[Implication of late diagnosis for survival of patients with colorectal carcinoma].

BACKGROUND/AIM: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most frequent diseases and early diagnosis has a potential role to improve survival. The aim of this study was to analyze influence of delay in diagnosis on survival in patiens with colorectal cancer. METHODS: A total of 119 patients with pathohystological diagnosis of CRC were included in the study. They were operated at our Department for Surgery from 2000 to 2002. They were divided into two groups according to the duration of symptoms: early operated patients - EOP (symptoms were presented for 3 months) and late operated patients - LOP (duration of symptoms was more than 3 months). Follow-up period was 5 year. RESULTS: Weight loss, intermittent abdominal pain and anorexia were more frequent in LOP (p < 0.01). Young age, blood in stool, and tumor localized in rectum were dominant characteristics in EOP (p < 0.05). Overall delay in diagnosis was 2.19 +/- 0.79 months in EOP and 11.37 +/- 5.68 months in LOP. There was highly statistically significant difference between these two groups (p < 0.01). Overall survival was 44.75%. Five years survival was 65.9% in the group of EOP and 26.5% in the group of LOP (chi2 = 28.16, p < 0.01) Weight loss was dominant characteristics in the patients who did not survive five years (chi2 = 14.26, p < 0.01). A period of 2 months in delay in diagnosis is "cut-off' value in prediction of death (sensitivity of 75.5% and specificity of 90.3%). CONCLUSION: A delay in diagnosis and stage of the disease are highly significant factors of patients with CRC survival. In everyday medical practice higher importance should be put on weight loss, intermittent abdominal pain, change in bowel habits, as well as on syderopenic anaemia.

[Efficient way in early detection of malignant skin tumors by applying epiluminescence microscopy in skin screening].

Screening is the identification of a preclinical disease by a relatively simple test. It is usually regarded as public health policy that is applied to population. The aim is to identify disease not recognized by the health services and the term preclinical refers rather to such an unrecognized disease than to clinical detectability or recognition. The majority of pigmented lesions of the skin can be diagnosed on the basis of clinical criteria, although there is an astonishing number of discrete pigmented lesions where the difference between melanocytic and non-melanocytic, benign and malignant lesions, melanoma and non-melanoma, is very hard or almost impossible to detect by a simple examination with the naked eye. With the use of the computer system for melanomoscopy and melanomography, Mole Max II, with digital epiluminescence microscopy, it is possible to see and record the changes on the skin that are located in the surface layer of the skin, as well as the changes that appear more deeply under the surface, on the border between the epidermis and the dermis, the place where melanocytes are placed. With such examination it is possible to differentiate benign from malignant lesions in the very early stage of the development. An early recognition of malignant alterations on the skin increases the chances of cure and total recovery to over 90%.

[Functional effects of preserving the intercostobrachial nerve and the lateral thoracic vein during axillary dissection in breast cancer conservative surgery].

BACKGROUND/AIM: Conventional axillary dissection in breast cancer surgery implicates the section of the neurovascular elements passing through the dissected tissue: the intercostobrachial nerve (ICBN) and lateral thoracic vein (LTV). Preservation of the ICBN during axillary dissection is well documented in the literature, with slightly contradictory results of its influence to postoperative pain. There is no published data, as far as we know, on the functional effects of preserving the LTV. We supposed that ligation of the LTV contributes to the emergence of postoperative breast edema, which is common in breast cancer conservative surgery. The preservation of venous drainage could diminish the frequency of this undesired occurrence. METHODS: In a prospective study, 126 patients undergoing axillary node clearance for breast cancer of stages I and II were randomly selected for preservation of ICBN and LTV (n=65), or for conventional dissection (n=61). Sensory deficit, pain and breast edema as a dichotomized characteristics were examined in the first two weeks after the surgery. RESULTS: No difference in the number of dissected nodes was seen between the two groups (p = 0.7). The loss of sensitivity was significantly less common in the group randomized for ICBN preservation (16/65 vs. 30/61,p < 0.005), while there was no difference in the pain intensity and duration (49/65 vs 44/61, p > 0.05). LTV was preserved in 22 patients in the group for preservation, and in none of the control group. Breast edema was registered in 33 patients from the group for preservation (51%) and in 37 patients from the control group (61%). The difference in distribution was not significant, and the same results were obtained when the frequency of breast edema in the group with preserved LTV (22 patients, 10 of them without breast edema) was compared with the all others (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The preservation of the ICBN significantly improved the functional effect of the axillary dissection for breast cancer by reducing sensory loss, while there was no difference in pain intensity and duration. Although we did not prove that the preservation of LTV prevents breast edema after conservative surgery for breast cancer, we think that more complex analysis, including parameters such as the extent of resection of breast tissue, the dimension and constitutional characteristics of the breast, tumor location, obesity, and further developments in surgical technique, would reveal at least discrete improvements in the functional results of this surgical approach.

