Revised venous clinical severity score: a facile measurement of outcomes in venous disease.

Outcome assessment is an important criterion for the objective determination of the risks and benefits of a given procedure. The choice of an assessment instrument is critical in order to generate meaningful and relevant data. Assessment instruments are platforms for comparison and stratification of information that provide a common ground and unified language for discussions on disease processes and therapies. Like many complex conditions, venous disease has benefited from the institution of several assessment instruments designed to clarify elements of the disease process. Among these is the venous clinical severity score (VCSS), which has proved to be a valuable tool for evaluating changes in condition over time with or without intervention. The VCSS has recently undergone a revision to increase its sensitivity and value in interpreting the language of venous disease.

Venous Clinical Severity Score and quality-of-life assessment tools: application to vein practice.

The time is ripe for universal understanding and acceptance of outcome assessment in venous disease. Outcome studies promote understanding of the diseases we treat and the results of treatment. The choice of a valid and reliable assessment tool is crucial. Patient-generated quality-of-life tools include generic instruments and disease-specific instruments. Generic instruments evaluate overall well-being and provide subjective measurements of treatment outcomes in various disease states. The 36-Item Short Form Health Survey and the Nottingham Health Profile are widely used generic surveys. Disease-specific instruments relate to a particular disease state. They are popular in venous disease reporting and have high sensitivity. The Chronic Venous Insufficiency Questionnaire, the Venous Insufficiency Epidemiological and Economic Study, the Aberdeen Varicose Vein Questionnaire and the Charing Cross Venous Ulceration Questionnaire are such devices. Physician-generated measurement tools are used to evaluate and classify the consequences of venous disease. The clinical, aetiology, anatomy, pathophysiology classification (CEAP) is a popular descriptive platform for chronic venous disease. The Venous Severity Scoring (VSS) system was derived from the CEAP classification to provide evaluative capabilities. The three elements of the VSS are the venous disability score, the venous segmental disease score and the venous clinical severity score (VCSS). The VCSS facilitates the follow-up of features of venous disease that change with treatment. Each of these outcomes tools has been validated, and each has strengths and weaknesses. Maintaining the dynamic nature of assessment with periodic review and revision is the way forward to generating universal applicability. Although the choice of instrument is debatable, the most important factor in improving treatment outcomes is the decision to examine results and to share them in a meaningful way.

Ruptured internal carotid aneurysm resulting from neurofibromatosis: treatment with intraluminal stent graft.

PURPOSE: This report shows a method of treatment for life-threatening hemorrhage due to rupture of an aneurysm in the cervical internal carotid artery caused by neurofibromatosis. METHODS: Ten days after delivery of healthy twins, a 28-year-old woman with known neurofibromatosis had sudden massive swelling in the left neck. After initial tracheostomy, angiography confirmed rupture of the mid cervical internal carotid artery as well as contribution to the resultant pseudoaneurysm from external carotid branches. Treatment began with coil embolization of the external carotid branches. The internal carotid lesion, a defect approximately 1 cm in length, was then closed through use of two stent grafts, each made from Palmaz stents and 3-mm polytetrafluorethylene grafts predilated to 6 mm. The neck hematoma was then evacuated surgically. RESULTS: Completion angiography and computed tomographic scanning confirmed control of the hemorrhage. The patient survived neurologically intact with the exception of cranial nerve deficits caused by the hemorrhage. The tracheostomy tube was removed 3 weeks postoperatively. Follow-up computed tomographic scanning showed a gradual decrease in the size of the cervical soft tissue and no recurrent aneurysm. CONCLUSION: Neurofibromatosis is a rare cause of aneurysmal degeneration of blood vessels. Repair of a ruptured cervical internal carotid artery aneurysm, though feasible, is difficult with stent grafts; however, this is a better option than surgical intervention in inaccessible vessels.

Surgical wound infection in renal transplantation: outcome data in 102 consecutive patients without perioperative systemic antibiotic coverage.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of surgical wound infection in the presence of immunosuppression has been reported in the literature to approach 7%. Perioperative systemic antibiotic therapy is routinely used to reduce the occurrence of wound infections. This therapy is not without complications, including adverse effects and development of resistant strains. DESIGN: Surgical wound infection rates during the first 100 days after renal transplantation were studied in 102 consecutive patients. Eighty-one patients underwent cadaveric transplantation and 21 patients underwent living-related donor transplantation from February 1, 1991, to January 1, 1992. No systemic perioperative antibiotic coverage was used, but local antibiotic irrigation was part of the perioperative protocol. SETTING: Hahnemann University Hospital, Philadelphia, Pa, is a large, tertiary care center. Patients were initially hospitalized and were discharged during the 100-day follow-up period based on clinical status and improvement in renal function. PATIENTS: Twenty-seven (25%) of 102 patients had diabetes mellitus. INTERVENTIONS: Induction immunosuppression consisted of azathioprine, prednisone, and anitlymphocyte globulin, while maintenance immunosuppression consisted of azathioprine, prednisone, and cyclosporine. Acute allograft rejection episodes were treated with steroids and/or OKT3 (Ortho Pharmaceutical Group, Raritan, NJ). RESULTS: Two surgical wound infections (2%) occurred. In both, infection was superficial, resolving with wound drainage and intravenous antibiotics. The surgical wound infection rate was not significantly affected by age, sex, allograft source, or presence of diabetes mellitus. CONCLUSIONS: Despite immunosuppression, the incidence of surgical wound infection was minimal, comparing favorably to rates reported for renal transplantation with the use of systemic antibiotics. Possible explanations for the low incidence of surgical wound infections include local wound irrigation, meticulous hemostasis, improved organ procurement techniques, and continuity in perioperative care.

Post-OKT3 induction therapy CD complex response predicts renal allograft rejection.

CD complex response to cessation of induction with OKT3 may be predictive of rejection. Twenty-seven patients receiving renal allografts and OKT3 induction immunosuppression were retrospectively analyzed for CD complex repopulation and allograft rejection. Flow cytometric monitoring was utilized in all patients. Responder status groups were identified based on CD complex repopulation, with fast responders demonstrating CD complex repopulation above the determined cohort mean. Slow responders had repopulation below this mean. Student's t test yielded P<0.01 (CD2), P<0.02 (CD3), and P<0.01 (CD8). Nonresponder patients were identified with repopulation below the mean, but flat compared with depletion. All nine fast responders lost their graft or were treated for rejection. No slow responder experienced graft loss or rejection episodes. One nonresponder was treated for rejection. CD complex activity following OKT3 cessation correlates with future rejection. Identification of responder status provides insight into propensity to reject, allowing individual tailoring of immunosuppression to patient response.