An unusual case of iatrogenic central venous injury.

Central venous catheter (CVC) provides ready vascular access and is widely used for the performance of hemodialysis. The use of CVC is associated with many complications and one life-threatening complication is central venous injury. We describe an unusual case of central venous injury in a 69-year-old lady with a poorly functioning left internal jugular vein catheter, which was in situ at the time of attempting insertion of a replacement right internal jugular catheter. The management included initial stabilization, urgent hemodialysis, imaging, and an endovascular approach to mitigate the iatrogenic venous injury. The case highlights many learning points. The operator needs to be vigilant for anatomical abnormalities like stenosis in patients who have had previous CVC. In those with central venous perforation, the CVC should be left in situ till a definitive management plan is formulated. An endovascular approach, when feasible, is a minimally invasive effective management strategy.

Early Experience with Sine Wave Technique for Superficialization of a difficult to cannulate Arterio Venous Fistula.

OBJECTIVE: To highlight safety and efficacy of sine wave technique (SWT) in superficializing deep arterio venous fistula (AVF) and managing infiltrations and other complications. METHODS: It is a single center observational study done from Jul 2017 to July 2020. All successive cases of deep AVFs, aneurysm / pseudoaneurysms of AVFs, and AVFs requiring open venoplasty were managed with SWT. Data was collected prospectively and analyzed. SWT is based on random pattern skin flaps. Using ultrasound, a line is marked on either side of centre line (AVF) at a distance of approximately 1.5-2 cm. A sine wave is drawn starting from either of the lines to the other with multiple crests and troughs. The base of flap should be double the height of the flap, that is, about 3-4 cm. Skin is incised and flaps are raised at level of AVF. Excess fat is removed. A sliver of unhealthy skin can be sacrificed if required. Flaps are sutured back to restore sine wave continuity. RESULTS: SWT was used in a total of eleven patients. Median age was 58 years (range 10-67 years). Eight were females and three males. One was radio-cephalic and rest were brachio-cephalic AVFs. Eight AVFs were deep with median depth of 10.25mm (range 8-13mm), median body mass index of 25.5 kg/m2 (range 23.9-26.5kg/m2), median vein diameter of 7 mm (range 6-8 mm), and median flow rate of 1137.5ml/min (range 650- 1380 ml/min). Out of eight, four AVFs presented with infiltration. In other three, SWT was used for exposing AVF to treat underlying pathology (one case each of aneurysm, pseudoaneurysm & stenosis). Ten cases were done under local or regional anesthesia and one under general anesthesia. There was no peri-operative mortality or loss of AVF. Transient limb oedema developed in one case. Median time to cannulate was 20 days (range 13-28 days). Median follow up was 13 months (range 6 - 31months). Cumulative patency at 18 months was 90% (95% CI 47.3%-98.53%) and 45 % (95% CI 9.9%-87.1%) at 24months and at the end of the study. CONCLUSION: SWT is safe and effective in superficialization of deep / difficult to cannulate AVF as well a good approach to treat complications like infiltration. Post procedure cannulation time is reasonably short.

Salvage of Infected Cardiac Implantable Electrical Devices with Subpectoral Plane Pocket Revision.

Introduction Infection of cardiac implantable electrical devices (CIEDs) may lead to serious complications. Complete CIED explantation is expensive, requires expertise, not free from complications, and may not be an option in patients with device dependence. Aim To highlight that carefully selected infected CIEDs can be salvaged by placing the device in a subpectoral pocket below the pectoralis major muscle. We conducted a retrospective descriptive observational study. Material and Methods Twelve patients (10 male and two female) with erosion, exposure or infection of infraclavicular, subcutaneously placed CIED were treated over a 30-month period between July 2018 and December 2020. The technique involved debridement and excision of a peridevice capsule, creating a subpectoral pocket beneath the pectoralis major muscle, and placing the CIED in a new pocket with total muscle coverage and closure of skin without tension. Results Twelve patients ( m = 10; f = 2) with a mean age of 65 years (range, 46-82 years) presented with infection of CIED within 9 months of implantation. None had sepsis or endocarditis. In nine patients, CIEDs were successfully salvaged with relocation to subpectoral pocket. Mean follow-up was 20 months (range, 8-30 months). Three out of 12 developed reinfection that ultimately required CIED explantation. There was no mortality. Conclusion In the absence of sepsis or endocarditis, infected CIEDs may be attempted at salvage by subpectoral pocket placement. This obviates the need for potentially risky explantation or replacement of expensive CIEDs.

