Incidence and related factors for intraoperative failed spinal anaesthesia for lower limb arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND: Spinal anaesthesia is the preferred choice for total hip- and knee arthroplasty (THA/TKA), due to the claimed superior outcome profile, relative simple technique and without the need for advanced airway support. However, choosing and informing about spinal anaesthesia should also include the risk for intraoperative failed spinal anaesthesia with associated pain, discomfort and suboptimal settings for airway management. Small-scale studies suggest incidences from 1 to 17%; however, no multi-institutional large data exists on failed spinal incidence and related factors during THA/TKA, hindering evidence-based information and potential anaesthesia stratification. METHODS: In a sub-analysis, data from a prospective study on spinal anaesthesia for THA/TKA were examined for incidence of intraoperative conversion to general anaesthesia. Potential perioperative factors (age, gender, American Society of Anaesthesiologist (ASA) score, height, weight, BMI, procedure, bupivacaine dosage and duration of time from spinal administration until end of surgery) were analysed with logistic regression for relation to failed spinal anaesthesia. RESULTS: In all, 1451 patients were included for analysis, whereof 57 (3.9%) had failed spinal anaesthesia. Spinal failure patients were significantly younger (61 vs. 67 years, P = 0.003), and operation time longer in the failed spinal group vs no-failure, respectively (133 vs. 89 min, P < 0.001). No significant differences were found with regard to bupivacaine volume, gender, ASA-score, height, weight, BMI or THA vs. TKA. CONCLUSION: Failed spinal anaesthesia for THA and TKA is a relatively frequent occurrence and identification of risk patients is not feasible. These results should be considered when choosing anaesthesia and included in the information to patients.

High Re-Operation Rates Using Conserve Metal-On-Metal Total Hip Articulations.

INTRODUCTION: Metal-on-metal hip articulations have been intensely debated after reports of adverse reactions and high failure rates. The aim of this study was to retrospectively evaluate the implant of a metal-on.metal total hip articulation (MOM THA) from a single manufacture in a two-center study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 108 CONSERVE(®) MOM THA were implanted in 92 patients between November 2005 and December 2010. Patients had at time of retrospective evaluation their journals reviewed for re-operations and adverse reactions. RESULTS: 20 hips were re-operated (18.4%) at a mean follow up of 53 months. 4 pseudotumors were diagnosed at time of follow up but no substantiated link was made between adverse reactions and re-operations. CONCLUSION: The high re-operation rates found in this study raised concern about the usage of the MOM THA and subsequently lead to the termination of implantation of this MOM THA at the two orthopaedic departments.

A genetic risk score of 45 coronary artery disease risk variants associates with increased risk of myocardial infarction in 6041 Danish individuals.

BACKGROUND: In Europeans, 45 genetic risk variants for coronary artery disease (CAD) have been identified in genome-wide association studies. We constructed a genetic risk score (GRS) of these variants to estimate the effect on incidence and clinical predictability of myocardial infarction (MI) and CAD. METHODS: Genotype was available from 6041 Danes. An unweighted GRS was constructed by making a summated score of the 45 known genetic CAD risk variants. Registries provided information (mean follow-up = 11.6 years) on CAD (n = 374) and MI (n = 124) events. Cox proportional hazard estimates with age as time scale was adjusted for sex, BMI, type 2 diabetes mellitus and smoking status. Analyses were also stratified either by sex or median age (below or above 45 years of age). We estimated GRS contribution to MI prediction by assessing net reclassification index (NRI) and integrated discrimination improvement (IDI) added to the European SCORE for 10-year MI risk prediction. RESULTS: The GRS associated significantly with risk of incident MI (allele-dependent hazard ratio (95%CI): 1.06 (1.02-1.11), p = 0.01) but not with CAD (p = 0.39). Stratification revealed association of GRS with MI in men (1.06 (1.01-1.12), p = 0.02) and in individuals above the median of 45.11 years of age (1.06 (1.00-1.12), p = 0.03). There was no interaction between GRS and gender (p = 0.90) or age (p = 0.83). The GRS improved neither NRI nor IDI. CONCLUSION: The GRS of 45 GWAS identified risk variants increase the risk of MI in a Danish cohort. The GRS did not improve NRI or IDI beyond the performance of conventional European SCORE risk factors.

