Quality of life after giant hiatus hernia repair: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Elective surgery is the treatment of choice for symptomatic giant hiatus hernia (GHH), and quality of life (QoL) has become an important outcome measure following surgery. The aim of this study is to review the literature assessing QoL following repair of GHH. METHODOLOGY: A systematic literature search was performed by two reviewers independently to identify original studies evaluating QoL outcomes after GHH surgery. MeSH terms such as paraoesophageal; hiatus hernia; giant hiatus hernia and quality of life were used in the initial search. Original studies in English language using validated questionnaires on humans were included. Review articles, conference abstracts and case reports and studies with duplicate data were excluded. RESULTS: Two hundred and eight articles were identified on initial search, of which 38 studies (4404 patients) were included. Studies showed a significant heterogeneity in QoL assessment tools, surgical techniques and follow-up methods. All studies assessing both pre-operative and post-operative QoL (n = 31) reported improved QoL on follow-up after surgical repair of GHH. Improvement in QoL following GHH repair was not affected by patient age, surgical technique or the use of mesh. Recurrence of GHH after surgery may, however, adversely impact QoL. CONCLUSION: Surgical repair of GHH improved QoL scores in all the 38 studies. The impact of recurrence on QoL needs further assessment. The authors also recommend uniform reporting of surgical outcomes in future studies.

Endogenous aldehyde accumulation generates genotoxicity and exhaled biomarkers in esophageal adenocarcinoma.

Volatile aldehydes are enriched in esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) patients' breath and could improve early diagnosis, however the mechanisms of their production are unknown. Here, we show that weak aldehyde detoxification characterizes EAC, which is sufficient to cause endogenous aldehyde accumulation in vitro. Two aldehyde groups are significantly enriched in EAC biopsies and adjacent tissue: (i) short-chain alkanals, and (ii) medium-chain alkanals, including decanal. The short-chain alkanals form DNA-adducts, which demonstrates genotoxicity and confirms inadequate detoxification. Metformin, a putative aldehyde scavenger, reduces this toxicity. Tissue and breath concentrations of the medium-chain alkanal decanal are correlated, and increased decanal is linked to reduced ALDH3A2 expression, TP53 deletion, and adverse clinical features. Thus, we present a model for increased exhaled aldehydes based on endogenous accumulation from reduced detoxification, which also causes therapeutically actionable genotoxicity. These results support EAC early diagnosis trials using exhaled aldehyde analysis.

Metabolic Biomarkers of Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Aerodigestive Tract: A Systematic Review and Quality Assessment.

Introduction. Aerodigestive squamous cell carcinomas (ASCC) constitute a major source of global cancer deaths. Patients typically present with advanced, incurable disease, so new means of detecting early disease are a research priority. Metabolite quantitation is amenable to point-of-care analysis and can be performed in ASCC surrogates such as breath and saliva. The purpose of this systematic review is to summarise progress of ASCC metabolomic studies, with an emphasis on the critical appraisal of methodological quality and reporting. METHOD: A systematic online literature search was performed to identify studies reporting metabolic biomarkers of ASCC. This review was conducted in accordance with the recommendations of the Cochrane Library and MOOSE guidelines. RESULTS: Thirty studies comprising 2117 patients were included in the review. All publications represented phase-I biomarker discovery studies, and none validated their findings in an independent cohort. There was heterogeneity in study design and methodological and reporting quality. Sensitivities and specificities were higher in oesophageal and head and neck squamous cell carcinomas compared to those in lung squamous cell carcinoma. The metabolic phenotypes of these cancers were similar, as was the kinetics of metabolite groups when comparing blood, tissue, and breath/saliva concentrations. Deregulation of amino acid metabolism was the most frequently reported theme. CONCLUSION: Metabolite analysis has shown promising diagnostic performance, especially for oesophageal and head and neck ASCC subtypes, which are phenotypically similar. However, shortcomings in study design have led to inconsistencies between studies. To support future studies and ultimately clinical adoption, these limitations are discussed.

The use of endoluminal techniques in the revision of primary bariatric surgery procedures: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Weight regain following primary bariatric surgery is attributed to anatomical, behavioural and hormonal factors. Dilation of the gastrojejunal anastomosis is a possible cause of weight regain after roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB). However, surgical revision has significant risks with limited benefits. Endoluminal procedures have been suggested to manage weight regain post-surgery. This systematic review aims to assess efficacy of endoluminal procedures. METHODS: Studies where endoluminal procedures were performed following primary bariatric surgery were identified. Main outcome measures were mean weight loss pre- and post-procedure, excess weight loss, recurrence rates, success rates and post-procedure complications. RESULTS: Twenty-six studies were included in this review. Procedures identified were (i) endoluminal plication devices (ii) other techniques e.g. sclerotherapy, mucosal ablation, and Argon Plasma Coagulation (APC) and (iii) combination therapy involving sclerotherapy/mucosal ablation/APC and endoscopic OverStitch device. Endoluminal plication devices show greatest initial weight loss within 12 months post-procedure, but not sustained at 18 months. Only one study utilising sclerotherapy showed greater sustained weight loss with peak EWL (19.9%) at 18 months follow-up. Combination therapy showed the greatest sustained EWL (36.4%) at 18 months. Endoluminal plication devices were more successfully performed in 91.8% of patients and had lower recurrence rates (5.02%) compared to sclerotherapy and APC, with 46.8% success and 21.5% recurrence rates. Both procedures demonstrate no major complications and low rates of moderate complications. Only mild complications were noted for combination therapy. CONCLUSIONS: The paucity of good quality data limits our ability to demonstrate and support the long-term efficacy of endoluminal techniques in the management of weight regain following primary bariatric surgery. Future work is necessary to not only clarify the role of endoluminal plication devices, but also combination therapy in the management of weight regain following primary bariatric surgery.

