Analgesic Efficacy of Erector Spinae Plane Block in Pediatric Abdominal Surgery: Guidance with Conventional Method and NOL: Case Series.

Background: Erector spinae plane (ESP) block is a regional anesthesia technique that blocks both somatic and visceral nerve fibers. Despite its high analgesic potential, its mechanism of action is not yet fully understood. The ultrasound-guided ESP block, which can be easily performed, makes important contributions to the control of intraoperative pain in pediatric patients undergoing abdominal surgery. The follow-up of pain in the intraoperative period is usually done by evaluating the changes in hemodynamic parameters. Due to physiological differences in pediatric patients, it is more difficult to do this with only hemodynamic changes than in adult patients. Aim: The NOL® (Nociception Level) monitor calculates the nociception/pain score by evaluating many parameters through a proprietary algorithm. Our primary aim was to demonstrate the effectiveness of ESP block with an advanced pain monitor in this patient group; our secondary aim was to investigate the necessity of pain monitors in the pediatric patient group. Methods: In this case series, we applied intraoperative NOL® monitoring in addition to standard monitoring (ECG, SpO2, heart rate, EtCO2) in pediatric patients (16 cases) who were scheduled for abdominal surgery and underwent ESP block. Results: Considering the hemodynamic data, NOL values, postoperative pain scores, side effects, and complications, it was concluded that ESP block can be used safely in this patient group. Although the hemodynamic data and the NOL® index were compatible with each other after a nociceptive stimulus, the NOL index was less affected by other variables and gave the clinician clearer information about pain.

Binaural beats or 432 Hz music? which method is more effective for reducing preoperative dental anxiety?

BACKGROUND: The aim of this prospective clinical study was to investigate the effectiveness of binaural beats and music at a frequency of 432 Hz and compare which method is more effective for reducing preoperative dental anxiety in impacted third molar surgery. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Ninety patients were randomly selected to the binaural beats group, music group and control group. Visual analog scale used to evaluate dental anxiety before the local anesthesia in the first measurement. Local anesthesia was applied to the all patients. Patients in the music group listened to 432 Hz tuned music using earphones for 10 minutes. Patients in the binaural beats group listened to binaural beats using earphones (for the right ear, 220 Hz and for the left ear 210 Hz) for 10 minutes. No special treatment was applied to the patients in control group. In the second measurement, dental anxiety was measured again in all three groups. For analysis of differences between three groups was used One way Anova and Kruskal Wallis test. RESULTS: Twenty seven male and 53 female patients included the study. In the first measurement, the same level of anxiety was recorded in all three groups. (p=0.811) There was a significant decrease in anxiety in both the binaural beats and music group in the second measurement. (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Binaural beats and 432 Hz tuned music are a valid non pharmacological adjuvant to reduce dental anxiety in impacted third molar surgery. They have a positive effect to reduce the dental anxiety.

The assesment of relationship between the angulation of impacted mandibular third molar teeth and the thickness of lingual bone: A prospective clinical study.

BACKGROUND: Our purpose was to investigate the relationship between the angulation of mandibular third molars and the thickness of the lingual bone, which can affect the risk of lingual nerve damage during lower third molars surgical extraction. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This study consisted of 104 patients (42 males and 62 females), aged between 18-42 years (24.67 ± 6.11 years). Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) images were taken for preoperative assessment. The teeth were divided into four groups according to their positions: mesioangular, distoangular, vertical and horizontal. Lingual bone thickness around impacted teeth were measured at three points: cementoenamel junction (CEJ) of the mandibular second molar, mid-root of the impacted third molar, and apex of the impacted third molar root. Two predisposing factors of lingual nerve damage were recorded: lingual bone perforated by the impacted tooth and lingual bone thinner than 1 mm. Additionally, buccolingual angulations of the teeth in each group were measured. Impacted mandibular third molars were removed in usual way. One week after surgery, the patients were evaluated regarding lingual nerve paresthesia. RESULTS: None of the 104 patients experienced paresthesia, including the ones who had teeth with close proximity with lingual nerve. The mean thickness of bone was 1.21±0.63 mm at CEJ of the second molar; 1.25±1.02 mm at the mid-root; and 1.06±1.31 mm at the apex. Horizontally impacted teeth had thinner lingual bone at mid-root level (p=0.016). Buccolingual angulated teeth were more often associated with perforated lingual bone (p=0.002). Buccolingual and mesial/distal angulation had negative correlation with lingual bone thickness (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: As the buccolingual and mesiodistal angulations increase, lingual bone thickness decreases. Horizontally impacted teeth seemed to compromise the integrity of the lingual bone more than impacted teeth in other positions. During the surgery, thin or perforated lingual bone may result in displacement of the impacted tooth lingually.