Depression and anxiety levels in therapy-naive patients with inflammatory bowel disease and cancer of the colon.

AIM: To assess whether depression and anxiety are more expressed in patients with the first episode of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) than in individuals with newly discovered cancer of the colon (CCa). METHODS: A total of 32 patients with IBD including 13 males and 19 females, aged 27 to 74, and 30 patients with CCa including 20 males and 10 females, aged 39-78, underwent a structured interview, which comprised Hamilton's Depression Rating Inventory, Hamilton's Anxiety Rating Inventory and Paykel's Stressful Events Rating Scale. RESULTS: Patients of the IBD group expressed both depression and anxiety. Depressive mood, sense of guilt, psychomotor retardation and somatic anxiety were also more pronounced in IBD patients. The discriminant function analysis revealed the total depressive score was of high importance for the classification of a newly diagnosed patient into one of the groups. CONCLUSION: Newly diagnosed patients with IBD have higher levels of depression and anxiety. Moreover, a psychiatrist in the treatment team is advisable from the beginning.

[Friedrich Trendelenburg (1844 - 1924)--life and work].

LIFE: Friedrich Trendelenburg was born on 24th of May, 1844 in Berlin, where he completed his early education. When he was 17 years old, he went to Glasgow where he met Allen Thompson and Joseph Lister, who introduced him with the world of medicine. After his return to Berlin, he entered medical studies, which he finished at the age of 22. Ludwig Traube and Bernhard von Langenbeck had the greatest influence on his professional career. Just like his teacher Langenbeck, he helped in creating many great surgeons, among them the most famous were Willy Meyer and Martin Kirschner. CONTRIBUTIONS: Friedrich Trendelenburg is best remembered for the Trendelenburg position in which the patient is placed on a bed for diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. He was the first one who performed endotracheal anesthesia, the first one who proposed pulmonary embolectomy and successfully performed ligation of the great saphenous vein for the treatment of varicose veins. Urology was also a field of his interest, where he did a great tribute. He died in 1924, when he was 80 years old.

[Advantage of combined spinal, epidural and general anesthesia in comparison to general anesthesia in abdominal surgery]. / Prednosti primene kombinovane spinalne, epiduralne i opste anestezije u odnosu na opstu anesteziju u abdominalnog hirurgiji.

