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Biomedical subjects

B T Petersen

Publications and source records attributed to B T Petersen.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

The evolving role of endoscopic retrograde cholangiography before and after cholecystectomy.

Laparoscopy is the preferred approach for cholecystectomy; however the indications for pre- versus postoperative endoscopic retrograde cholangiography (ERC) are still evolving. The records of patients who had ERC performed one month before (n = 119) or after (n = 35) laparoscopic or open cholecystectomy from January 1990 to August 1992 (period 1), and 66 patients who had preoperative ERC from November 1995 to October 1996 (period 2) are reviewed, ERC indications, findings and outcomes were reviewed, and trends in the use of preoperative ERC from 1990 to 1996 were sought. Between periods 1 and 2 the yield of preoperative ERC increased from 36% to 58% (P < 0.01). The use of preoperative ERC for the indication of abnormal liver enzymes declined (P < 0.05), while the yield increased (25% versus 61%, P < 0.01). Both the use of ERC and the yield remained stable for other indications. ERC was felt to have changed the surgical approach in 5% of patients. Primary indications for postoperative ERC (n = 35) included abnormal intraoperative cholangiography (43%), liver function test abnormalities (23%) and recurrence of preoperative symptoms (14%); stones were found in 60%, 50% and 20% of patients with these indications, respectively. Overall, 46% of postoperative studies revealed duct stones. The roles for pre- and postoperative ERC are changing and depend greatly on the relative laparoscopic and endoscopic expertise at a given institution.

Adolescent

Transdermal nicotine for mildly to moderately active ulcerative colitis. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Ulcerative colitis is predominantly a disease of nonsmokers. Transdermal nicotine may help control clinical manifestations of this condition. OBJECTIVE: To determine the efficacy of transdermal nicotine for controlling clinical disease activity in active ulcerative colitis. DESIGN: Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single-center clinical trial. SETTING: Multispecialty group serving as an academic tertiary referral center. PATIENTS: 64 nonsmoking patients with mildly to moderately active ulcerative colitis despite the use of medication. INTERVENTION: Patients were stratified on the basis of smoking history, extent of disease, and concomitant medical therapy. After stratification, patients were randomly assigned to daily treatment with transdermal nicotine (n = 31) at the highest tolerated dose (11 mg for 1 week and then < or = 22 mg for 3 weeks) or placebo (n = 33). MEASUREMENTS: Clinical features were assessed at baseline and 4 weeks by endoscopy, physician assessment, and a patient diary of daily symptoms. Serum concentrations of nicotine were determined by using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, and plasma concentrations of cotinine were measured by using high-performance liquid chromatography. RESULTS: At 4 weeks, 12 of 31 patients (39%) who received nicotine showed clinical improvement compared with 3 of 33 patients (9%) who received placebo (P = 0.007). Four patients receiving nicotine discontinued therapy because of side effects (contact dermatitis [n = 2], nausea [n = 1], and acute pancreatitis [n = 1]). At week 4, the nicotine group had a mean (+/-SD) trough serum nicotine concentration of 11.3 +/- 8.4 ng/mL and a mean trough plasma cotinine concentration of 192 +/- 95 ng/mL. CONCLUSIONS: Transdermal nicotine administered at the highest tolerated dosage (< or = 22 mg/d) for 4 weeks is efficacious for controlling clinical manifestations of mildly to moderately active ulcerative colitis.

Administration, Cutaneous

Endoscopic decompression for acute colonic pseudo-obstruction.

BACKGROUND: Acute colonic pseudo-obstruction is often treated by colonoscopic decompression. Efficacy, safety, and outcome of endoscopic decompression was assessed. METHODS: Colonoscopic decompressions from 1988 to 1994 were reviewed. Resolution without further endoscopic intervention was defined as clinical success. RESULTS: Acute colonic pseudo-obstruction was diagnosed in 50 patients. Thirty-three cases followed surgery or trauma and 17 developed during severe medical illness. Orthopedic joint surgery was most common. Nineteen of 50 patients (38%) had severe underlying medical disease. Forty-one patients (82%) had one colonoscopic decompression with clinical success in 39 (95%). Nine patients (18%) required multiple (2 to 4) colonoscopic decompressions with clinical success in 5 (56%). A decompression tube positioned in the right colon (57%) and in the transverse colon (33%) had similar clinical success. In 8 procedures a decompression tube was not placed, with poor clinical success (25%). The overall clinical success of colonoscopic decompression was 88% (44 of 50). An endoscopic perforation occurred in 1 patient (2%). Overall hospital mortality was 30%. CONCLUSIONS: Colonoscopic decompression is effective and safe for acute colonic pseudo-obstruction that does not respond to conservative therapy. Most patients will respond to one colonoscopic decompression with decompression tube placement. Complete colonoscopy and cecal tube placement is unnecessary.

Acute Disease

Pancreatitis secondary to percutaneous liver biopsy-associated hemobilia.