Effects of recurrent sevoflurane anesthesia on cognitive functions with streptozotocin induced Alzheimer disease.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate the effects of recurrent sevoflurane anesthesia on cognitive functions in Alzheimer Disease. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Rats were divided into 4 groups as followed: control (Group C), sevoflurane (Group S), Alzheimer's (Group A) and Alzheimer's + sevoflurane (Group AS)]. Cognitive functions were evaluated with Radial Arm Maze Test (RAMT). Alzheimer model was created by administering 3 mg/kg (10 µl) STZ. Sevoflurane was administered to S and AS groups. Serum samples and hippocampus tissues were analyzed. RESULTS: In RAM test, the entry-exit data were significantly decreased in A and AS groups. After the 2nd and 3rd administration of anesthesia, the numbers were significantly decreased in Group S. Glial-fibrillary-acidic protein levels were significantly higher in AS compared to the C and S groups. The brain tissue caspase 3 activity was less than 1% in all rats in the Group C, 3 % in 2 rats and 1 % in 1 rat in the Group AS. In A and AS group, serum catalase, myeloperoxidase and ferroxidase activities were found to be higher than in the other groups and myeloperoxidase activity was higher in the AS than in the A Group. Serum native thiol, total thiol and disulfide levels were found to be significantly different in the A and AS groups. CONCLUSION: Sevoflurane anesthesia negatively affected the cognitive functions (Tab. 5, Fig. 10, Ref. 51).

Is there any relationship between clinical parameters and histopathologic features of gallbladder specimens obtained from living liver donors?

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether there is any relationship between the clinical parameters and the histopathological features of the gallbladder (GB) specimens obtained from living liver donors (LLDs). METHODS: The demographic (age, sex, height, weight, and BMI), clinical (liver graft type, liver graft weight, and GB volume), microbiological (bile culture), and histopathological (width, length, wall thickness, and microscopic properties of the GB specimen) data of 169 LLDs, who underwent living donor hepatectomy between October 2015 and October 2017, were prospectively recorded and retrospectively analyzed. The LLDs were compared with respect to sex (male vs. female) and the histopathological features of the GB (normal structure vs. chronic cholecystitis vs. cholesterolosis/polyps/cholelithiasis). RESULTS: There were no significant differences between both sexes with respect to age, graft type, and some features of GB (volume, wall thickness, width, length, and bile culture). On one hand, there were significant differences between both sexes with regard to height (P < 0.001), weight (P < 0.001), BMI (P < 0.001), histopathological findings (P = 0.003), and graft size (P = 0.003). Comparison with regard to GB's histopathological features revealed no significant differences between the three groups with respect to age, weight, and some features of GB (volume, length, width, and bile culture). On the other hand, the three groups were significantly different in terms of sex (P = 0.003), height (P = 0.008), BMI (P = 0.002), and wall thickness (P = 0.044). Bile culture proliferation occurred in none of the patients except for one patient. CONCLUSION: This study is the first to assess GB's volume, dimensions, and bile culture in healthy individuals such as LLDs.

