The influence of body image on surgical decisions in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis patients.

OBJECTIVES:: The objective of this study was to evaluate whether the severity of deformities in patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis contributes to patients' decision regarding whether to undergo an operation. METHODS:: We evaluated body image factors in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis patients. We evaluated the magnitude of the main scoliotic curve, gibbosity (magnitude and location), shoulder height asymmetry and patient's age. We analyzed the correlation of these data with the number of years the patient was willing to trade for surgery, as measured by the time-trade-off method. RESULTS:: A total of 52 patients were studied. We did not find a correlation between any of the parameters that were studied and the number of years that the patient would trade for the surgery. CONCLUSIONS:: The magnitude of body deformities in patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis does not interfere with the decision to undertake surgical treatment.

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF MICROANASTOMOSIS WITH DISTINCT 10-0 NYLON SUTURES IN RATS

ABSTRACT Objective: The aim of this study is to compare micro-sutures commonly used in our midst. Methods: In this double-blind study, 30 Wistar rats were operated randomly divided into three groups matched according to the suture used (Nylon 10-0, 75micron, brands Microsuture(r), Polysuture(r) and Ethicon(r)). We analyzed the number of surgical nodes required, bleeding, surgical time and histological evaluation. Results: There was no significant difference between the amount of stitches of arterial suture per anastomosis. Surgical time was longer in Microsuture(r) group as compared to Polysuture(r) (p ≤ 0.05). Bleeding in Microsuture(r) group was higher when compared to the others (p <0.01). In the histological analysis, the Microsuture(r) group showed a greater tendency to develop fibrosis and aneurysm in surgical site than the others (p <0.01 and p≤0,05, respectively). Similarly, the Ethicon(r) group showed less tendency to myointimal proliferation than the rest. (p = 0.025). Conclusion: The results confirm the relevance of the choice of surgical thread as an independent determining factor for the success of the procedure, besides serving as a rational subsidy for a better cost-benefit analysis. Level of Evidence I, Experimental Study, Controlled Animal Study.