A variant in the G6PC2/ABCB11 locus is associated with increased fasting plasma glucose, increased basal hepatic glucose production and increased insulin release after oral and intravenous glucose loads.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: An association between elevated fasting plasma glucose and the common rs560887 G allele in the G6PC2/ABCB11 locus has been reported. In Danes we aimed to examine rs560887 in relation to plasma glucose and serum insulin responses following oral and i.v. glucose loads and in relation to hepatic glucose production during a hyperinsulinaemic-euglycaemic clamp. Furthermore, we examined rs560887 for association with impaired fasting glycaemia (IFG), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), type 2 diabetes and components of the metabolic syndrome. METHODS: rs560887 was genotyped in the Inter99 cohort (n = 5,899), in 366 young, healthy Danes, in non-diabetic relatives of type 2 diabetic patients (n = 196), and in young and elderly twins (n = 159). Participants underwent an OGTT, an IVGTT or a 2 h hyperinsulinaemic-euglycaemic clamp. RESULTS: The rs560887 G allele associated with elevated fasting plasma glucose (p = 2 x 10(-14)) but not with plasma glucose levels at 30 min (p = 0.9) or 120 min (p = 0.9) during an OGTT. G allele carriers had elevated levels of serum insulin at 30 min during an OGTT (p = 1 x 10(-4)) and relatives of type 2 diabetes patients carrying the G allele had an increased acute insulin response (p = 4 x 10(-4)) during an IVGTT. Among elderly twins, G allele carriers had higher basal hepatic glucose production (p = 0.04). Finally, the G allele associated with the risk of having IFG (OR 1.26, 95% CI 1.08-1.47, p = 0.002), but not with IGT (OR 0.94, 95% CI 0.82-1.08, p = 0.4) or type 2 diabetes (OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.84-1.04, p = 0.2). CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: The common rs560887 G allele in the G6PC2/ABCB11 locus is associated with increased fasting glycaemia and increased risk of IFG, associations that may be partly related to an increased basal hepatic glucose production rate.

Impaction allografting for femoral revision hip arthroplasty. Mid-term results after minimum five year follow-up in 46 cases.

Previously, only short-term follow-up results after femoral revision using impacted allograft and cemented stems the exchange technique have been published. We present the results of 46 femoral exchange revision procedures performed on 42 patients with five to nine years follow-up. At follow-up, five patients had died and two patients did not complete follow-up. Two patients were re-revised. One patient underwent re-revision due to early collapse of the impaction construct. In another patient, stem loosening due to acetabular revision occurred and a full re-revision of the impaction area was performed. One patient suffered late post-operative femoral fracture and three patients experienced hip dislocations. Ninety percent expressed satisfaction with the result. Harris Hip Score (HHS) improved from 36 to 82 (p < 0.001). Radiographically, one patient demonstrated stem subsidence of greater than 5mm. Eighty-six percent demonstrated signs of graft incorporation and only one patient demonstrated signs of loosening. Our results after a minimum of five years follow-up of patients surgically treated with the exchange femoral revision technique demonstrated good clinical and radiological results. With a re-revision rate of 4.3%, one case with subsidence exceeding 5 mm and one case with diaphyseal fracture, we did not observe the problems of subsidence and femoral fractures described in previous studies. (Hip International 2002; 4: 357-64).

[Open tension-free hernioplasty using mesh in the treatment of inguinal hernia in adults]. / Aben tensionsfri hernioplastik med anvendelse af meche ved lyskebrok hos voksne.

Open tension-free inguinal mesh repair is a new operative procedure in Denmark. During 1993 the author performed 20 procedures in 19 men with inguinal hernias, of which seven were direct and 13 indirect. Five of the hernias were recurrent and one patient had bilateral hernias. The median operation time was 30 minutes from skin incision to closure. The recovery time was short and the complications were few and insignificant. No infections occurred. One patient operated for an indirect hernia complained of recurrency. Reoperation was performed laparoscopically and a femoral hernia, obviously overlooked at the primary operation, was found. There were no other recurrencies. Thus, tension-free open inguinal hernial repair seems to be a safe and easy procedure with few complications and no early recurrency.