Neutrophil lymphocyte ratio predicts postoperative pain after orthognathic surgery.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Postoperative pain is well known and usually disturbing complication of surgery. Inflammation plays an important role in the development and progression of postoperative pain. We aimed to investigate possible relationship between preoperatively measured neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) - as an inflammation marker - and postoperative analgesic demand in patients underwent orthognathic surgery. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively investigated medical and anesthesia records of 177 patients underwent orthognathic surgery. Demographical data, preoperative NLR, type of surgery, modified Mallampati score, difficulty degree of intubation, duration of surgery, and postoperative analgesic (tenoxicam - as the first drug of choice, paracetamol, tramadol, or pethidine) usage were recorded. A cutoff value of NLR ≥2 was determined for inflammation threshold. Two groups (Group 1 NLR ≥2, Group 2 NLR <2) were compared for analgesic doses, numbers of patients needed analgesic treatment, and other parameters. RESULTS: Mean administered tenoxicam dose was significantly higher in Group 1 than in Group 2 (P < 0.0001). Further, ratio of patients treated with tenoxicam in Group 1 was significantly higher than that in Group 2 (χ2 = 4.779, P = 0.029). CONCLUSIONS: Preoperatively measured NLR may help to predict postoperative analgesic demand in patients undergoing orthognathic surgery, and thus sufficient postoperative pain control can be achieved with various preventive treatments taken at the perioperative period such as preemptive analgesia, local anesthetic administration at the end of surgery, or early administration of analgesics.

Which maternal personality traits affect child behaviour during dental treatment.

AIM: Maternal personality traits affect child dental behaviour and have a potential link with dental treatment methods. This study aims to evaluate which maternal personality traits affect child dental behaviour. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Research was carried out upon 60 children aged between 3-12 years, who had been admitted to our clinic for tooth extraction. All children were evaluated by means of the Frankl Behavior Scale (FBS): degrees I and II represent negative behaviours, while III and IV positive behaviour. Thirty children with FBS degree III and IV were assigned to Group I and 30 children with FBS degree I and II were assigned to Group II. Children in Group I underwent tooth extraction with local anaesthesia. Children in Group II underwent tooth extraction under deep sedation. During the first visit, the mothers were tested with the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory to evaluate personality traits. All mothers in Group I and half the mothers in Group II filled a complete and valid test. RESULTS: Group I and II mothers were compared according to the test results: scores of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) test were significantly higher in Group II (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: We hypotetise that character features of mothers of children with negative dental behaviour and positive dental behaviour are different and affect child dental behaviour.

Investigation of the effects of propofol and vitamin C administration on erythrocyte deformability in rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitis.

PURPOSE: In the current study we aim to investigate the effects of vitamin C and profol on red blood cell deformability in diabetic rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty- eight Wistar Albino rats were included in the study after streptozocin (60 mg/kg) treatment for 4 weeks of observation for diabetes presence. Twenty-eight rats were allocated to 4 groups. In group DP (n = 7) 150 mg.kg-1 of propofol was injected intraperitoneally. In group DP-vit C (n = 7) rats 100 mg/kg of vitamin C (Ascorbic acid, Redoxon® 1000 mg/5 mL - Roche) were applied one hour before administrating 150 mg.kg-1 of propofol, while rats in control group (n = 7), and diabetic control group (n = 7) received intraperitoneally physiological saline. Deformability measurements were achieved by using erythrocyte suspensions with hematocrit level of 5 % in PBS buffer. RESULTS: Erythrocyte deformability was significantly higher in diabetic control group than in control and vitamin C plus propofol groups (p = 0.00, p = 0.025, respectively). Erythrocyte deformability indexes were found similar in control group and vitamin C plus propofol group (p = 0.949). Relative resistance was increased in diabetic rat model. CONCLUSIONS: Erythrocyte deformability was damaged in rats with diabetes. This injury might lead to further problems in microcirculation. Application of propofol did not alter red cell deformability in diabetic rats. Vitamin C supplementation seems to reverse those negative effects and variations in erythrocyte deformability (Fig. 2, Ref. 57).