Type and technique of anesthesia have an important effect on per operative surgical course. The aim of the study was prospective analyses of advantages of combined spinal, epidural and general anesthesia (CSEGA) versus general anesthesia (GA) in abdominal surgery according to: 1. operative course (haemodynamic stability of patients, quality of analgesia, undesirables effects), 2. postoperative course (quality of analgesia, unfavourable effects, temporary abode of patients in intensive care). Using prospective randomized double blind controlled study, we evaluated two groups of patients whom the same type of abdominal surgical intervention was planed and the only difference was the type of technique of anesthesia. First group of patients (n = 34), was treated with CSEGA and second group of patients (n = 33), was treated only with standard (GA). Both groups had intraoperative and 24-hour-long postoperative continued monitoring of blood pressure, central venous pressure, and dieresis. In the 24 hours postoperative period, the following parameters were analyzed: vigilance conditions, motor block level, pain intensity in rest and movement, necessity for a complementary analgesia, side effects and final subjective effect of analgesia. There was important difference in waking up the patients after a general anesthesia--in the first group this period was shorter. In the first 24 hours, patients from the first group didn't get any systemic analgesic, while the patients from the second group needed fractionary application of parenteral analgesics in the period of 4-6 hours. Patients from the first group were also physically faster and easier recovered and they had less respiratory complications and there was not any example of thromboembolsm and the intestine motility was faster re-established. First group of patients spent less time in intensive care (three days) than second group (six days). Final subjective effect of analgesia, according to verbal descriptive scale (VDS) of pain was satisfying with 75% of patients of the first group and 15% of patients of the second group. According to results investigation, advantages of CSEDGA versus GA in abdominal surgery manifold: better hemodynamic stability and perfusion of operative region, decrease of single doses of opioid analgesics, local and general anesthetics followed by the decrease of their side effects, better intensity and longer duration of analgesia, improved total functional capability of patients.

[Combined spinal epidural and general anesthesia in abdominal surgery]. / Kombinovana spinalna epiduralna i opsta anestezija u abdominalnoj hirurgiji.

Almost ten years has past since Eldor described combined spinal-epidural-general anaesthesia (CSEOGA) as a new concept in anaesthesia in which all of these components can be used, with sub-anaesthetic doses of drugs, due to its sinergist effect. The clinics studies has not demonstrated crucial advantages CSEGA comparing with combined epidural-general anaesthesia (CEDGA), in sense of analgesia, pulmonary function and neuro-hormomal inhibition. However we have been routinely practising our technique CSEGA in big abdominal and thoraco-abdominal surgery, since 1997. This study is a retrospective analysis of our technique and clinic observations, during 4.5 years, which include 293 patients. Their demographic characteristics can be seen in table 2. We perform combined spinal-epidural anaesthesia (CSE) in one or two interspinal spaces, depending on the type of surgery, but always before induction in general anaesthesia (GA). For preemptive and intraoperative analgesia we use 0.25% plain bupivacaine (B), both for spinal (SA) and epidural (ED) blockade. The most important detail in our technique, despite precise order to administrate drugs, is analgesic solution (AS) which contain B 4.5 mg, fentanyl (Fe) 50 mcg and morphine hydrochloride (Mo) 0.2 mg, in total volume of 3 ml, in SA. After the ED test dose with 2% lidocaine 60 mg (3 ml), before the induction in GA, we inject more 10 ml B, but intraoperative analgesia is almost performed with B 3 to 5 ml in intermittent bolus doses. This ED bolus dosis is particularly important, partly to sufficiently cephalic migration of the SA somatosensorieblock, as well as for intraoperative analgesia. For very light GA only artificial ventilation with 66% N2O in O2 and muscle relaxation with paneuronium is needed. Co analgesia with intravenous (i.v.) Fe, was exceptionally seldom needed, except for induction. Intraoperative drugs consumption was very small as we see in table 5. With adequate liquid compensation, this technique achieve exceptionally intraoperative homodynamic stability in patients, despite to long and big operations. Postoperative analgesia are supplied by SA the first 24 hours, but the next 72 ours is performed with intermittent ED bolus doses of 0.12% B with 2 mg Mo in total volume of 15 ml and 10 ml, depending on the epidural catheter (EDK) position in lumbar or thoracic part of spine. The break through of postoperative pain was between 20% to 34%, which was suppressed with metamisol. According to the verbal rating scale (VRS < 1) 90% patients were satisfied with this analgesia, which gave possibilities to mobilization and rehabilitation even the first postoperative day. All clinical sings show that thanks to inhibition of spinal and supraspinal sensitization, all principles of the preemptive analgesia (PA), inhibition of neuro-hormonal stress reaction are met and postoperative outcome is improved and satisfied. The complications we had were insignificant, in time observed and without any consequences.