Endoscopic Balloon Dilatation-Based Membrane Resection for Membranous Duodenal Stenosis: A Feasibility and Safety Study (With Video).

OBJECTIVES: Surgery is generally considered as the first-line therapy for membranous duodenal stenosis (MDS) in children. However, abdominal surgery leaves permanent scars and may even cause intestinal adhesion. Therefore, an effective, safe, and minimally invasive method is urgently needed. This study aimed to evaluate the safety, efficacy, and feasibility of endoscopic balloon dilatation-based membrane resection (EBD-MR) to treat MDS in children. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed patients with MDS treated with EBD-MR in Shanghai Children's Hospital from May 2016 to August 2021. Primary study outcome was clinical success, defined as weight gain and complete remission of vomiting, without the need for repeat endoscopic or surgical intervention during follow-up. Secondary outcomes included technical success, diameter changes of the membrane opening, and adverse events. RESULTS: Nineteen children (9 females, mean age 14.5 ± 11.2 months) received endoscopic treatment for MDS, and clinical success was achieved in 18 of 19 patients (94.7%). No bleeding, perforation, and jaundice occurred. Diameters of the membrane opening increased from 2.97 ± 2.87 mm to 9.78 ± 1.27 mm after the treatment, symptoms of vomiting did not reappear during 10-73 months of follow-up, and body mass index of the children increased from 14.9 ± 2.2 kg/m 2 (pre-operation) to 16.2 ± 3.7 kg/m 2 (6 months after operation). One patient required surgical revision because of existence of a second web; three patients received 2-3 sessions of endoscopic treatment to obtain the final remission. CONCLUSIONS: The EBD-MR technique is safe, effective, and feasible for MDS, which provided an excellent alternative to surgical management for the disease in pediatric patients.

Construction of a Prognostic Nomogram Based on Autophagy-Related Genes for Children With Neuroblastoma.

Neuroblastoma (NB) is the most common solid malignancy in children. MYCN gene amplification is the most relevant genetic alteration in patients with NB and is associated with poor prognosis. Autophagy plays specific roles in the occurrence, development, and progression of NB. Here, we aimed to identify and assess the prognostic effects of autophagy-related genes (ARGs) in patients with NB and MYCN gene amplification. Differentially expressed ARGs were identified in patients with NB with and without MYCN gene amplification, and the ARG expression patterns and related clinical data from the Therapeutically Applicable Research to Generate Effective Treatments database were used as the training cohort. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator analyses were used to identify prognostic ARGs associated with event-free survival (EFS), and a prognostic risk score model was developed. Model performance was assessed using the Kaplan-Meier method and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. The prognostic ARG mode l was verified using the validation cohort dataset, GSE49710. Finally, a nomogram was constructed by combining the ARGbased risk score with clinicopathological factors. Three ARGs (GABARAPL1, NBR1, and PINK1) were selected to build a prognostic risk score model. The EFS in the low-risk group was significantly better than that in the high-risk group in both the training and validation cohorts. A nomogram incorporating the prognostic risk score, age, and International Neuroblastoma Staging System stage showed a favorable predictive ability for EFS rates according to the area under the ROC curve at 3 years (AUC = 0.787) and 5 years (AUC = 0.787). The nomogram demonstrated good discrimination and calibration. Our risk score model for the 3 ARGs can be used as an independent prognostic factor in patients with NB and MYCN gene amplification. The model can accurately predict the 3- and 5-year survival rates.

The role of preoperative imaging and tumor markers in predicting malignant ovarian masses in children.

PURPOSE: To investigate the clinicopathololgic characteristics and the predicting value of preoperative imaging and tumor markers in children with ovarian masses. METHODS: Patients admitted in Shanghai children's hospital with ovary neoplasms between 2010.01 and 2015.12 were retrospectively analyzed. The medical records including age at operation, presentation of symptoms and signs, tumor marker, imaging, pathology, tumor diameter and surgical choice were reviewed. All data were analyzed using SPSS 17.0 RESULTS: A total of 139 patients were included, among which 116 were benign neoplasms and 23 malignant tumors. There was significance difference relation with the tumor diameter, character, torsion and tumor markers, but not the age, position, calculi, and symptoms. The risk factors include tumor diameters ≥ 10 cm, the odds ratio (OR) was 11, 95% confidence interval (CI) was 3-36, solid/complex tumor (OR 6, 95% CI 2, 14) and positive in tumor markers (OR 84, 95% CI 20, 345). Among the patients with benign neoplasms, 77 of them had laparoscopic ovarian cystectomy while 23 patients with malignant tumors had salpingo-oophorectomy and omentum resection. CONCLUSION: Preoperative imaging and tumor markers could help identifying the malignant ovarian masses in children. If tumor diameter ≥ 10 cm, solid/complex in imaging and tumor markers abnormal, a radical resection is mandatory; otherwise, an ovarian-sparing surgery is recommended.