Angiotensin-converting enzyme gene insertion/deletion polymorphism with metabolic syndrome in Turkish patients.

BACKGROUND: The ACE gene has received substantial attention in recent years as candidate for a variety of diseases. The most common polymorphism in ACE gene is the Insertion/Deletion (I/D, rs4646994) polymorphism located on intron 16. AIM: We investigated the association between metabolic syndrome (MS) and the insertion (I) - deletion (D) polymorphisms in the angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) gene in south-east of Turkey. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: One hundred and sixty subjects, with 101 cases of MS and 59 age- and gender-matched healthy controls were included in the study. RESULTS: The frequency of ACE I/D polymorphism was found to be 49.5% for DD, 36.6% for ID, and 13.9% for II in the MSstudy group and 44.1% for DD, 42.4% for ID and 13.5% for II in the control group. Allele frequencies were found to be 0.68% for D and 0.32% for I allele in the study group with MS and 0.65% for D, 0.35% for I allele in the control group. The I/D polymorphism of the ACE gene, DD, ID, and II genotypes occurred with similar frequencies in the study group with MS and the control group with no significant differences (p<0.05). On applying one-way analysis of variance to different ACE gene polymorphic groups in patients with MS were not significantly associated to ACE gene polymorphism and waist circumference, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, fasting blood glucose, HDL, and LDL (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Further studies of patients in larger numbers and of different ethnic backgrounds may be necessary to elucidate the association between the ACE I/D gene polymorphism and MS.

The insertion/deletion polymorphism in the ACE gene and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

An insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism was identified in intron 16 of the gene encoding the human angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE), a candidate gene for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We investigated the relationship between this polymorphism in the ACE gene and the risk of developing COPD. Sixty-six COPD in-patients and 40 non-smoking control individuals were recruited for this study. The distribution of ACE genotypes in these individuals was studied. The frequencies of ACE genotypes were found to be 47.0% for DD, 30.3% for ID, and 22.7% for II in the COPD group and 32.5% for DD, 47.5% for ID, and 20.0% for II in the control group. The allele frequencies were found to be 0.62% for the D allele and 0.38% for the I allele in the COPD group and 0.56% for the D allele and 0.44% for the I allele in the control group. A significant difference was found between I and D allele frequencies (P < 0.05) of the study and control groups. Our results suggest that this ACE polymorphism may be associated with the development of COPD.

A descriptive analysis of 188 liver transplant patient visits to an emergency department.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the study is to seek the causes of application, the demographic and clinical characteristics of liver transplant patients and to share the experiences of our Emergency Department. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred eighty-eight Emergency Department visits of ninety patients who underwent liver transplant operations between 2002 and 2009 were evaluated retrospectively. RESULTS: The patients applied to the Emergency Department with the complaints of fever 28.2% and abdominal pain 30.9%. It was detected that the final diagnosis of 52.4% of the patient visits was associated with the gastrointestinal system. It was observed that the most common treatment was drug therapy by 45.2% and that antibiotics treatment was the most applied method in drug treatment. Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) median value of hospitalized patients (45.5 U/L) is significantly higher than that of discharged patients (35 U/L) (p = 0.04). From the records of the patients, positive correlations between the length of hospitalization and levels of total bilirubin, direct bilirubin, ALT and fever during the visit were detected (p = 0.001, p < 0.001, p = 0.01, p = 0.01, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Most frequently liver transplant recipients visited the Emergency Departments with the complaints of fever and abdominal pain. The diagnosis was generally associated with gastrointestinal system disorders. The percentage of hospitalization was high and the length of stay at the hospital was long. The treatment of these patients required a multidisciplinary approach and antibiotics constituted the most used drug treatment. Also, fever and liver function tests examined at the time of admittance to the Emergency Department affected the length of hospitalization.

