Laparoscopic intra-abdominal patent processus vaginalis ligation in pediatric urology practice.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: Inguinal hernias and communicating hydroceles from a patent processus vaginalis (PPV) are common problems in children. This study provides a detailed description of the laparoscopic intra-abdominal patent processus vaginalis ligation (LIPPL) procedure along with its results in pediatric urology patients. METHODS: Prospectively collected data were captured from children (<18 years) who underwent LIPPL from 2012 to 2014. Demographics as well as postoperative characteristics were reviewed and descriptively analyzed. LIPPL is performed using a 5-mm camera through the umbilicus. A loop of polypropylene suture is passed through a spinal needle percutaneously on one side of the internal ring. The needle is reinserted on the opposite side and the tail of the suture is fed through the original loop such that a purse-string is created around the peritoneum of the internal ring above the spermatic vessels and the vas; the suture is tied extracorporeally. RESULTS: 142 patients (3 female) were evaluated with 197 PPV sites repaired using LIPPL at median 24 (1-216) months of age. Median operating time was 35 (20-91) and 43 (27-85) minutes for unilateral and bilateral repairs, respectively. There were no intraoperative complications. During the 14 (1-34) months from surgery, there were no hernia recurrences, one surgical site infection, seven patients with residual small non-communicating hydroceles, and one patient who developed a suture granuloma. CONCLUSIONS: LIPPL is a safe and effective technique with minimal rate of hernia recurrence and few complications. LIPPL allows for easy repair of all sizes of PPV, with patients receiving the benefits of minimally invasive surgery including the ability to evaluate the contralateral inguinal ring.

A case of uncomplicated urinary myiasis in a healthy female.

Myiasis is the infestation of a mammal by fly larvae which thrive by feeding on, and occupying the host. Largely a problem in livestock, human infestations in rural tropical areas of the globe are not uncommon. Myiasis may involve the skin, eyes, nasal passages, gastrointestinal and genitourinary tracts. Cases of urinary myiasis are rare in the USA; however, it may occur in immunocompromised hosts, those with previous urologic instrumentation or those with poor socioeconomic status. We present a case of successful outpatient treatment of urinary myiasis in an immunocompetent female without prior urological history.

Prostate cancer: endogenous chemical castration.

We report treatment of intermediate risk prostate cancer in a patient with a brief period of androgen deprivation secondary to a pituitary adenoma. This was a patient with intermediate risk prostate cancer diagnosed in the setting of an elevated prostate-specific antigen (PSA). The patient subsequently demonstrated a decline in PSA along with symptoms of hypogonadism and visual disturbance, and was consequently found to have a pituitary tumour. Trans-sphenoidal resection of the sellar mass was performed with normalisation of hormone profiles. The patient subsequently completed a course of radiation therapy for prostate cancer with PSA nadir to undetectable levels without evidence of biochemical recurrence at 7 months follow-up.

Outcomes of Autologous Fascia Pubovaginal Sling for Patients with Transvaginal Mesh Related Complications Requiring Mesh Removal.

PURPOSE: We reviewed the outcomes of the autologous fascial pubovaginal sling as a salvage procedure for recurrent stress incontinence after intervention for polypropylene mesh erosion/exposure and/or bladder outlet obstruction in patients treated with prior transvaginal synthetic mesh for stress urinary incontinence. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a review of surgical databases at 2 institutions between January 2007 and June 2013 we identified 46 patients who underwent autologous fascial pubovaginal sling following removal of transvaginal synthetic mesh in simultaneous or staged fashion. This cohort of patients was evaluated for outcomes, including subjective and objective success, change in quality of life and complications between those who underwent staged vs concomitant synthetic mesh removal with autologous fascial pubovaginal sling placement. RESULTS: All 46 patients had received at least 1 prior mesh sling for incontinence and 8 (17%) had received prior transvaginal polypropylene mesh for pelvic organ prolapse repair. A total of 30 patients underwent concomitant mesh incision with or without partial excision and autologous sling placement while 16 underwent staged autologous sling placement. Mean followup was 16 months. Of the patients 22% required a mean of 1.8 subsequent interventions an average of 6.5 months after autologous sling placement with no difference in median quality of life at final followup. At last followup 42 of 46 patients (91%) and 35 of 46 (76%) had achieved objective and subjective success, respectively. There was no difference in subjective success between patients treated with a staged vs a concomitant approach (69% vs 80%, p = 0.48). CONCLUSIONS: Autologous fascial pubovaginal sling placement after synthetic mesh removal can be performed successfully in patients with stress urinary incontinence as a single or staged procedure.

Emergent ureteric stent vs percutaneous nephrostomy for obstructive urolithiasis with sepsis: patterns of use and outcomes from a 15-year experience.