Laparoscopic vs. laparoscopically assisted management of Meckel's diverticulum in children.

To investigate the management of Meckel's diverticulum in children and the feasibility of using laparoscopic and laparoscopically assisted Meckel's diverticulum resection and intestinal anastomosis according to the different subtypes classified laparoscopically. 55 symptomatic Meckel's diverticulum cases were classified into two categories, the simple and the complex types depending on Meckel's diverticulum appearance upon laparoscopic exploration. Forty-one cases of simple Meckel's diverticulum were treated with simple diverticulectomy during laparoscopy, and 14 cases of complicated Meckel's diverticulum were treated with laparoscopically assisted Meckel's diverticulum resection and intestinal anastomosis. The operation time for the laparoscopically assisted was significant longer than laparoscopic-only surgeries [45~123 min (54.57 ± 20.17min) vs 29~78min (38.85 ± 9.75 min)], P = 0.013. Among the 55 cases, Just one child with simple type MD during laparoscopic exploration, and presented a diverticulum with a base that was considered to be in the mesangial margin. The remaining 54 patients were cured, and follow-up for 4~36 months revealed that they did not present abdominal pain, and no hematochezia occurred as a complication. Surgery selection either laparoscopy only or transumbilical laparoscopically assisted intestinal resection and intestinal anastomosis by laparoscopic exploration for Meckel's diverticulum treatment, based on the type of Meckel's diverticulum in children, is safe, feasible, and effective.

[Detection rate of Helicobacter pylori and its clinical significance in children with Meckel's diverticulum].

OBJECTIVE: To determine the detection rate of Helicobacter pylori (Hp) in children with Meckel's diverticulum (MD) and its clinical significance among children with MD. METHODS: Eighty-one children with MD were divided into two groups according to the presence (n=45) or absence (n=36) of digestive hemorrhage. The detection rates of Hp in MD tissues and stomach tissues were determined by immunohistochemistry. The detection rates of Hp were compared between the two groups and between the MD tissues with different clinical features in the hemorrhage group. RESULTS: The detection rate of Hp in MD tissues for the hemorrhage group was 76% (34/45), which was significantly higher than that for the non-hemorrhage group (47%, 17/36) (P<0.05). The detection rate of Hp in stomach tissues for the hemorrhage group (87%, 39/45) was insignificantly higher than that for the non-hemorrhage group (67%, 24/36) (P>0.05). Among patients in the bleeding group, the detection rate of Hp in MD tissues showed no relationship with age, sex, preoperative hemorrhage frequency, amount of hemorrhage, length of MD, basal diameter of MD, and pathological type (P>0.05), but was related to location of MD, presence or absence of ulcer, and depth of ulcer (P<0.05). For the hemorrhage group, a significant positive correlation was found between the detection rates of Hp in MD tissues and stomach tissues (P<0.05), as shown by the Spearman correlation analysis. CONCLUSIONS: The detection rate of Hp in MD tissues is increased in children with MD complicated by digestive hemorrhage. Hp infection may play some role in the hemorrhage process among children with MD.

[Logistic regression analysis of high-risk factors for neonatal incarcerated hernia with intestinal necrosis].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the high-risk factors for neonatal incarcerated hernia with intestinal necrosis by logistic regression analysis. METHODS: Retrospective analysis was performed on the clinical data of 131 neonates with incarcerated oblique inguinal hernia containing the intestine. Of the 131 cases, 14 suffered from intestinal necrosis. The high risk factors for neonatal incarcerated hernia with intestinal necrosis were determined by logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Manual reduction after incarceration (>2 times) (χ2 = 69.289, P<0.01), incarceration history (>2 times) (χ2 = 84.731, P<0.01), and mesentery incarceration (χ2 = 80.233, P<0.01) were the high-risk factors for neonatal incarcerated hernia with intestinal necrosis. CONCLUSIONS: Intestinal necrosis tends to occur in neonates with incarcerated hernia who have incarceration or received manual reduction more than twice and suffer from mesentery incarceration. Manual reduction is prohibited for these cases, which should be surgically treated immediately.