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Biomedical subjects

A Bothe

Publications and source records attributed to A Bothe.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Technical and biological factors in disease-free survival after hepatic resection for colorectal cancer metastases.

Careful patient selection for hepatic resection of colorectal cancer metastases is essential to improve current poor results. Carcinoembryonic antigen level and number of metastases were significant preoperative prognostic indicators of 5-year disease-free survival in patients selected clinically for hepatic surgery. Surgical margin, weight of hepatic tissue resected, carcinoembryonic antigen level, and flow cytometry were significant postoperative prognostic indicators. Patients with a carcinoembryonic antigen level less than 200 ng/mL, 1-cm surgical margins, and less than 1,000 g of liver tissue removed had a greater than 50% estimated 5-year disease-free survival rate. If the metastases were diploid on flow cytometry, an additional survival advantage may have been gained. Inadequate surgical margins led to high rates of liver-only recurrence. Nonhepatic recurrence was unrelated to surgical margins. Intraoperative liver examination by ultrasound during primary colon cancer resection and adjuvant chemotherapy may offer earlier selection of biologically appropriate patients and improved outcome; both recommendations require clinical trials.

Adult

A pilot study of sphincter-sparing management of adenocarcinoma of the rectum.

After analysis of 26 prospectively accrued patients with distal rectal adenocarcinomas who underwent sphincter preservation treatment, we have concluded that tumors that invade only the submucosa can safely be treated with surgery alone and that tumors that invade the muscularis or further can be safely treated with surgery combined with chemoradiotherapy. None of the patients had either local or distant recurrence, with a median follow-up of 21 months. All patients have been fully continent. The results, although preliminary, imply that resection of distal rectal adenocarcinoma with sphincter preservation, and adjuvant therapy when appropriate, have achieved local and distant control equal to the conventional Miles' abdominoperineal resection, but without the need for a permanent colostomy.

Adenocarcinoma

Venous access. Preoperative, operative, and postoperative dilemmas.

The past two decades have seen a tremendous increase in the use of central venous catheters and its associated complications. The increased sophistication that physicians now have with regard to nutritional and metabolic needs has escalated the use of central venous catheters. As the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome epidemic grows, so too will the number of patients with infections and metabolic complications, many of whom will have conditions severe enough to benefit from the use of central venous catheters to deliver antimicrobial drugs and other supportive intravenous therapy. Our ability to sustain patients with short-bowel syndrome also relies critically on central venous access. Likewise, treatment of patients with leukemias and certain solid tumors frequently requires placement of these catheters. Central venous catheters are essential for bone marrow transplantation. Efforts to minimize the risks associated with placement of a central venous catheter by more frequent use of catheter exchange rather than another venipuncture should be encouraged when possible. Techniques to prevent arrhythmia during overinsertion of guide wires are also important. Vigilant searches for, and prompt treatment of, catheter-related sepsis and central vein thrombosis are critical. Better prophylaxis against the development of catheter-related sepsis and catheter-related thrombosis is also needed. Further prospective investigations should be performed, however, to define precisely cost-effective methods of detection and duration of therapy for patients with both catheter-related sepsis and catheter-related thrombosis. Further advances in the technology and management of catheters need to continue to meet these ongoing challenges.

Arrhythmias, Cardiac

Very low doses of warfarin can prevent thrombosis in central venous catheters. A randomized prospective trial.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether very low doses of warfarin are useful in thrombosis prophylaxis in patients with central venous catheters. DESIGN: Patients at risk for thrombosis associated with chronic indwelling central venous catheters were prospectively and randomly assigned to receive or not to receive 1 mg of warfarin, beginning 3 days before catheter insertion and continuing for 90 days. Subclavian, innominate, and superior vena cava venograms were done at onset of thrombosis symptoms or after 90 days in the study. RESULTS: One hundred twenty-one patients entered the study, and 82 patients completed the study. Of 42 patients completing the study while receiving warfarin, 4 had venogram-proven thrombosis. All 4 had symptoms from thrombosis. Of 40 patients completing the study while not receiving warfarin, 15 had venogram-proven thrombosis, and 10 had symptoms from thrombosis (P less than 0.001). There were no measurable changes in the coagulation values assayed due to this warfarin dose, except in occasional patients who had become anorectic because of their disease or chemotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: Very low doses of warfarin can protect against thrombosis without inducing a hemorrhagic state. This approach may be applicable to other groups of patients.

