Use of artificial intelligence in the management of T1 colorectal cancer: a new tool in the arsenal or is deep learning out of its depth?

The field of artificial intelligence is rapidly evolving, and there has been an interest in its use to predict the risk of lymph node metastasis in T1 colorectal cancer. Accurately predicting lymph node invasion may result in fewer patients undergoing unnecessary surgeries; conversely, inadequate assessments will result in suboptimal oncological outcomes. This narrative review aims to summarize the current literature on deep learning for predicting the probability of lymph node metastasis in T1 colorectal cancer, highlighting areas of potential application and barriers that may limit its generalizability and clinical utility.

Short- and long-term predictors of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis in Singapore

INTRODUCTION@#Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) is the commonest complication of liver cirrhosis. Timely and appropriate treatment of SBP is crucial, particularly with the rising worldwide prevalence of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs). We aimed to investigate the clinical outcomes of SBP in Singapore.@*METHODS@#All cirrhotic patients with SBP diagnosed between January 2014 and December 2017 were included. Nosocomial SBP (N-SBP) was defined as SBP diagnosed more than 48 hours after hospitalisation. Clinical outcomes were analysed as categorical outcomes using univariate and multivariate analysis.@*RESULTS@#There were 33 patients with 39 episodes of SBP. Their mean age was 64.5 years and 69.7% were male. The commonest aetiology of cirrhosis was hepatitis B (27.3%). The Median Model for End-stage Liver Disease (MELD) score was 17; 33.3% had acute-on-chronic liver failure and 60.6% had septic shock at presentation. N-SBP occurred in 25.6% of SBP cases. N-SBP was more commonly associated with MDROs, previous antibiotic use in the past three months (p = 0.014) and longer length of stay (p = 0.011). The 30-day and 90-day mortality among SBP patients was 30.8% and 51.3%, respectively. MELD score > 20 was a predictor for 30-day mortality. N-SBP and MELD score > 20 were predictors for 90-day mortality.@*CONCLUSION@#N-SBP was significantly associated with recent antibiotic use, longer hospitalisation, more resistant organisms and poorer survival among patients with SBP. N-SBP and MELD score predict higher mortality in SBP. Judicious use of antibiotics may reduce N-SBP and improve survival among cirrhotic patients.