Oxidative stress and antioxidant activity of female rat liver tissue after sevoflurane anaesthesia: young versus old.

AIM: The aim of our study was to assess the evidence of oxidative stress in the rat liver tissue by studying enzymes, such as nitric oxide synthase (NOS), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione-S transferase (GST) activity, and thiobarbutiric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) levels in young versus old female rats after sevoflurane anaesthesia. MATERIAL AND METHOD: The study involved 28 female Wistar Albino rats. The rats were divided into the two groups [(Group I, n=14): Young sevoflurane group (Group I-YS, n=7); Young control group (Group I-YC, n=7)], [(Group II, n=14): Old sevoflurane group (Group II-OS, n=7); Old control group (Group II-OC, n=7)]. Sevoflurane was administered at 2 % volume inspiratory concentration, 6 L.min-1 in 100 % O2 for 2 hours. The control groups were not subjected to any procedures. Accordingly, GST, SOD, and NOS enzyme activity and TBARS level, were studied in the liver tissue samples of the rats to determine the presence of oxidative stress (OS) and antioxidant activity. RESULTS: Following administration of sevoflurane anaesthesia; GST, SOD enzyme activity and TBARS level was significantly higher in the Group I-YS than in the Group I-YC and in the Group II-OS than in the Group II-OC. There was no difference between the groups when the mean NOS levels were compared. CONCLUSION: Although the results of our study are similar to the previous indicating that sevoflurane has the capacity to induce the oxidative stress; a new data has been recorded that sevoflurane has a similar effect on the OS level in aged and young female rat (Tab. 1, Fig. 4, Ref. 48).

Effect of dexmedetomidine on erythrocyte deformability during ischemia-reperfusion injury of liver in diabetic rats.

AIM: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of dexmedetomidine on erythrocyte deformability during IR injury of liver in diabetic rats. METHODS: Twenty- eight Wistar Albino rats were included in the study after a 4 week streptozocin (65 mg/kg) treatment to observe the existence of diabetes. The animals were randomly assigned to one of the four experimental groups: GroupC and DC (sham-control group): The abdomen was dissected with a median laparotomy and the liver was collected. GroupDIR: The liver was collected after IR following the abdominal median laparotomy. GroupDIRD: The liver was collected after IR following the abdominal median laparotomy and 30 min of infusion of dexmedetomidine 100 µg/kg ip The deformability measurements were performed in erythrocyte suspensions containing Htc 5% in PBS buffer. RESULTS: The deformability index was significantly increased in diabetic rats, however it was similar in the GroupC and DIRD. It was significantly increased in the GroupDIR when compared to the GroupC, DIRD and DC. The relative resistance was increased in IR models. CONCLUSION: Erythrocyte deformability was damaged in rats having diabetes and IR injury. This injury might lead to further problems in microcirculation. It was shown that dexmedetomidine may be useful in enhancing the adverse effects of this injury (Tab. 1, Fig. 2, Ref. 41).

The evaluation of effects of lornoxicam on blood flow and erythrocyte deformability in comparison with iv paracetamol in rats.

BACKGROUND: Lornoxicam and iv paracetamol are commonly preferred to be used for postoperative analgesia. Although Aspirin is a well known non-steroid anti-inflammatory drug that decreases the erythrocyte deformability, there is no study comparing lornoxicam and iv paracetamol regarding their effects on erythrocyte deformability recorded in literature. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of lornoxicam and IV paracetamol on blood perfusion and erythrocyte deformability on rats. METHODS: Twenty male Wistar Albino rats were randomly divided into three groups as Lornoxicam group (Group L), IV paracetamol group (Group P), and control group (Group C). Intraperitoneal administrations were done in all groups except Group C. Liver and renal blood flows were conducted by laser Doppler and euthanasia was performed via intraabdominal blood uptake. Erythrocyte deformability was measured using a constant flow filtrometer system. RESULTS: Lornoxicam increased the relative resistance which shows the erythrocyte deformability in rats (p<0.05). The comparison of Groups C and P revealed no statistically different results (p=0.731) while Group L revealed statistically higher results than Group C (p=0.022). No statistically significant differences were found between groups L and P (p=0.073). Liver and renal blood flow values in Group L were just numerically decreased not statistically whilst no statistically significant difference was found between the three groups. CONCLUSIONS: Lornoxicam have lead to functional disorders related to tissue perfusion as a result of both decreased blood flow and erythrocyte deformability (Fig. 3, Ref. 21). Full Text in PDF www.elis.sk.

