Low rates of recanalization for wide-necked aneurysms treated with stenting after balloon-assisted coiling: combination of techniques delivers stable and improved results during follow-up.

PURPOSE: In the treatment of wide-necked aneurysms, stenting may be required after balloon-assisted coiling (BAC) for reconstructing the lumen/flow of the parent artery in cases of coil herniation. The potential benefits and complications of both techniques remain unclear when used together. Our aim was to assess the safety and long-term angiographic outcomes of stenting after BAC. METHODS: Retrospective review of 87 unruptured wide necked aneurysms (in 80 patients) treated with BAC and requiring stent placement at the final stage of the procedure due to coil prolapse. Aneurysm characteristics, technical issues, clinical records, and MR results were assessed. Post-treatment and follow-up angiograms were evaluated by two independent reviewers and categorized as "stable," "further thrombosis," or "recanalization." RESULTS: The mean maximum diameter was 9.1 ± 4.7 mm and aspect ratio 1.20 ± 0.47. Complete and near-complete initial occlusion were observed in 53 (60.9%) and 28 (32.2%) of all treated aneurysms, respectively. Angiographic follow-up (80 aneurysms; mean, 34.68 ± 25.26 months) revealed stability and further thrombosis in 92.4% (74/80). Recanalization was observed in six cases (7.5%, 6/83), four of which were retreated. No significantly different outcomes were found in terms of aneurysm size (p = 0.641). Transient and reversible procedure-related complications occurred in eight (9.2%), minor permanent deficits in 2.3%, and major deficits, including death, in four cases (4.6%). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that treatment of wide-necked aneuryms with stent placement after BAC yields low recanalization rates and enhanced angiographic outcomes in long-term follow-up.

Impact of the Implementation of Thrombectomy with Stent Retrievers on the Frequency of Hemicraniectomy in Patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke.

BACKGROUND: The increasing use of endovascular treatments has led to higher recanalization rates and better clinical outcomes compared with intravenous thrombolysis alone. Stent retrievers represent the latest development for recanalization of large vessel occlusions. Decompressive hemicraniectomy has proved beneficial in patients suffering from rising intracranial pressure after malignant stroke. AIMS AND/OR HYPOTHESIS: We investigated the effect of the implementation of stent retriever treatment on the frequency of hemicraniectomy as a surrogate marker for infarct size and thus for poor neurological outcome. METHODS: Patients with acute ischemic stroke were retrospectively studied. We compared the frequency of hemicraniectomy following proximal artery occlusion of the internal carotid artery and middle cerebral artery main stem in the years before (2009 and 2010) and after (2012 and 2013) introducing stent retrievers. RESULTS: Overall, 497 patients with proximal arterial occlusion were included in the study. Of 253 patients admitted in the years 2009 and 2010 44 (17.4 %) and of 244 patients admitted in 2012 and 2013, 20 (8.2 %) received a hemicraniectomy. This decrease in the proportion of hemicraniectomies was statistically significant (p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The findings in this study illustrate a significantly reduced rate of hemicraniectomies in patients with proximal artery occlusions after implementation of thrombectomy with stent retriever. Hereby, we could show a significant reduction of malignant infarctions after thrombectomy with stent retriever.

Rates of presurgical underestimation of breast cancer after standardized assessment of breast calcifications.

PURPOSE: To determine the frequency of histopathological underestimation of breast cancer after vacuum-assisted biopsy (VAB) in standardized assessment of breast calcifications compared to postsurgical diagnosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The retrospective study included acquired data of 506 consecutively examined women, who underwent VAB for the assessment of pure calcifications after standardized digital mammographic and sonographic imaging. 119/506 (24.5 %) women underwent further surgical procedures: 37 women had a surgical diagnostic excision biopsy, 82 women a surgical procedure based on a therapeutic concept. Presurgical results of VAB were compared with the postsurgical histopathological reports. RESULTS: In 91/119 women (76.5 %) the final histology was malignant. The rate of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) was 79.1 % (72/91) and the rate of invasive carcinoma was 20.9 % (19/91). In 9/37 women with diagnostic excision biopsy, the presurgical status of benign or uncertain changed to a postsurgical diagnosis of malignant (24.3 %). In eight cases underestimation included DCIS (21.6 %) and in one case invasive cancer (2.7 %). Seven of the nine underestimated cases (77.8 %) resulted from excision biopsy of atypical epithelial proliferation of ductal type (AEPDT, positive predictive value 30.4 % (7/23)). After surgery due to DCIS in 7/71 women invasive breast cancer was diagnosed (9.9 %). In 11/82 women with oncological surgery, invasive cancer was already diagnosed by VAB. CONCLUSION: Underestimation of invasive cancer in terms of presurgical DCIS diagnosis can be minimized by the standardized assessment protocol to about 10 %. Underestimation of DCIS is mainly related to presurgical diagnosis of AEPDT. KEY POINTS: • The standardized use of digital mammographic and sonographic imaging prior to vacuum-assisted biopsy is suitable for minimizing underestimation of invasive breast cancer. AEPDT represents a high risk diagnosis for underestimation of DCIS.