Adult

Splenectomy. The treatment of choice for human immunodeficiency virus-related immune thrombocytopenia?

Immune thrombocytopenia is a well-recognized part of the clinical spectrum of infection with the human immunodeficiency virus. From November 1985 to February 1988, 15 patients who were human immunodeficiency virus-positive underwent splenectomy for refractory immune thrombocytopenia. Eight patients had thrombocytopenia only, and 7 others were pancytopenic prior to splenectomy. Three of the 15 patients fulfilled criteria for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome before splenectomy, and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome developed in 5 patients during the follow-up period. The median duration of thrombocytopenia prior to surgical therapy was 6 months. A bone marrow biopsy specimen showed hypercellularity with increased megakaryocytes. All patients had a therapeutic response to splenectomy. Long-term remission from thrombocytopenia/pancytopenia was achieved in 14 of the 15 patients during a follow-up period of 2 to 21 months. Splenectomy can be accomplished with an acceptable morbidity. Pneumonia developed postoperatively in 2 patients, but they did not manifest the characteristic picture of overwhelming postsplenectomy sepsis. They had received vaccinations against encapsulated organisms preoperatively. We conclude that splenectomy provides a durable and lasting response for HIV-related thrombocytopenia. Vaccination for Streptococcus pneumonia and Haemophilus influenzae should be given prior to splenectomy although its efficacy is not clear in this group.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

Gastric restrictive operations for morbid obesity.

Gastric restrictive surgery has evolved over the past decade as the treatment of choice for morbid obesity. We reviewed our experience with 289 patients who underwent gastric surgery for morbid obesity. Comorbid diseases included respiratory insufficiency in 19 percent of the patients, hypertension in 36 percent, diabetes in 15 percent, arthritis in 30 percent, and heart disease in 6 percent. Operative mortality was 0. The follow-up rate was 93 percent. Overall mortality was 1 percent, with no death directly attributed to the operative procedure. Weight loss was studied over the 6-year study period. Four to 6 years postoperatively, overall weight loss was 50 to 64 percent of excess weight. The treatment failure rate 12 to 18 months postoperatively was 5 percent. The experience with gastric restrictive surgery in 12 centers involving 5,178 patients was reviewed and compared with our results. Overall operative and late mortality rates were quite similar to observed death rates for nonobese men and women between 25 and 64 years of age. These data suggest that gastric surgery for morbid obesity results in a significant reduction in health risk.

Adolescent

Intraoperative radiation therapy for biliary tract carcinoma: results of a 5-year experience.

The results of a 5-year experience with use of intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) in the management of locally advanced bile duct carcinoma are presented. Fifteen patients received IORT doses between 5 and 20 Gy for localized disease, which was either primary and resected with microscopic residual (2 patients), primary and unresected (10 patients), or recurrent (3 patients). Thirteen patients also received postoperative radiation therapy. The median survival of the 12 patients with primary disease was 14 months, with disease controlled in the porta hepatis in 5 of 10 evaluable patients. The three patients with recurrent disease survived 2, 9, and 11 months. There were two operative deaths, for an operative mortality of 13%. Acute and chronic complications are reviewed. Cholangitis is the most frequent in both categories. This aggressive approach in the therapy for advanced disease has an acceptable level of morbidity and may warrant the use of IORT as part of the management of biliary tract cancer.

Acute Disease

Metastatic islet cell tumor with ACTH, gastrin, and glucagon secretion. Clinical and pathologic studies with multiple therapies.

A patient with metastatic islet cell carcinoma demonstrated multiple clinical syndromes simultaneously with secretion of ACTH, gastrin, glucagon, and serotonin. Hepatic arterial embolization resulted in an initial decrease in all secretory products, which was sustained for glucagon and serotonin. Recrudescence of the Cushings and Zollinger-Ellison syndrome was managed by surgical extirpation of the primary tumor and regional metastases as well as bilateral adrenalectomy. Electron microscopy and immunocytochemistry of the primary tumor and the metastatic lesions revealed the presence of multiple types of granules within single cells and, different patterns of secretory profiles in different tumor sites.