A new haemostatic agent's effect on the success of calcium hydroxide pulpotomy in primary molars.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of the application of a new hemostatic agent, Ankaferd Blood Stopper (ABS), on the clinical and radiographic success of calcium hydroxide (CH) pulpotomies in primary molars. METHODS: Patients with bilateral vital mandibular primary molar teeth that required pulpotomies, because of pulpal exposure to caries, were selected for this study. After initial hemorrhage control, complete hemostasis into the canal orifice was achieved by: (1) applying a solution of ABS for 10 to 15 seconds; or (2) placing sterile, saline-wetted cotton pellets. Forty teeth in 2 groups were followed up clinically and radiographic at 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months. RESULTS: CH group teeth had a total success rate of 90% at 12 months. CH+ABS group teeth had a total success rate of 95% at 12 months. There were no statistically significant differences between CH and CH+ABS group regarding both clinical and radiographic success rates. CONCLUSION: Ankaferd Blood Stopper may be a useful product in the management of pulpal bleeding during a calcium hydroxide pulpotomy.

Assessment of pulp volume changes after surgically assisted rapid palatal expansion.

Maxillary transverse deficiency is a common skeletal problem. When the patient is younger, it is treated by rapid palatal expansion by using orthodontic appliances. If this fails or the patient is older, which means skeletal growth is completed, surgically aided rapid palatal expansion (SARPE) becomes necessary. In this technique, after the osteotomies have been made, the two maxillary bones are distracted by tooth-borne device. Since a tooth-borne device will apply the distraction forces on the teeth, the pulp volumes may change. Our aim was to investigate the volume changes of the tooth pulps after SARPE in which a tooth-borne device was used. We scanned our database and included 20 patients (7 males and 13 females) aging between 16 and 30 (mean 19.5±3.97) to this retrospective study. All the patients had undergone SARPE surgeries and they had pre-surgery and postconsolidation cone beam computerized tomography (CBCT) images. All the surgeries had been done in similar ways; all the patients had used similar tooth-borne modified acrylic bonded expansion device. We divided the maxillary teeth into three groups: the incisors, the premolars and the molars. We imported the CBCT images of each patient into 3D Slicer software. We calculated volumes of pulps for all maxillary teeth. We compared volumes with paired t test. Statistical significance level was accepted as P< .05. The devices had been left in place between 83 and 179 days including distraction and consolidation periods (mean 121.35±27.83 days). Amount of the expansions varied between 6.03mm and 11.16mm (mean 7.19±1.18mm). We found a statistically significant decrease of the pulp volumes in incisor, premolar and molar teeth (P<.001) between pre-surgery and postconsolidation periods. When using tooth-borne devices in SARPE, their impacts on teeth pulps should also be considered.

Are YouTube videos related to dental implant useful for patient education?

