Prognostic factors and treatment outcomes for patients with Fournier's gangrene: a retrospective study.

Fournier's gangrene is a gas-forming, necrotising soft tissue infection affecting the perineum. It spreads rapidly along the deep fascial planes and is associated with a high mortality rate. With a growing elderly population with comorbidities, the frequency of severe cases of Fournier's gangrene is expected to increase. We retrospectively reviewed 20 patients diagnosed with Fournier's gangrene at our institution from 2003 to 2014 and analysed data. Thirteen patients had diabetes mellitus, two had been diagnosed with liver cirrhosis, and four were chronic alcoholics. Of 15 patients admitted to an intensive care unit, 11 underwent colostomy, and 4 required skin grafts for wound healing. The wide wounds of two patients were healed using vacuum-assisted closure (VAC® ) dressing without additional surgery. The mortality rate was 25%, and the patients whose Fournier's gangrene severity index (FGSI) score was higher than 9 points or whose blood urea nitrogen (BUN) level was higher than 50 mg/dl had a poor prognosis. In order to treat Fournier's gangrene, aggressive surgical treatment, including wide debridement and stoma creation, should be considered as soon as possible to improve survival rates. Additionally, VAC dressing is helpful in healing the wide debridement wound without additional reconstructive surgery.

The effect of advocacy for overcoming stigma on posttraumatic growth: Focusing on childhood cancer survivors.

The aim of this study was to investigate both strategies for coping with stigma and the effects of participating in advocacy. The participants were childhood cancer survivors who had been diagnosed before the age of 18 years who had completed treatment. An embedded-design mixed-methods approach was used with 30 interview scripts, and 145 survey results were collected. Coping strategies for the stigma of cancer were "secrecy, avoid stereotypes, and discrimination" and "disclosure of medical history." Participation in advocacy confirmed self-worth, helped in achievement, and promoted social skills. Quantitative analysis showed that greater advocacy participation was associated with higher levels of posttraumatic growth. This study could provide support for advocacy among childhood cancer survivors by demonstrating its positive effects.

Acute hyperammonemic encephalopathy after 5-fluorouracil based chemotherapy.

5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) based chemotherapy has been commonly used to treat metastatic or advanced colon cancer as an adjuvant chemotherapy. Although the side effects of 5-FU such as gastrointestinal problems and neutropenia and thrombocytopenia are common, not many cases of 5-FU related encephalopathy are reported. Hyperammonemic encephalopathy is a rare central nervous system toxicity following 5-FU chemotherapy manifesting as altered mental status with elevated ammonia levels with no radiologic abnormality. We report one case of 5-FU induced hyperammonemic encephalopathy occurring after Folfox4 (oxaliplatin, folinic acid and 5-fluorouracil) chemotherapy in a colon cancer patient who presented with confused mental status soon after the chemotherapy and review the 5-FU related encephalopathy.

Long-term Outcome of Primary Closure After Laparoscopic Common Bile Duct Exploration Combined With Choledochoscopy.

BACKGROUND: Primary closure after laparoscopic common bile duct exploration (LCBDE) is considered to be a safe alternative to T-tube drainage on the basis of the short-term outcome. However, little published data exist regarding the biliary complications at the long-term follow-up of primary closure versus T-tube drainage following LCBDE. Hence, the aim of this study is to assess the long-term outcome of primary closure after LCBDE. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective study of 142 consecutive patients who underwent LCBDE combined with choledochoscopy for CBD stones. After LCBDE, the choledochotomy was closed by primary closure (group P) in 91 patients (64.1%) and with T-tube drainage (group T) in 51 patients (35.9%). The data on operative outcome and long-term biliary complications were compared between the 2 groups. RESULTS: The mean operation time was significantly shorter in group P than group T (168.9 ± 50.1 min for group P vs. 198.0 ± 59.6 min for group T, P = 0.002). The hospital stay was significantly shorter in group P than in group T (8.59 ± 6.0 d for group P vs. 14.96 ± 5.4 d for group T, P = 0.001). Postoperative bile leak occurred in 2 patients (2.2%) in group P and 1 patient (2.0%) in group T. With a mean follow-up of 48.8 months, the stone recurrence rate in group P and group T were 4.4% and 5.9%, respectively (P = 0.722). During the follow-up period, there was no sign of biliary stricture or other biliary complications in both groups. CONCLUSIONS: The long-term follow-up data on primary closure after LCBDE indicated a low incidence of recurrent stones, and no biliary strictures. Thus, primary closure after LCBDE with choledochoscopy is considered to be a safe and effective alternative to T-tube drainage in terms of long-term outcome.

Reliability of (18)f-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography in the nodal staging of colorectal cancer patients.

PURPOSE: Lymph-node metastasis is considered as critical prognostic factor in colorectal cancer. A preoperative evaluation of lymph-node metastasis can also help to determine the range of distant lymph node dissection. However, the reliability of (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FDG-PET/CT) in the detection of lymph-node metastasis is not fully known. METHODS: The medical records of 433 patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer were reviewed retrospectively. FDG-PET/CT and CT were performed on all patients. Lymph nodes were classified into regional and distant lymph nodes according to the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) Cancer Staging Manual, 7th edition. RESULTS: The patients included 231 males (53.3%) and 202 females (46.7%), with a mean age of 64.7 ± 19.0 years. For regional lymph nodes, the sensitivity of FDG-PET/CT was lower than that of CT (57.1% vs. 73.5%, P < 0.001). For distant lymph nodes, the sensitivity of FDG-PET/CT was higher than that of CT (64.7% vs. 52.9%, P = 0.012). The sensitivity of FDG-PET/CT for regional lymph nodes was higher in patients with larger primary tumors. The positivity of lymph-node metastasis for FDG-PET/CT was affected by carcinoembryonic antigen levels, tumor location, and cancer stage for regional lymph nodes and by age and cancer stage for distant lymph nodes (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The sensitivity of FDG-PET/CT for regional lymph-node metastasis was not superior to that of CT. However, FDG-PET/CT provides helpful information for determining surgical plan especially in high risk patients group.