Adenoma, Islet Cell

Management of recurrent pelvic tumors.

The management of regional tumor recurrence in the pelvis traditionally has been a difficult problem for surgeons and oncologists. The only meaningful therapy for these patients is a potentially curative re-resection. The records and operative reports of 29 patients with regional pelvic tumor recurrence treated between 1981 and 1986 were reviewed. The operative procedures performed included three bowel resections, six abdominoperineal resections, eight pelvic exenterations, eight resections of tumor recurrence, and four conservative procedures. There was one operative death in this group. Significant morbidity was noted in the group but was clustered in a small number of patients operated on early in the series. The median follow-up in this series was 13 months (range, two to 51 months). Nineteen (65%) of the patients are surviving at a median follow-up of ten months (range, two to 51 months). The median survival (following resection) in the ten patients (35%) who died was 18 months. In 15 (52%) of the patients, a complete resection was performed. In this group, the survival is 80% with a median follow-up of 11 months. Seven (37%) are surviving with no evidence of disease. Palliation of symptoms occurred in 23 (79%) of the 29 patients. Radical resection of tumor recurrence in the pelvis can be performed with acceptable mortality and complication rates. This therapy should be considered for further clinical trials combining surgical and adjuvant therapy in patients with regional pelvic tumor recurrence.

Adult

Management of the urinary tract involved by recurrent cancer.

We present our experience from 1982 to the present in treating 33 patients with recurrent cancers (colorectal, 22; gynecologic, six; breast, two; melanoma, two; and lung, one) secondarily involving the genitourinary tract. All patients had severe symptoms that required palliation. Endoscopically placed stents relieved ureteral obstruction in 18 (75%) of 24 patients with widespread metastatic disease. Two patients required percutaneous nephrostomy tubes, and five required open operations. Good to excellent palliation was achieved in 23 of 24 patients. Mean survival in the group with diffuse metastases was 13 months (range, six to 29 months). Nine patients with localized recurrences underwent surgical procedures. For localized pelvic recurrences, total exenteration (with or without intraoperative radiotherapy) provided excellent palliation with low morbidity. At the time of this report, five of six such patients had no evidence of disease, and one had a small asymptomatic pelvic recurrence, with a mean follow-up of 13 months (range, five to 19 months).

Adult

Hemolytic-uremic syndrome and acute renal failure in metastatic adenocarcinoma treated with mitomycin: case report and literature review.

Acute renal failure proved fatal in a patient with metastatic breast adenocarcinoma, complicated by the hemolytic-uremic syndrome. Low-grade hemolysis probably was ongoing prior to a third course of chemotherapy that included mitomycin. Terminal renal failure was caused by glomerular infarction and tubular necrosis. Schiztocytes in the blood smear and casts in the urine sediment may be relative contraindications to prolongation of tumor-lysis therapy. Recent advances in "rescue therapy" for hemolytic-uremic syndromes justify dialysis at least on a temporary basis.

Acute Kidney Injury

Pulmonary complications of orthotopic liver transplantation.

Pulmonary complications following orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) were prospectively evaluated in 18 individuals transplanted at the New England Deaconess Hospital. Of sixteen patients who survived the immediate postoperative period, 12 (75%) sustained a pulmonary complication. Of these complications, 64% were noninfectious--whereas 22% were infectious, and 14% probably infectious. Six of eight documented infections were caused by viruses of the herpes group. In four cases of viral pneumonitis other pulmonary pathogens were isolated (fungi-3, protozoan-1, bacteria-1). Unlike noninfectious complications, pulmonary infections were associated with a fatal outcome in five of six patients who died after OLT. Pulmonary complications are frequent and serious occurrences after OLT, and contribute to both the morbidity and mortality of this procedure. Compared with pulmonary complications seen after transplantation of other organs, OLT was associated with a higher proportion of noninfectious complications but a similar spectrum of pulmonary infections.

Adult

Prophylaxis against central vein thrombosis with low-dose warfarin.

