) and others were enrolled in OLC group (n = 87). Five patients converted to open surgery and thus were excluded from the study. All patients were recruited during the initial outpatient visit and the full preoperative details were explained to them. All of the related factors of OLC were recorded in every visit. Significant differences were evaluated using Chi-square and fisher exact test. RESULTS: Eighty seven patients (58.3%) were selected for outpatient group from which 69 patients (79.3%) successfully underwent outpatient LC. Eighteen (20.7%) patients (failure rate) were not discharged at all. Comparing successful and unsuccessful OLC, the mean age was 41.1 +/- 12.7 vs 51.3 +/- 16.1 years (P = 0.005), also the mean operation time was 33.7 +/- 13.3 vs 33.1 +/- 13.8 minutes and the ability for oral intake existed in 66 patients (95.7%) vs 15 patients (83.3%) (P = 0.1) respectively. Pain was the most common cause of failure of OLC. CONCLUSIONS: OLC is safe and feasible with low readmission. It achieves high levels of patient satisfaction and acceptance, when patients are carefully selected. A prospective study with a larger sample size should be warranted to verify whether OLC can be useful for high age and high ASA class patients.

A biological dressing versus 'conventional' treatment in patients with massive burns: a clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: For many years, burns were treated by daily saline-soaked dressings until the burns healed primarily. Today, wounds are closed via grafting techniques, or by using synthetic and biological dressings. Due to less experience and interest in the use of biological dressing in developing countries, the aim of this study was to compare the outcome of biological dressings versus 'conventional' treatment in patients with massive burns. METHODS: One hundred eighteen patients with total body surface area (TBSA) burns of 30% to 75%, by flame or scalds, were investigated from October 2002 to June 2006. The patients were divided into two groups. Those in the first group received conventional treatment (n=53) and those in the second group (n=65) received treatment with a biological dressing (Xenoderm). RESULTS: Mortality rates in the conventional group and biological group were 19 (35%) and 7 (10.8%), respectively (p=0.001). The mean hospital stay was 31.3 days vs 18.2 days and the number of dressings was 22.1 vs 9.9, respectively (p=0.0005). CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate that a biological dressing (Xenoderm) gave a better outcome and lower mortality. However, a randomized clinical trial that compares the number of operations and decreasing need for split thickness skin grafts is warranted.

Outcome of laparoscopic cholecystectomy in acute and chronic cholecystitis.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the role of Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy (LC) in Acute Cholecystitis (AC) and Chronic Cholecystitis (CC) in terms of hospital stay, operation time, reason and rate of conversion and complications. DESIGN: Quasi experimental. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: Shafieeh Hospital, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran. The study was carried out prospectively between October 2003 and September 2006. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty patients with Acute Cholecystitis (AC) were admitted to the emergency and performed LC in the first 72 hours following admission labelled as Acute Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy (ALC). One hundred and forty-one patients with AC were admitted for chronic LC, labelled as Chronic Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy (CLC). Patients were excluded with bilirubin greater than 3.5 mg/dl, alkaline phosphates greater than 250 (UL), age >90 years, choledocholithiasis and biliary pancreatitis. Data were collected prospectively which included patients' demographics, medical history, presentation, operative and postoperative time. For the comparison of groups, chi-square analysis, the Student 't' test and Mann-Whitney U test were used. P-value less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The median of hospital stay were 2 and 3 days in CLC and ALC respectively (P=0.0005). The median of post operative stay were 0.83 and 1 day in CLC and ALC respectively (P=0.0005). The mean of operation time were 39.9, 58.8 minutes in CLC and ALC respectively. Conversion occurred in 5 (3.6%) patients in CLC and in 7 (14%) patients in ALC groups. Major complications were observed in 5 patients (3.6%) in CLC and 2 patients (5.1%) in ALC. 63 (46.3%) patients in CLC, 11 (22%) patients in ALC were discharged less than 10 hours after surgery. CONCLUSION: This study showed that statistical differences exist in hospital stay, operation time, reason and rate of conversion in two groups, but no such difference in major complications. Laparoscopy appears to be safe and good approach for emergency cholecystectomy in patients with acute cholecystitis.

Delay in diagnosis and treatment of gastric cancer: from the beginning of symptoms to surgery--an Iranian study.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: In developed countries, diagnosis of gastric cancer is performed in early stages through screening, and the five-year survival rate has risen to 86%. Although patients in developing countries have digestive symptoms for some time, they do not undergo early endoscopy. The patients refer to physicians in developed stages. This research was conducted to determine the median time of delay from the beginning of symptoms to surgery. METHODS: In this research, 63 patients suffering from gastric cancer were investigated during 2004-2005. A research questionnaire was completed from patient's admission to endoscopy until surgery through patient interview. Mann-Whitney statistical test and SPSS software were used for data analysis. RESULTS: Out of 63 patients, 48 (76.2%) were male and 43 (68.3%) were rural residents. The most common cancer area was cardia (31 patients) and the most common symptom was abdominal pain (28 patients). The results showed that the median total delay from the beginning of symptoms until surgery was 96 days. Median patient delay [from first symptom to presentation to general practitioner] was determined as 8 days, general practitioner delay (from the first referral to endoscopy) as 57 days, pathologist delay (from endoscopy to pathology confirmation) as 12 days, and surgeon delay (from pathology confirmation to surgery) as 7 days. Factors such as place of residence, education, income and gender had no significant effect on time of delay. CONCLUSIONS: Delays from referral to endoscopy performance and from performance of endoscopy to pathologic confirmation were higher than expected. A screening plan for timely referral of patients and performance of endoscopy seems essential. To reduce the time of delay, efforts such as physician education, cooperation between hospital units and pathologists and provision of necessary hospital equipment are highly recommended.