Hemobilia refers to hemorrhage in the biliary tree and is most commonly associated with accidental and iatrogenic trauma. Rarely has pancreatitis been reported in association with hemobilia and never as a consequence of percutaneous liver biopsy-induced hemobilia. We report the case of a 64-yr-old man who presented with pancreatitis 6 days after a percutaneous liver biopsy. Within 24 h of admission, he developed hematochezia. Emergency endoscopy was performed, and with a side-viewing duodenoscope, blood and clot were clearly seen oozing from the papilla. The origin of bleeding was identified angiographically as a pseudoaneurysm of the right hepatic artery. Bleeding stopped and pancreatitis resolved after angiographic embolization of the hepatic artery pseudoaneurysm. A review of the English language literature reveals eight well-documented cases of pancreatitis associated with hemobilia, including the current report. Seven cases were associated with ruptured hepatic artery aneurysms and one case with hemorrhagic acalculous cholecystitis. Six of the patients received appropriate therapy to stop bleeding and recovered uneventfully. Pancreatitis should be recognized as a potential important complication of hemobilia. In addition, hemobilia should be considered in the differential diagnosis for those patients with apparent biliary or idiopathic acute pancreatitis and no stones seen on ultrasonography. When bleeding is stopped via surgical or radiological methods, the clinical course of hemobilia-associated pancreatitis appears to be benign.

Biopsy, Needle

Acute gastrointestinal bleeding. Experience of a specialized management team.

The initial experience of a specialized management team organized to provide expedient care for all acute major gastrointestinal bleeding in protocolized fashion at a large referral center is presented. Of the 417 patients, 56% developed bleeding while hospitalized. Upper gastrointestinal bleeding accounted for 82%. The five most common etiologies included gastric ulcers (83 patients), duodenal ulcers (67 patients), erosions (41 patients), varices (35 patients), and diverticulosis (29 patients). Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs were implicated in 53% of gastroduodenal ulcers. The incidence of nonbleeding visible vessels was 42% in gastric and 54% in duodenal ulcers. The rates of rebleeding were 24% (20 patients) in gastric ulcers and 28% (19 patients) in duodenal ulcers. Predictive factors for rebleeding included copious bright red blood, active arterial streaming, spurting, or a densely adherent clot. The rebleeding rate for esophagogastric varices was 57%. The mortality rate overall was 6% (27 patients), with rates varying from 3% (five patients) for gastroduodenal ulcers to 40% (14 patients) for esophagogastric varices. The morbidity rate for the entire patient population was 18% (77 patients), dominated by myocardial events (34 patients). The average length of hospitalization for gastroduodenal ulcers was 5 days, for diverticulosis 8 days, and for varices 10 days. The major efforts of a specialized Gastrointestinal Bleeding Team would be best directed at both reducing the morbidity associated with acute bleeding and reducing the overall cost of care.

Adolescent

Dissolution of cholesterol gallbladder stones by methyl tert-butyl ether administered by percutaneous transhepatic catheter.

We treated 75 patients with symptomatic cholesterol gallstones by dissolving the stones with methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) instilled into the gallbladder through a percutaneous transhepatic catheter. The MTBE was continuously infused and aspirated manually four to six times a minute, for an average of five hours per day for one to three days; the treatment was monitored by fluoroscopy. The placement of the catheter and the administration of MTBE caused few side effects or complications, and treatment did not have to be stopped in any patient for this reason. In 72 patients there was complete dissolution of stones or more than 95 percent dissolution. Among 21 patients who were completely free of stones after treatment, 4 had recurrence of stone formation 6 to 16 months later. The other 51 patients had residual debris, which spontaneously cleared completely in 15 patients within 6 to 35 months; only 7 with persisting debris have had symptoms. Five of the initial 6 patients treated, but only 1 of the next 69 patients, have required surgery during follow-up periods of 6 to 42 months. We conclude that the dissolution of gallstones by MTBE delivered through a percutaneous transhepatic catheter is a useful alternative to surgery in selected patients with symptomatic cholesterol stones. Further study will be necessary to establish the long-term effectiveness of this treatment and its appropriate role in the management of the various types of gallstones.

Adult

Extracorporeal shock-wave lithotripsy and methyl tert-butyl ether for partially calcified gallstones.

To explore the possibility that gallbladder stone fragments might be able to be safely dissolved using methyl tert-butyl ether immediately after extracorporeal shock-wave lithotripsy (ESWL), a feasibility study in 8 patients with one to four partially calcified gallbladder stones was performed. The gallstones averaged 2.2 cm in diameter (range 1.3-3 cm) and contained layered or diffuse calcium detectable by computed tomography scan only (7 patients) or plain film (1 patient). After a 5F (1.7 mm) pigtail catheter was placed percutaneously into the gallbladder, ESWL fragmentation was performed using a renal stone lithotriptor. The patients were under general anesthesia and in the prone position on a support gantry designed for gallbladder stone ESWL. Following ESWL, methyl tert-butyl ether was infused and aspirated via the gallbladder catheter until no further stone material was radiologically detectable or could be dissolved. After 8-26 h (mean = 13 h) of methyl tert-butyl ether therapy, no radiologically detectable gallstones remained in 6 of 8 patients. Shell fragments of three peripherally calcified stones in 1 patient and the densely calcified, predominantly pigment stone in a second patient were refractory to combined therapy. Both ESWL and treatment with methyl tert-butyl ether were well tolerated in all patients, although bile leakage after catheter removal occurred in 3 patients, one of whom was treated by cholecystectomy. Additional measures to prevent bile leakage may be advisable if these two modalities are to be used in tandem. We found no evidence, however, that predissolution stone fragmentation with ESWL predisposed the gallbladder to either mucosal damage by methyl tert-butyl ether or increased absorption of it.

Aged