The Future of Emergency Surgery.

Introduction: Over the past three decades, there has been a recognised need for emergency surgery (ES). Studies of ES have demonstrated variation in patient outcomes depending on admission time or day. ES as a subspecialty is still under consideration in Europe despite being recognised as such in the US. This article reviews this need and addresses the issues required to develop ES as a separate surgical subspecialty in Europe. METHOD: A survey on ES was developed by the Educational Committee of the European Society for Trauma and Emergency Surgery (ESTES) and sent to all ESTES members with 102 responses received. Results: Of the responses, 93.1% had completed training. 75.3% of respondents report that ES should be a recognised subspecialty and 79% report that ES is capable of offering a rewarding career. 90% report that ES should have dedicated post-graduate training programme with 69.8% in agreement that dedicated emergency surgeons have improved outcomes following ES. CONCLUSION: Developing ES as a subspecialty in Europe would improve patient outcomes and facilitate resource allocation. This advancement is, however, still in its infancy and its evolution would require overhaul of our current European system, training methods and understanding of the role of emergency surgeons in ES.

Apps in Trauma and Emergency Surgery.

Background: As physicians, Mobile smartphones, laptops and tablets are now an integral part of our day to day activities including personal communications as well as our routine clinical practice. Methods: A digital survey was designed to explore the usage of mobile smartphones and the associated apps among surgeons in Trauma and Emergency departments. It was sent to 850 members of the European Society for Trauma and Emergency Surgery. Results: A total of 91 responses were received with 60.4% aged between 35 and 54 years. Only 24.1%of respondents found the available apps extremely useful in their practice, however 75.9% of participants agreed on not being able to identify a certain good application to rely on. CONCLUSION: Despite the widespread use of smartphones among doctors of different grades and specialties, there is a preference shown towards the use of instant messenger apps and the use of the camera for clinical photos. The usefulness of current available apps appears to be limited due to the absence of a regulating body to check the validity of data and peer review the contents of apps leaving a huge responsibility on the individual doctor using the app to rely on its results.

Portomesenteric venous thrombosis: A rare but probably under-reported complication of laparoscopic surgery: A case series.

Portomesenteric venous thrombosis (PMVT) is a rare but well-reported complication following laparoscopic surgery. We present three cases of PMVT following laparoscopic surgery. Our first case is a 71-year-old morbidly obese woman admitted for elective laparoscopic giant hiatus hernia (LGHH) repair. Post-operatively, she developed multi-organ dysfunction and computed tomography scan revealed portal venous gas and extensive small bowel infarct. The second patient is a 51-year-old man with known previous deep venous thrombosis who also had elective LGHH repair. He presented 8 weeks post-operatively with severe abdominal pain and required major bowel resection. Our third case is an 86-year-old woman who developed worsening abdominal tenderness 3 days after laparoscopic right hemicolectomy for adenocarcinoma and was diagnosed with an incidental finding of thrombus in the portal vein. She did not require further surgical intervention. The current guidelines for thromboprophylaxis follow-up in this patient group may not be adequate for the patients at risk. Hence, we propose prolonged period of thromboprophylaxis in the patients undergoing major laparoscopic surgery.

Surgical cure for type 2 diabetes by foregut or hindgut operations: a myth or reality? A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Bariatric surgery results in remission of type 2 diabetes mellitus in a significant proportion of patients. Animal research has proposed the foregut and hindgut hypotheses as possible mechanisms of remission of T2DM independent of weight loss. These hypotheses have formed the basis of investigational procedures designed to treat T2DM in non-obese (in addition to obese) patients. The aim of this study was to review the procedures that utilise the foregut and hindgut hypotheses to treat T2DM in humans. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted to identify the investigational procedures performed in humans that are based on the foregut and hindgut hypotheses and then to assess their outcomes. RESULTS: Twenty-four studies reported novel procedures to treat T2DM in humans; only ten utilised glycated haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) in their definition of remission. Reported remission rates were 20-40 % for duodenal-jejunal bypass (DJB), 73-93 % for duodenal-jejunal bypass with sleeve gastrectomy (DJB-SG), 62.5-100 % for duodenal-jejunal bypass sleeve (DJBS) and 47-95.7 % for ileal interposition with sleeve gastrectomy (II-SG). When using a predetermined level of HbA1c to define remission, the remission rates were lower (27, 63, 0 and 65 %) for DJB, DJB-SG, DJBS and II-SG. CONCLUSIONS: The outcomes of the foregut- and hindgut-based procedures are not better than the outcomes of just one of their components, namely sleeve gastrectomy. The complexity of these procedures in addition to their comparable outcomes to a simpler operation questions their utility.