Low-dose warfarin was given to patients to prevent venous thrombosis. Patients at greatest risk for having thrombi adjacent to central venous catheters were detected by the von Kaulla assay. Patients with normal von Kaulla assays had one thrombus per 1844 days at risk while those with accelerated von Kaulla assays had one thrombus per 500 days at risk. Low-dose warfarin therapy given to patients at high risk reduced the incidence of venous thrombosis from one thrombus per 251 days to one thrombus per 1617 days. Thus low doses of warfarin that do not prolong the prothrombin time appear to offer prophylaxis against venous thrombosis in patients at high risk for developing venous thrombosis adjacent to the central venous catheters.

Adolescent

Nutritional assessment and patient outcome during oncological therapy.

Protein--calorie malnutrition is the single most common secondary diagnosis in patients with cancer, and is a direct consequence of the anorexia of malignancy and altered host metabolism induced by tumor. One hundred and sixty-one cancer patients were nutritionally assessed prior to receiving oncological therapy (surgery, chemotherapy, and/or radiation therapy). Eighty-four percent (27/32) of the patients who were initially anergic became immunocompetent with nutritional therapy and had a mortality rate of 11% as compared to 100% mortality in the 5 patients who remained anergic throughout their hospital stay. Thirty-nine percent (14/36) of the patients initially immune competent became anergic and had a concomitant mortality rate of 50% vs. a mortality rate of only 14% in the 22 patients whose immune function was preserved (p less than 0.05). Those patients who were discharged at the completion of their therapy also exhibited a higher initial serum albumin (3.5 +/- 0.1 vs. 3.1 +/- 0.1 g/dl, p less than 0.001) and serum transferrin (149 +/- 7 vs. 125 +/- 7 mg/dl, p less than 0.05). A significant increase (p less than 0.025) occurred in serum transferrin (delta 23 +/- 9 mg/dl) after 3 or more weeks of nutritional support. The detection and treatment of protein--calorie malnutrition prior to or in conjunction with oncological therapy has been associated with a decrease in mortality rate.

Body Constitution

Energy regulation in morbid obesity by multidisciplinary therapy.

Regulation of energy expenditure should be directed toward fat mobilization and oxidation with concomitant preservation of lean body mass. This requires a multidisciplinary approach. The key surgical component of a gastric bypass is a properly sized pouch and stoma outlet. Compliance with a diet of approximately 800 to 1200 kcal per day, limited to three small meals and two snacks is the desired result. Weight loss should average 10 to 15 pounds monthly when surgery is added to intense medical, nutritional, and behavior therapy to ensure that the weight is reduced to desirable levels.

Diet, Reducing

Nutritional assessment and treatment of hospital malnutrition.

A thorough awareness of the nutritional and metabolic status of the hospitalized patient is crucial for all persons directly involved in patient care. The catabolic nature of the body's response to illness or injury induces a serious drain on vital organs and tissues. Therefore, a complete assessment of the body's various compartments must be carefully taken, and any nutritional depletion must be quickly alleviated. Due to the alarming incidence of often undetected severe malnutrition in hospitalized patients, if becomes imperative that attention be paid to nutritional status, to decrease unnecessary morbidity and mortality.

Anthropometry

Branched chain amino acid administration and metabolism during starvation, injury, and infection.

Branched chain amino acids were administered intragastrically in a septic-fractured rat model to determine the degree and mechanism of their protein-sparing ability. The septic injury model was first shown to produce a metabolic response characterized by hyperglycemia, reduced ketonemia and increased nitrogen loss. Branched chain amino acids were then administered either alone or as 25% or 50% (w/w) of a complete crystalline amino acid solution. L-(U-14C)-tyrosine was added to the diet to estimate protein synthesis in individual tissues. Branched chain amino acids, when given alone, spared total body nitrogen as compared with fasting by increasing the fractional synthesis of both mixed liver and muscle protein. Although the two complete amino acid mixtures produced similar nitrogen preservation and muscle synthesis in the septic animals, the crystalline amino acid diet containing 50% branched chain amino acids resulted in the greatest preservation of total liver nitrogen and the highest fractional synthetic rate. The effect of branched chain amino acids would not appear to be explained by their nitrogen content alone, and in starvation with injury and infection, increased intakes may have potential benefit. Clinical trials in starved, injured man appear to be indicated.

Amino Acids, Branched-Chain