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Biomedical subjects

Karin M Dunst

Publications and source records attributed to Karin M Dunst.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Diffuse phlegmonous phlebitis after endovenous laser treatment of the greater saphenous vein.

Endovenous laser treatment (EVLT) has become a valuable and safe option in the treatment of varicose veins. Although long-term results are lacking, most patients seem to benefit in the short-term from EVLT. Reported postoperative complications are limited, consisting usually of pain, ecchymosis, induration, phlebitis, or spot skin burn injuries. The most feared complication is an extension of the saphenous thrombus into the femoral vein, with possible pulmonary embolism. Here we report a septic thrombophlebitis after EVLT resulting in a phlegmonous infection of the whole leg that was treated by surgical drainage. Aggressive local therapy and antibiotic treatment resulted in complete resolution of symptoms and eventual satisfactory healing.

Angioplasty, Laser↗

Pulsatile perfused porcine coronary arteries for microvascular training.

Microsurgery is today an established technique in specialties such as plastic surgery, neurosurgery, and trauma surgery. However, specialized training is a prerequisite for mastering anastomosis of small-diameter vessels or coaptation of nerves in the operating room. The training should be as realistic as possible and thus, laboratory animals such as the rat are preferably used as a substitute. In an attempt to minimize the use of living animals without jeopardizing a realistic training setting, we developed a pulsatile perfused porcine coronary artery model for microsurgical education. The training model consists of a membrane pump that generates a pulsatile flow within a coronary artery of a porcine heart. The pump is commercially available with a dimension of approximately 130 x 100 x 60 mm and a weight of 190 g. The pump is energized by 220 B and the motor is run on a transformed power of approximately 12 V (range, 1.5-12 V). Different fluids from simple saline solution to theoretically whole blood can be used for perfusion. The membrane pump proved to be very reliable during microvascular training because of its convenient size and wide range of feed rate providing a very realistic training setting. A maximum fluid output of 850 mL/min can be achieved. The pump has a high acceptance in microsurgical trainees evaluated by questionnaires during several microsurgical courses. The pulsatile perfused porcine coronary artery system for microsurgical training enables the trainee to work under the most realistic training settings. It proved to be a valuable tool during microsurgical education, reducing the costs and sparing living laboratory animals. Thus, we can recommend this system to anyone who is involved in training and teaching microsurgical skills.

Animals↗

Adolf Jarisch (1850-1902): an important contributor to Austrian dermatology.

Adolf Jarisch was born on the 15th of February 1850 in the city of Vienna, where he also studied medicine. He soon pursued a career in dermatology and venereology and, thus, joined the clinic of von Hebra, one of the founders of the famous new Vienna School of Medicine. After temporarily replacing von Hebra, Jarisch became the chief of the Department of Dermatology at the University of Innsbruck (1887). Although Adolf Jarisch was appointed chief of the dermatologic department at the University of Graz 5 years later (1892), his biggest dream, to become successor of his former teacher Ferdinand von Hebra and head the dermatological department of the Wiener Allgemeines Krankenhaus (Vienna General Hospital) did not come true. Although Adolf Jarisch is mainly known for his observations on skin reactions and a profound worsening of symptoms in syphilitic patients immediately following treatment with mercury (Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction), he authored more than 25 scientific articles and wrote a book, "Hautkrankheiten", which was considered as the most important in German-speaking literature at the beginning of the twentieth century. The purpose of this historical article is to discuss Jarisch's achievements in the field of dermatology based on a detailed analysis of his scientific work.

Austria↗

Analysis of original contributions in three dermatology journals.

In a cross-sectional analysis, the three top ranking dermatology journals ( Archives of Dermatology , British Journal of Dermatology , and the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology ) were evaluated for their scientific content, the characteristics of their authors, and funding aspects in 2002. A flood of scientific papers are published each year covering a broad variety of dermatologic topics. Aside from the actual content, a scientific article provides information about the number of authors, their nationality and affiliations, and, with some limitation, about previous presentations and funding. The present study analyzes this situation in dermatology by evaluating the content in the three top dermatologic journals.

Advertising↗

Cardiac hepatopathy before and after heart transplantation.

