A Ventral Hernia Management Pathway; A "Getting It Right First Time" approach to Complex Abdominal Wall Reconstruction.

INTRODUCTION: Abdominal wall reconstruction (AWR) is an emerging specialty, involving complex multi-stage operations in patients with high medical and surgical risk. At our hospital, we have developed a growing interest in AWR, with a commitment to improving outcomes through a regular complex hernia MDT. An MDT approach to these patients is increasingly recognized as the path forward in management to optimize patients and improve outcomes. METHODS: We conducted a literature review and combined this with our experiential knowledge of managing these cases to create a pathway for the management of our abdominal wall patients. This was done under the auspices of GIRFT (Getting It Right First Time) as a quality improvement project at our hospital. RESULTS: We describe, in detail, our current AWR pathway, including the checklists and information documents we use with a stepwise evidence and experience-based approach to identifying the multiple factors associated with good outcomes. We explore the current literature and discuss our best practice pathway. CONCLUSION: In this emerging specialty, there is limited guidance on the management of these patients. Our pathway, the "Complex Hernia Bundle," currently provides guidance for our abdominal wall team and may well be one that could be adopted/adapted by other centers where challenging hernia cases are undertaken.

X-Ray Visible Protein Scaffolds by Bulk Iodination.

Protein-based biomaterial use is expanding within medicine, together with the demand to visualize their placement and behavior in vivo. However, current medical imaging techniques struggle to differentiate between protein-based implants and surrounding tissue. Here a fast, simple, and translational solution for tracking transplanted protein-based scaffolds is presented using X-ray CT-facilitating long-term, non-invasive, and high-resolution imaging. X-ray visible scaffolds are engineered by selectively iodinating tyrosine residues under mild conditions using readily available reagents. To illustrate translatability, a clinically approved hernia repair mesh (based on decellularized porcine dermis) is labeled, preserving morphological and mechanical properties. In a mouse model of mesh implantation, implants retain marked X-ray contrast up to 3 months, together with an unchanged degradation rate and inflammatory response. The technique's compatibility is demonstrated with a range of therapeutically relevant protein formats including bovine, porcine, and jellyfish collagen, as well as silk sutures, enabling a wide range of surgical and regenerative medicine uses. This solution tackles the challenge of visualizing implanted protein-based biomaterials, which conventional imaging methods fail to differentiate from endogenous tissue. This will address previously unanswered questions regarding the accuracy of implantation, degradation rate, migration, and structural integrity, thereby accelerating optimization and safe translation of therapeutic biomaterials.

Definitions for Loss of Domain: An International Delphi Consensus of Expert Surgeons.

BACKGROUND: No standardized written or volumetric definition exists for 'loss of domain' (LOD). This limits the utility of LOD as a morphological descriptor and as a predictor of peri- and postoperative outcomes. Consequently, our aim was to establish definitions for LOD via consensus of expert abdominal wall surgeons. METHODS: A Delphi study involving 20 internationally recognized abdominal wall reconstruction (AWR) surgeons was performed. Four written and two volumetric definitions of LOD were identified via systematic review. Panelists completed a questionnaire that suggested these definitions as standardized definitions of LOD. Consensus on a preferred term was pre-defined as achieved when selected by ≥80% of panelists. Terms scoring <20% were removed. RESULTS: Voting commenced August 2018 and was completed in January 2019. Written definition: During Round 1, two definitions were removed and seven new definitions were suggested, leaving nine definitions for consideration. For Round 2, panelists were asked to select all appealing definitions. Thereafter, common concepts were identified during analysis, from which the facilitators advanced a new written definition. This received 100% agreement in Round 3. Volumetric definition: Initially, panelists were evenly split, but consensus for the Sabbagh method was achieved. Panelists could not reach consensus regarding a threshold LOD value that would preclude surgery. CONCLUSIONS: Consensus for written and volumetric definitions of LOD was achieved from 20 internationally recognized AWR surgeons. Adoption of these definitions will help standardize the use of LOD for both clinical and academic activities.