PURPOSE: The aim of the research was to assess the quality of obtained information from YouTube videos related to dental implant. MATERIALS AND METHODS: "Dental implant" word was used as a key word in YouTube videos in this study. Videos were evaluated by three oral and maxillofacial surgeons. The first 150 videos were screened. After exclusion criterias, seventy-four videos were investigated regard to content's usefulness. The usefulness scores of the videos were poor (0), moderate (1) and excellent (2). Upload sources were recorded that were categorized as the individual users, health care professionals, and health companies. The type of videos was classified 3 sections: educational videos, patient's experience, and scientifically erroneous. We examined videos for the content presence in eight non-mutually exclusive domains of dental implant. RESULTS: Seventy-four videos were evaluated. The usefulness score of the videos ranged from 0-2 and the average was 0.324. The most discussed topics were regarding with procedures of dental implant (42.57%), however, the least one was related to contraindications (1%). No significant correlation was found between the source of upload and video usefulness score (P=0.086). There was a significant difference between number of comments and the video types. (P=0.002). CONCLUSION: Our outcome emphasized that YouTube videos related to dental implant were a limited source for the patients. Many issues regarding dental implant were ignored in these videos.

Aborted donor hepatectomy in living donor liver transplantation: lessons learned.

BACKGROUND: Aborted donor hepatectomy (ADH) during any stage of living donor hepatectomy (LDH) is a rare event. We describe our experience and discuss the lessons from these events. METHODS: From September 2005 to January 2019, 77 of 2 031 (3.79%) LDH were aborted at various stages of surgical procedure due to donor or recipient related reasons. Demographic and clinical data of aborted donor candidates and the clinical course of their potential recipients were analysed. RESULTS: LDH of 77 donor candidates was aborted due to donor (n = 53) or recipient (n = 24) related reasons. The most common donor related reason was the quality of liver parenchyma (n = 31). The most common recipient related reason was haemodynamic instability (n = 11). Twenty-three recipients underwent either living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) (n = 21) or deceased donor liver transplantation (DDLT) (n = 2) at a median of 6 days following ADH. In one aborted due to a donor reason and two aborted for recipient reasons, LDLT was performed using the same donor candidates. Thirty-six recipients had no liver transplantation (LT) and died a median of 17.5 days following ADH. CONCLUSIONS: We believe that ADH will decrease with experience and meticulous preoperative clinical and radiological evaluations. Abandoning the donor hepatectomy is always a valid option at any stage of the surgery when the unexpected is encountered.

Comparison of two different flap designs for bilateral impacted mandibular third molar surgery.

OBJECTIVE: We compared the effect of lingual-based triangular flap with buccal-based triangular flap on postoperative complications in impacted third molar surgery. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Thirty patients aged between 18 and 36 (mean age 19.65±2.14) were included. They all had bilateral impacted third molars. We used buccal-based triangular flap on a randomly selected side (Group 1) and lingual-based triangular flap on the other side (Group 2). We evaluated pain during 7 days after the surgery; swelling and trismus on postoperative 2., 7. and 14. days; wound dehiscence and alveolar osteitis incidence on postoperative 7. and 14. days. RESULTS: Pain was significantly higher in Group 2 during 7 days postoperatively (P<.05). Trismus and swelling were also more prominent in Group 2 on postoperative days 2 and 7. In Group 2, the duration of the surgery in was longer than Group 1 (P<.05). In Group 1, 17 patients (56.7%) had wound dehiscence and 6 patients (20%) in Group 2 (P<.05). No alveolar osteitis developed in either groups. CONCLUSION: The buccal-based triangular flap seems better with regard to postoperative pain, swelling and trismus. On the other hand, the lingual-based triangular flap had a lesser incidence for wound dehiscence.

Non-HACEK Gram-negative bacillus endocarditis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: Retrospective analysis of clinical data using 26 diagnosed non-HACEK Gram-negative infective endocarditis cases from nine hospitals in Turkey. RESULTS: Mean age of patients was 53 (28-84) years, with a 23% case fatality. Nineteen (73%) of the 26 patients had at least one predisposing factor. The presence of a central venous catheter was the most common predisposing factor (7/26 patients). Pseudomonasaeruginosa (7/26 patients) and Escherichiacoli (7/26 patients) were the most common pathogens. The median duration of the antibiotic therapy was 42 days (range 3-84 days). Surgical procedures were performed in 10 patients. The case fatality was similar in patients who did or did not undergo surgery (20% vs. 25%).