Chronic cardiac hepatopathy is a common entity in patients evaluated for heart transplantation (HTX). Hepatic injury is caused by severe heart failure resulting from prolonged recurrent congestion and/or impaired arterial perfusion. No data are available on the reversibility of cardiac hepatopathy in patients undergoing HTX. Data of 56 consecutive adult patients undergoing HTX during 2000-02 at the University Hospital of Innsbruck were analysed retrospectively. The following parameters were evaluated at the time of listing and 3, 6 and 12 months after HTX. Plasma levels of gamma-glutamyl transferase (gamma-GT), alkaline phosphatase (AP), bilirubin, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and total plasma protein. When listed for HTX, only 12% of all patients analysed had physiological values throughout the seven laboratory parameters assessed. Elevated levels of gamma-GT, AP, bilirubin, AST, ALT, LDH and total plasma protein were detected in 66.6%, 29%, 50%, 16.7%, 10%, 40% and 18% of all patients respectively. Accordingly, median plasma levels of gamma-GT, bilirubin and LDH were elevated, whereas the mean plasma level of AP was at the upper normal range. In contrast, median plasma level of AST and mean plasma levels of ALT and total plasma protein were within the normal range: gamma-GT (median, 109.0; range, 634.0 U/l; n = 36), AP (mean, 120.2 +/- 78.9 U/l; n = 29), bilirubin (median, 1.3; range, 16.1 mg/dl; n = 32), LDH (median, 226.0; range, 2355.0 U/l; n = 33), AST (median, 29.0; range, 145.0 U/l; n = 36), ALT (mean, 28.3 +/- 20.8 U/l; n = 36) and total plasma protein (mean, 7.2 +/- 1.1 g/dl; n = 25). Within 3 months after HTX, elevated parameters except LDH significantly ameliorated: gamma-GT (median, 59.0; range, 1160.0 U/l; P = 0.011), AP (92.2 +/- 75.2 U/l; P = 0.016), bilirubin (median, 0.9; range, 8.1 mg/dl; P = 0.004), LDH slightly increased (median, 281.0; range, 543.0 U/l; P = 0.039), but there was a delayed improvement of this parameter after 6 and 12 months post-HTX. End-stage heart failure is characterized by a cholestatic liver enzyme profile with elevated plasma levels of gamma-GT and bilirubin. These parameters significantly improve within 3 months after HTX. Therefore, chronic cardiac hepatopathy seems to be a benign, potentially reversible disease.

Alanine Transaminase↗

Control of suture hole bleeding after aortic valve replacement by application of BioGlue during circulatory arrest.

Bleeding from suture holes in aortic valve replacement (AVR) may represent a difficult problem especially if the aortic wall is friable. We describe a case in which suture hole bleeding after AVR was present at the posterior aortic wall close to the pulmonary artery. Following several attempts to suture the leak using felt pledget armed prolene sutures, deep hypothermic circulatory arrest was induced and BioGlue in combination with Tabotamp was applied for successful sealing of the bleeding source.

Aortic Valve↗

Management of a traumatically avulsed skin-flap on the dorsum of the foot.

BACKGROUND: It is common for traumatologists to see avulsion injuries with resulting composite skin flaps. Simply reattaching the avulsed flap by suturing it back into its bed may result in ischemic necrosis of the distal portion of the flap. CASE REPORT: The authors present a case in which an extensive avulsion injury of the dorsum of the foot with amputation of the fourth and fifth toe was treated by defatting the avulsed flap and reattachment as a full-thickness graft. Healing was uneventful and no skin necrosis was encountered. At 1-year follow-up there was a stable skin situation at the dorsum of the foot. The patient has no difficulties with wearing shoes. However, there is diminished sensibility. CONCLUSIONS: Indications for this type of surgical technique include all types of avulsion or degloving injuries that create composite skin flaps prone to undergo ischemic necrosis if simply reattached. This quick and easy method should be in the armamentarium of each surgeon possibly dealing with this type of injury.

Adult↗

Area enlargement of the gracilis muscle flap through microscopically aided intramuscular dissection: ideas and innovations.

The gracilis muscle is one of the most extensively used muscles for free tissue transplantation. Its advantages are low donor-site morbidity with a concealed donor scar, a constant anatomy with large-diameter vessels, and the potential for a neurosensory flap as well as a large skin paddle. However, limitations comprise its limited size, and thus the muscle is limited to small-to-medium-sized defects. We present a novel technique by which the muscle can be enlarged 3-4 times over the regular muscle width. This can be achieved by microscopically aided intramuscular dissection of connective tissue with preservation of the intrinsic vessels of the muscle. With this technique, the field of application of the versatile gracilis muscle in reconstructive surgery can be further expanded.

Breast Neoplasms↗

Analysis of publications in three plastic surgery journals for the year 2002.

The goal of this study was to analyze the publications in the plastic surgery literature for the year 2002. Contents of these articles, authors' information (such as nationality affiliation of the first author), type of institution, presence of grant support, and previous presentation were analyzed. For inclusion in this study, the publications had to be original articles from the three most frequently read general plastic surgery journals: Annals of Plastic Surgery, British Journal of Plastic Surgery, and Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. With this approach, 533 articles were included in the study. To give a cross-sectional analysis of the content of all articles, 11 distinct categories were created in which all the articles were subsummarized. The categories were based on anatomical regions and specific plastic surgical areas. A summary is given for each of the categories to provide an overview of the field in which most of the research in plastic surgery was taking place in 2002 and which topics were focused on. The authors found that only 7 percent of all articles had grant support, whereas 36 percent of articles were presented previously during a scientific meeting. Most of the articles came from university-based institutions (68 percent), followed by non-university-based institutions (29 percent) and private practice (3 percent). Regarding nationality affiliation, most of the articles came from the United States (n = 229) and Europe (n = 128); in Asia, Turkey (n = 39) and Japan (n = 36) were the countries with the most published articles.

Bibliometrics↗