A systematic methodological review of reported perioperative variables, postoperative outcomes and hernia recurrence from randomised controlled trials of elective ventral hernia repair: clear definitions and standardised datasets are needed.

BACKGROUND: This systematic review assesses the perioperative variables and post-operative outcomes reported by randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of VH repair. This review focuses particularly on definitions of hernia recurrence and techniques used for detection. OBJECTIVE: Our aim is to identify and quantify the inconsistencies in perioperative variable and postoperative outcome reporting, so as to justify future development of clear definitions of hernia recurrence and a standardised dataset of such variables. METHODS: The PubMed database was searched for elective VH repair RCTs reported January 1995 to March 2016 inclusive. Three independent reviewers performed article screening, and two reviewers independently extracted data. Hernia recurrence, recurrence rate, timing and definitions of recurrence, and techniques used to detect recurrence were extracted. We also assessed reported post-operative complications, standardised operative outcomes, patient reported outcomes, pre-operative CT scan hernia dimensions, intra-operative variables, patient co-morbidity, and hernia morphology. RESULTS: 31 RCTs (3367 patients) were identified. Only 6 (19.3%) defined hernia recurrence and methods to detect recurrence were inconsistent. Sixty-four different clinical outcomes were reported across the RCTs, with wound infection (30 trials, 96.7%), hernia recurrence (30, 96.7%), seroma (29, 93.5%), length of hospital stay (22, 71%) and haematoma (21, 67.7%) reported most frequently. Fourteen (45%), 11 (35%) and 0 trials reported CT measurements of hernia defect area, width and loss of domain, respectively. No trial graded hernias using generally accepted scales. CONCLUSION: VH RCTs report peri- and post-operative variables inconsistently, and with poor definitions. A standardised minimum dataset, including definitions of recurrence, is required.

Nomenclature in Abdominal Wall Hernias: Is It Time for Consensus?

Abdominal wall reconstruction is a rapidly evolving area of surgical interest. Due to the increase in prevalence and size of ventral hernias and the high recurrence rates, the academic community has become motivated to find the best reconstruction techniques. Whilst interrogating the abdominal wall reconstruction literature, we discovered an inconsistency in hernia nomenclature that must be addressed. The terms used to describe the anatomical planes of mesh implantation 'inlay', 'sublay' and 'underlay' are misinterpreted throughout. We describe the misinterpretation of these terms and give evidence of where it exists in the literature. We give three critical arguments of why these misinterpretations hinder advances in abdominal wall reconstruction research. The correct definitions of the anatomical planes, and their respective terms, are described and illustrated. Clearly defined nomenclature is required as academic surgeons strive to improve abdominal wall reconstruction outcomes and lower complication rates.

Penta-fluoro-phenyl (3R,4R,5S)-5-{[(3R,4R,5S)-5-azido-methyl-3,4-dimeth-oxy-2,3,4,5-tetra-hydro-furan-3-carboxamido]-meth-yl}-3,4-dimeth-oxy-2,3,4,5-tetra-hydro-furan-3-carboxyl-ate.

The title compound, C(22)H(25)F(5)N(4)O(9), is a stable penta-fluoro-phenyl ester inter-mediate in the synthesis of novel homo-oligomeric structures containing branched carbon chains. The structure is epimeric to the previously characterized dimeric penta-fluoro-phenyl ester with stereochemistry (3R,4R,5R), which was synthesized using d-ribose as starting material. The crystal structure of the title mol-ecule removes any ambiguities arising from the relative stereochemistries of the six chiral centres. Two hydrogen bonds, bifurcating from the NH group, stabilize the crystal: one intra-molecular and one inter-molecular, both involving O atoms of the meth-oxy groups. The asymmetric unit contains two independent mol-ecules not related by any pseudo-symmetry operators. The major conformational differences are localized, leading to one mol-ecule being extended compared to the other. The collected crystal was twinned (twin ratio is 0.939:0.061), and the azide group is positionally disordered over two positions in one mol-ecule [occupancy ratio 0.511 (18):0.489 (18)].