OBJECTIVES: To characterize the use of emergent JJ ureteric stent placement and percutaneous nephrostomy (PCN) for patients with obstructive urolithiasis with sepsis, and to determine whether outcomes differ between the two treatment methods. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 130 patients with obstructive urolithiasis and systemic inflammatory response syndrome criteria were identified retrospectively from a single health system database from 1995 to 2011. Primary outcomes included stone-related and clinical variables which predicted the use of each treatment method. Secondary outcomes included the length of hospital stay, risk of intensive care unit (ICU) admission, and surgical approach used for definitive stone management. RESULTS: The overall rate of failed procedures was 2.3% (3/130), with one in-hospital death (0.8%). Patients treated with PCN had larger stones (10 vs 7 mm, P = 0.031), and were more acutely ill (acute physiology, age, chronic health evaluation [APACHE] II scores of 15 vs 11, P = 0.036) than those treated with JJ stent placement. Patients treated with PCN were more likely to require ICU admission (odds ratio: 3.23, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.24-8.41, P = 0.016), and demonstrated longer length of hospital stay (ß: 0.47, 95% CI: 0.20-0.74, P = 0.001), even when adjusting for age, APACHE II score, and Charlson Comorbidity Index score. After resolution of sepsis, patients treated with PCN were more likely to be treated definitively with a percutaneous approach, while patients treated with JJ stent placement were more likely to be treated ureteroscopically. CONCLUSIONS: Both JJ stent placement and PCN drainage appear effective. Patients with larger stones and who are more acutely ill are more likely to be treated with PCN. Additional randomized clinical trials of adequate power are warranted to define the optimum management of these often complex cases.

Increasing dwell time of mitomycin C in the upper tract with a reverse thermosensitive polymer.

UNLABELLED: Abstract Background and Purpose: Topical chemotherapy for urothelial cancer is dependent on adequate contact time of the chemotherapeutic agent with the urothelium. To date, there has not been a reliable method of maintaining this contact for renal or ureteral urothelial carcinoma. We evaluated the safety and feasibility of using a reverse thermosensitive polymer to improve dwell times of mitomycin C (MMC) in the upper tract. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using a porcine model, four animals were treated ureteroscopically with both upper urinary tracts receiving MMC mixed with iodinated contrast. One additional animal received MMC percutaneously. The treatment side had ureteral outflow blocked with a reverse thermosensitive polymer plug. MMC dwell time was monitored fluoroscopically and intrarenal pressures measured. Two animals were euthanized immediately, and three animals were euthanized 5 days afterward. RESULTS: In control kidneys, drainage occurred at a mean of 5.3±0.58 minutes. Intrarenal pressures stayed fairly stable: 9.7±14.0 cm H20. In treatment kidneys, dwell time was extended to 60 minutes, when the polymer was washed out. Intrarenal pressures in the treatment kidneys peaked at 75.0±14.7 cm H20 and reached steady state at 60 cm H20. Pressures normalized after washout of the polymer with cool saline. Average washout time was 11.8±9.6 minutes. No histopathologic differences were seen between the control and treatment kidneys, or with immediate compared with delayed euthanasia. CONCLUSIONS: A reverse thermosensitive polymer can retain MMC in the upper urinary tract and appears to be safe from our examination of intrarenal pressures and histopathology. This technique may improve the efficacy of topical chemotherapy in the management of upper tract urothelial carcinoma.

Novel factor-loaded polyphosphazene matrices: potential for driving angiogenesis.

Currently employed bone tissue engineered scaffolds often lack the potential for vascularization, which may be enhanced through the incorporation of and regulated release of angiogenic factors. For this reason, the objective here was to fabricate and characterize protein-loaded amino acid ester polyphosphazene (Pphos)-based scaffolds and evaluate the novel sintering method used for protein incorporation, a method which will ultimately allow for the incorporation of proangiogenic agents. To test the hypothesis, Pphos and their composite microspheres with nanocrystalline hydroxyapatite (Pphos-HAp) were fabricated via the emulsion solvent evaporation method. Next, bovine serum albumin (BSA)-containing microsphere matrices were created using a novel solvent-non-solvent approach for protein loading. The resulting protein (BSA) loaded circular porous microsphere based scaffolds were characterized for morphology, porosity, protein structure, protein distribution and subsequent protein release pattern. Scanning electron microscopy revealed porous microsphere scaffolds with a smooth surface and sufficient level of sintering, illustrated by fusion of adjacent microspheres. The porosity measured for the poly(ethyl phenylalanato:glycinato)phosphazene (PNPhGly) and poly(ethyl phenylalanato:glycinato)phosphazene-hydroxyapatite (PNPhGly-HAp) scaffolds were 23 +/- 0.11% and 18 +/- 4.02%, respectively, and within the range of trabecular bone. Circular dichroism confirmed an intact secondary protein structure for BSA following the solvent sintering method used for loading and confocal microscopy verified that FITC-BSA was successfully entrapped both between adjacent microspheres and within the surface of the microspheres while sintering. For both Pphos and their composite microsphere scaffolds, BSA was released at a steady rate over a 21 day time period, following a zero order release profile. HAp particles in the composite scaffolds served to improve the release profile pattern, underscoring the potential of HAp for growth factor delivery. Moreover, the results of this work suggest that the solvent-non-solvent technique for protein loading is an optimal one that will allow for future development of angiogenic factor-loaded Pphos matrices with the capacity to invoke neovascularization.

Nanomedicine: Addressing Cardiovascular Disease and Cardiovascular Tissue Regeneration.

Cardiovascular disease is becoming an increasingly significant problem. In attempts to overcome many of the traditional hurdles of cardiovascular disease treatment, therapeutic approaches have been gradually moving beyond an exclusive focus on orally delivered drugs towards the development of nanoscale applications. These technologies exploit molecular scale events to improve drug and gene delivery applications, enhance preventative medicine and diagnostic strategies, and create biomimicking substrates for vascular tissue engineering. As nanoscale treatments enter the arena of clinical medicine, new ways of thinking about and routes for applying nanomedicine to cardiovascular health issues are emerging. With focuses on drug delivery, gene therapy, and biomimetics, this article will provide a comprehensive review of various nanomedicine applications for combating atherosclerosis and for improving upon current vascular tissue engineering designs.