Epidemiological Follow-up 15 Years after the Breast Cancer Scandal in Essen.

Purpose: In the years 1993-1996 a number of presumably false-positive breast cancer diagnoses were made by a pathologist in Essen. A follow-up, undertaken 15 years later, investigated how many women had tumour recurrence and/or metastasis or had died from breast cancer. Material and Methods: A total of 151 (68 %) out of 222 women could be traced. One hundred and forty-seven (66.2 %) of the 222 women were alive. The observed survival rate, number of recurrences and/or metastases, and number of deaths from breast cancer were compared with data from the Munich Tumour Registry. The number of breast cancer cases among daughters of the affected women was ascertained. Results: The total observed survival rate at follow-up after 15 years was 93 %, a much higher figure than the survival rate of 45 % given by the Munich Tumour Registry. Recurrence and/or metastasis or death from breast cancer occurred in 9/222 cases (4.1 %). The incidence for these events calculated according to data from the Munich Tumour Registry is 13 %. Two daughters (2.2 %) out of a total of 90 were diagnosed with breast cancer whereas, according to the German Cancer Research Centre, the expected rate would have been between 5 and 10 %. Conclusions: The results of our follow-up after 15 years show that more women survived than expected and that the number of recurrences and/or metastases and deaths due to breast cancer was lower than expected. Fewer daughters of affected women were diagnosed with breast cancer than expected. These results support our suspicion that not all women diagnosed with breast cancer by a pathologist in Essen actually had breast cancer.

Prerequisites for a new health care model for elderly people with multimorbidity: the PRISCUS research consortium.

BACKGROUND: Multimorbidity, the concurrent manifestation or presence of multiple chronic conditions, poses huge challenges to affected patients, their relatives, physicians, and practitioners alike. The growing number of affected persons and the complexity of their needs places just as much of a burden on the health care system as does the plethora of often poorly coordinated interventions. The Chronic Care Model developed for different chronic diseases is suited for improving medical care. The PRISCUS research consortium was established to create the prerequisites for a new care model for multimorbid, elderly patients oriented along those lines. METHODS: The research consortium utilizes data gathered in a large-scale epidemiological study on peripheral arterial disease (getABI study) and from the Dortmund and Münster stroke registries, by extracting epidemiologic and health economic data, quality-of-life parameters, and data on the extent and quality of medication. Additional projects evaluate the implementation of a multidimensional geriatric assessment in primary care, the functional consequences of multimorbidity in stroke patients along with options for prevention and therapy afforded by physical activity. Systematic reviews of the literature are used to describe quality of life and patient preferences. Experts will work on an initial draft treatment standard for patients with multimorbidity and a list of potentially inappropriate medication for the elderly in Germany. CONCLUSION: The results of the PRISCUS research consortium will enable an epidemiologic characterization and description of consequences of multimorbidity, while illustrating new approaches towards prevention, diagnosis, and management of multimorbid patients. With this, some prerequisites for a new health care model for patients with multimorbidity comparable to the Chronic Care Model will be fulfilled.

Muscularity and adiposity in addition to net acid excretion as predictors of 24-h urinary pH in young adults and elderly.

OBJECTIVE: In patients with nephrolithiasis, an inverse relationship between 24-h urinary pH (24h-UpH) and body weight has been reported. Whether body composition indices and 24h-UpH are similarly associated in healthy subjects needs investigation. DESIGN: Cross-sectional, retrospective analysis. SETTING: Dortmund, Germany and Gothenburg, Sweden. SUBJECTS: Healthy young adults (18-23 years; n=117) and elderly (55-75 years; n=85) having a mean body mass index (BMI) of 22.80+/-3.4 and 25.3+/-3.9 kg/m2, respectively. METHODS: Anthropometric data, 24h-UpH, and 24-h urinary excretion rates of net acid (NAE), creatinine, and urea were determined. After adjusting for urea (reflecting protein intake), renal creatinine output was used as a biochemical marker for muscularity. The BMI served as a marker of adiposity. RESULTS: NAE, body weight, and BMI were significantly (P<0.05) higher, and height and creatinine significantly lower in the elderly, whereas body-surface area (BSA) was not different. Step-wise multiple regression analysis using BSA-corrected urinary variables revealed NAE as the primary predictor of 24h-UpH (with R2 values of 0.64 and 0.68 in young adults and elderly, respectively, P<0.0001), followed by urea (P<0.0001), creatinine (P<0.05), and BMI (P<0.05 for the young adults and P=0.12 for the elderly). These associations were negative for NAE and BMI, and positive for urea and creatinine. CONCLUSIONS: Muscularity (i.e. creatinine adjusted for urea) and particularly in the group of young adults, adiposity (i.e. BMI) proved to be modest, but significant predictors of 24h-UpH. Future research should focus on more obese subjects in whom insulin resistance and particular kidney functions should also be examined to further substantiate the role of obesity in low-urine pH-associated conditions, for example, nephrolithiasis.