Propranolol may prevent recurrence of oesophageal varices after obliteration by endoscopic sclerotherapy.

In 29 patients admitted with their first bleeding episode from oesophageal varices the varices were obliterated within 6 months by treatment with serial endoscopic sclerotherapy and propranolol or with sclerotherapy only. The patients were checked regularly during 18 months after the varices had been obliterated. Variceal recurrence was found in 11 patients (73%; 95% confidence limits, 45-92%) treated with sclerotherapy only and in 2 patients (15%; 95% confidence limits, 2-43%; p less than 0.01) treated with sclerotherapy and propranolol. In nine patients (69%) with recurrence significant variceal bleeding occurred. All recurrences were observed within 12 months after the initial obliteration. Variceal recurrence occurred in 3 Child A patients and in 10 Child B or C patients. All bleeding occurred in Child B or C patients. It is concluded that obliteration of oesophageal varices by endoscopic sclerotherapy and propranolol may be more effective in the long-term control of variceal recurrence than treatment with sclerotherapy only.

Propranolol in prevention of rebleeding from oesophageal varices during the course of endoscopic sclerotherapy.

Thirty-one patients admitted with the first bleeding episode from oesophageal varices were randomized in a double-blind manner to receive oral propranolol, 160 mg daily, for 6 months (n = 15) or matching placebo (n = 16) for the same period. Endoscopy was performed each month during the 6 months and additionally after a further 3 months. The oesophageal varices were injected paravariceally with 2% aethoxysclerol until obliteration. If rebleeding occurred, additional sclerotherapy was performed. In the group treated with sclerotherapy and propranolol 3 patients rebled (20%; 95% confidence limits, 4%-48%), whereas 12 patients treated with sclerotherapy and placebo rebled (75%; 95% confidence limits, 48%-93%; p less than 0.05). There were no side effects to treatment in either of the groups, and it is concluded that administration of propranolol reduces the frequency of variceal rebleeding before variceal obliteration during a course of endoscopic sclerotherapy.

Endoscopic, portographic, and hemodynamic evaluation of prolonged propranolol administration in pigs with experimental portal hypertension and esophageal varices.

The effect of long-term propranolol administration on esophageal varices, portocollateral shunting, portal pressure, hepatosplanchnic hemodynamics, and liver function was studied in a pig model with experimentally induced prehepatic portal hypertension and esophageal varices. Five pigs were treated with 160 mg propranolol daily from week 5 to week 24 after portal-vein banding, and five pigs served as nontreated controls. Administration of propranolol caused an initial, significant reduction (20%) of portal venous pressure, followed by a gradual increase to levels not different from control pressures. In contrast, a marked reduction of the caliber of the coronary vein and size of the esophageal varices was noticed. Twenty weeks of propranolol treatment did not change liver blood flow or liver function. We conclude that the size of the varices rather than portal venous pressure depicts the effect of propranolol treatment and suggest that the beneficial effect of propranolol on variceal bleeding can be explained by a reduction in the wall tension of the varices, initiated and maintained by a diminution of splanchnic blood flow.

A prospective study of circulating immune complexes in patients with breast cancer.

Levels of circulating immune complex (cIC) and complement split product C3d were studied in 86 patients with breast cancer (BC), 22 patients with benign breast disease (BD), and 72 age- and sex-matched blood-bank donors (NC), using solid-phase Clq-protein A RIA, Clq-anti-IgG RIA, anti-C3d anti-IgG RIA, and polyclonal IgM-rheumatoid factor ELISA for clC detection. No significant differences in cIC and C3d levels were found between the groups. The incidence of raised cIC levels varied from 4.9 to 8.2% in the BC group and from 4.5 to 22.7% in the BD group in comparison with 2.9 to 3.0% in the NC group. Using the solid-phase polyclonal IgM-rheumatoid factor ELISA we found that the cIC levels of patients with stage-III cancer were significantly higher than those of patients with stage-I or stage-II cancer. However, the other tests showed no relationship to tumor burden. Likewise, an effect of mastectomy on the cIC levels was also only detectable by one of the assays, i.e., the post-mastectomy levels of cIC as measured by the solid-phase anti-C3d anti-IgG RIA were significantly lower than the pre-mastectomy levels. Serial analyses of cIC and C3d levels were performed pre-operatively, one month post-operatively and every 3 months during the first year after mastectomy in 46 of the patients. During a I-year observation period, 7 patients developed metastatic disease. The occurrence of metastatic disease was not, however, preceded by characteristic changes in serially determined cIC and C3d levels.

