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Kin-Man Lai

Publications and source records attributed to Kin-Man Lai.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

Transthoracic cuffed hemodialysis catheters: a method for difficult hemodialysis access.

BACKGROUND: Recurrent vascular access failure is a major cause of morbidity in patients receiving long-term hemodialysis. Central venous catheters are often necessary for dialysis, and easily accessed vessels (ie, the internal jugular vein and subclavian vein) frequently occlude because of repeated cannulation. When standard access sites occlude, unconventional access methods become necessary. We report a technique of placing hemodialysis catheters directly into the superior vena cava (SVC). METHODS: Between January 2002 and December 2004, 22 patients with documented bilateral jugular and subclavian vein occlusion underwent transthoracic SVC permanent catheter placement. Femoral vein access was obtained, and a sheath was placed. Under fluoroscopic guidance, a diagnostic catheter was then inserted into the SVC, and a venogram was obtained. By using the fluoroscopic image as a reference guide, supraclavicular access directly into the SVC was performed with lateral and anteroposterior views to better localize the SVC. Once venous blood was obtained, a hydrophilic wire was passed into the inferior vena cava. A 5F sheath was then placed, and, with the use of an exchange catheter, the wire was switched for a stiffer wire. The hemodialysis catheter was then placed in the standard fashion over this wire. RESULTS: In a 24-month period, 22 patients underwent transthoracic permanent catheter placement. All patients had the permanent catheters successfully inserted. Two major complications occurred. One patient experienced a pneumothorax, and another patient experienced a hemothorax. Both patients were successfully treated with chest tube decompression. All permanent catheters functioned immediately with a range of 1 to 7 months. CONCLUSIONS: Transthoracic permanent catheter placement is an appropriate alternative for patients in whom traditional venous access sites are no longer available.

Arteriovenous Shunt, Surgical↗

Gene expression patterns in human liver cancers.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a leading cause of death worldwide. Using cDNA microarrays to characterize patterns of gene expression in HCC, we found consistent differences between the expression patterns in HCC compared with those seen in nontumor liver tissues. The expression patterns in HCC were also readily distinguished from those associated with tumors metastatic to liver. The global gene expression patterns intrinsic to each tumor were sufficiently distinctive that multiple tumor nodules from the same patient could usually be recognized and distinguished from all the others in the large sample set on the basis of their gene expression patterns alone. The distinctive gene expression patterns are characteristic of the tumors and not the patient; the expression programs seen in clonally independent tumor nodules in the same patient were no more similar than those in tumors from different patients. Moreover, clonally related tumor masses that showed distinct expression profiles were also distinguished by genotypic differences. Some features of the gene expression patterns were associated with specific phenotypic and genotypic characteristics of the tumors, including growth rate, vascular invasion, and p53 overexpression.

Carcinoma, Hepatocellular↗