Femoral artery access site closure with perclose suture mediated device in coronary interventions.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the outcome of suture mediated vascular closure device Perclose Proglide (PP) with manual compression (MC) following transfemoral access for coronary interventions (CI). METHODS: It is a retrospective, observational, single centre study from January 2018 to September 2019. Consecutive patients undergoing interventions through transfemoral access were divided into PP and MC groups. Those with less than 3 months follow up were excluded. Two groups were compared for baseline characteristics and various complications at 24 h and at 30 days. RESULTS: Out of 1743 patients studied, PP group included 1343 and MC group, 400 patients. Both groups were comparable in baseline characteristics, sheath size and use of antiplatelets and anticoagulation. PP group had significantly less minor bleeding (P = .01, CI 0.34-4.03) and hematoma (P = .0007, CI 0.95-5.10) at 24 h. At 30 days, minor bleeding (P < .0001, CI 0.97-4.25), hematoma (P = .0002, CI 1.05-4.93) and pseudo-aneurysm (P = .0095, CI 0.03-1.18) were also significantly less in PP group. Obesity (OR 3.5, CI 1.29-9.49) and hypertension (OR 2.41, CI 1.12-5.19) were associated with increased minor bleeding at 24 h. Device failure rate was 2.38%. CONCLUSIONS: PP device is safe, effective and is associated with fewer complications than MC in CI. Device failure rate is low. Obesity and hypertension are associated with increased minor bleeding in both groups.

Evidence based switch to perianal block for ano-rectal surgeries.

BACKGROUND: Evidence suggests that switch from spinal/general anaesthesia (SA/GA) to perianal block (PAB) may prove advantageous for proctologic surgeries. This study evaluates the practicability of this evidence based switch. METHODS: Feasibility and efficacy of PAB for proctologic surgeries was prospectively evaluated on 100 consecutive patients over 11 months. Thirty ml of local anesthetic (0.25% bupivacaine+1% lignocaine with adrenaline) was infiltrated into the anal sphincter and perianal skin, under sedation, for achieving PAB. Time taken for onset of anesthesia; success/failure of block; conversion rate to GA; operative ease; operative time; post operative recovery; duration of analgesia; post operative pain based on verbal response score (VRS; scale: 0-100); and complications were analyzed. RESULTS: 54 open haemorrhoidectomies; 27 fistulectomies and 19 lateral sphincterotomies were performed. Average of 3 min (range 2-5 min) was needed for onset. Block was successful in 97% of cases. 3% needed conversion to GA. Good anesthesia and sphincter relaxation ensured operative ease. Median operative time was 20 min (range 10-35 min). Analgesia lasted a median of 5 hours (range 3-10 hrs). Subsequent pain ranged between VRS 10-40, tapering off, along with analgesic requirement, over a week. Trivial injection site hematoma (1%) and reactionary bleeding (1%) were the complications observed. Post operative recovery was uniformly smooth in all patients. CONCLUSIONS: Perianal block is a safe, feasible, reliable, and reproducible mode of anesthesia for ano-rectal surgeries. Its evident efficacy justifies its adoption as anesthesia of choice.

Laparoscopic ligation of internal ring-three ports versus single-port technique: are working ports necessary?

BACKGROUND: From three ports, technical refinements in laparoscopy have facilitated the ligation of the internal ring (IR) with a single port. OBJECTIVES: The aims of this study were to determine whether, when, and where working ports are needed by assessing the differences in outcome between the three-port technique (TPT) and the single-port technique-subcutaneous endoscopically assisted ligation (SEAL). METHODS: Short-term outcomes of 163 children operated on by either technique (51 with TPT, and 112 with SEAL) were audited. Technical difficulties, operation time, intra- and postoperative complications, and postoperative stay were studied. RESULTS: IR could be ligated faster by SEAL than TPT (unilateral: 15 vs. 25 minutes; P = 0.0005; bilateral: 25 vs. 40 minutes; P = 0.001). SEAL proved cosmetically more appealing (one 5-mm vs. three 5-mm scars). Complication rates, recovery, and hospital stay were similar. Recurrences were marginally higher following SEAL (4.8 vs. 2.98%; P = 0.49). Intracorporeal suturing and knotting were the limiting steps in TPT, while wide rings (>10 mm) and thick abdominal wall were the limitations of SEAL. CONCLUSIONS: Both TPT and SEAL are safe and efficacious day-care procedures. In the ligation of average-sized IR of thin patients, working ports may not be necessary, as SEAL proves cosmetically and temporally efficacious over TPT. However, patients with wide rings and thick anterior abdominal walls may need the placement of working ports for successful laparoscopic repair.