Effect of endoscopic sclerotherapy of esophageal varices on liver blood flow and liver function. An experimental study.

In 10 Göttingen mini-pigs esophageal varices developed after banding of the portal vein. In five pigs the varices were treated by paravariceal injection of polidocanol, and the rest served as controls. As judged from endoscopy and portography, the varices disappeared after four sclerotherapy sessions within 4 weeks, and at the same time portal venous pressure rose from 19 to 38 mm Hg. No changes were seen in the control group. After 24 weeks of observation the hepatic blood flow in the untreated group was 10 ml/kg/min, and portal angiography showed that nearly all the portal blood bypassed the liver. In the pigs treated with sclerotherapy the hepatic blood flow increased to 28 ml/kg/min, angiography showed a normal hepatogram, and no filling of the collaterals was seen. Sclerotherapy induced only a few changes in liver function, and these may be related to the concomitant increase in liver blood flow.

Endoscopic sclerotherapy or selective embolisation of esophageal varices. An endoscopic and portographic study in an experimental model.

In an experimental animal model with portal hypertension and esophageal varices, endoscopic sclerotherapy of the varices with Aethoxysclerol was compared with selective embolisation of the coronary vein with absolute ethanol. After 4 courses of endoscopic sclerotherapy the varices were permanently obliterated, as documented by portography and endoscopy. Selective embolisation also caused obliteration of the coronary vein and varices, but early and repeated recanalisation occurred, and permanent obliteration was only obtained when embolisation was combined with endoscopic sclerotherapy. Portal vein thrombosis occurred when embolisation was repeated more than 3 times. Hepatic blood flow was significantly higher in animals treated by endoscopic sclerotherapy than in nontreated controls and animals treated by selective embolisation alone.

Chronic portal venous hypertension. The effect on liver blood flow and liver function and the development of esophageal varices.

Portal venous hypertension was induced in Göttingen minipigs by banding the portal vein. The pigs were checked repeatedly during the following 24 weeks. Portal pressure increased immediately on banding, from 8.4 +/- 0.7 mm Hg to 19.4 +/- 0.7 mm Hg, and remained constant throughout the observation period. Within 5 weeks all pigs developed esophageal varices, as demonstrated by portal angiography and endoscopy. The experimentally induced portal hypertension was accompanied by a 65% decrease in hepatic blood flow, most probably caused by almost complete shunting of portal venous blood. The hepatic arterial flow appeared to be within normal limits and sufficient to cover the oxygen demand of the liver; to judge from the splanchnic elimination rate of galactose, the hemodynamic changes did not affect the functional capacity of the liver.

Effect of acute portal hypertension on hepatosplanchnic hemodynamics and liver function.

Acute prehepatic portal hypertension was mechanically induced in Göttingen minipigs. A 125% increase in portal pressure resulted in a significant decrease in estimated hepatic blood flow. The decrease in blood flow was accompanied by a 25% reduction in the 'true' clearance of indocyanine green and an 18% decrease in splanchnic oxygen consumption. Judged from the splanchnic elimination rate of galactose, the functional liver cell mass was not altered by portal banding, and an unaltered lactate to pyruvate ratio in hepatic venous blood indicated that no functional parts of the liver became severely hypoxic.

Malignant degeneration in cryptorchid testes. A report of two cases.

In two patients with cryptorchism orchidectomy was performed because of testicular atrophy and torsion respectively. From the macroscopic appearance malignancy was not expected in either of the cases, but histological examination showed invasive carcinoma. This indicates that biopsies should be taken whenever operations are performed on cryptorchid testes, and it may be of importance to biopt all cryptorchid testes at a certain age.