3D exoscopic versus microscopic superficial temporal artery to middle cerebral artery bypass surgery for moyamoya disease - a comparative series.

PURPOSE: Superficial temporal artery to middle cerebral artery (STA-MCA) direct bypass surgery is the most common surgical procedure to treat moyamoya disease (MMD). Here, we aim to compare the performance of the 3D exoscope in bypass surgery with the gold standard operative microscope. METHODS: All direct STA-MCA bypass procedures performed at a single university hospital for MMD between 2015 and 2023 were considered for inclusion. Data were retrospectively collected from patient files and surgical video material. From 2020 onwards, bypass procedures were exclusively performed using a digital three-dimensional exoscope as visualization device. Results were compared with a microsurgical bypass control group (2015-2019). The primary endpoint was defined as total duration of surgery, duration of completing the vascular anastomosis (ischemia time), bypass patency, number of stiches to perform the anastomosis, added stiches after leakage testing of the anastomosis and the Glasgow outcome scale (GOS) at last follow-up as secondary outcome parameter. RESULTS: A total of 16 consecutive moyamoya patients underwent 21 STA-MCA bypass procedures. Thereof, six patients were operated using a microscope and ten patients using an exoscope (ORBEYE® n = 1; AEOS® n = 9). Total duration of surgery was comparable between devices (microscope: 313 min. ± 116 vs. exoscope: 279 min. ± 42; p = 0.647). Ischemia time also proved similar between groups (microscope: 43 min. ± 19 vs. exoscope: 41 min. ± 7; p = 0.701). No differences were noted in bypass patency rates. The number of stiches per anastomosis was similar between visualization devices (microscope: 17 ± 4 vs. exoscope: 17 ± 2; p = 0.887). In contrast, more additional stiches were needed in microscopic anastomoses after leakage testing the bypass (p = 0.035). CONCLUSION: Taking into account the small sample size, end-to-side bypass surgery for moyamoya disease using a foot switch-operated 3D exoscope was not associated with more complications and led to comparable clinical and radiological results as microscopic bypass surgery.

Changes in treatment of intracranial aneurysms during the last decade in a large European neurovascular center.

OBJECTIVE: Treatment modality for ruptured and unruptured intracranial aneurysms has shifted during the last two decades from microsurgical treatment towards endovascular treatment. We present how this transition happened in a large European neurovascular center. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective observational study consecutive patients treated for an unruptured or ruptured intracranial aneurysm at Helsinki University Hospital during 2012-2022. We used Poisson regression analysis to report age-adjusted treatment trends by aneurysm location and rupture status. RESULTS: A total of 2491 patients with intracranial aneurysms were treated (44% ruptured, 56% unruptured): 1421 (57%) surgically and 1070 (43%) endovascularly. A general trend towards fewer treated aneurysms was noted. The proportion of patients treated surgically decreased from 90% in 2012 to 20% in 2022. The age-adjusted decrease of surgical versus endovascular treatment was 6.9%/year for all aneurysms, 6.8% for ruptured aneurysms, and 6.8% for unruptured aneurysms. The decrease of surgical treatment was most evident in unruptured vertebrobasilar aneurysms (10.8%/year), unruptured communicating artery aneurysms (10.1%/year), ruptured communicating artery aneurysms (10.0%/year), and ruptured internal carotid aneurysms (9.0%/year). There was no change in treatment modality for middle cerebral artery aneurysms, of which 85% were still surgically treated in 2022. A trend towards an increasing size for treated ruptured aneurysms was found (p = 0.033). CONCLUSION: A significant shift of the treatment modality from surgical to endovascular treatment occurred for all aneurysm locations except for middle cerebral artery aneurysms. Whether this shift has affected long-term safety and patient outcomes should be assessed in the future.

Even short-term training improves the skills of novice exoscope users: a prospective laboratory experiment.

BACKGROUND: The surgical 3D exoscopes have recently been introduced as an alternative to the surgical microscopes in microneurosurgery. Since the exoscope availability is still limited, it is relevant to know whether even a short-term exoscope training develops the skills needed for performing exoscope-assisted surgeries. METHODS: Ten participants (six consultants, four residents) performed two laboratory bypass test tasks with a 3D exoscope (Aesculap Aeos®). Six training sessions (6 h) were performed in between (interval of 2-5 weeks) on artificial models. The participants were divided into two groups: test group (n = 6) trained with the exoscope and control group (n = 4) with a surgical microscope. The test task was an artificial end-to-side microsurgical anastomosis model, using 12 interrupted 9-0 sutures and recorded on video. We compared the individual as well as group performance among the test subjects based on suturing time, anastomosis quality, and manual dexterity. RESULTS: Altogether, 20 bypass tasks were performed (baseline n = 10, follow-up n = 10). The median duration decreased by 28 min and 44% in the exoscope training group. The decrease was steeper (29 min, 45%) among the participants with less than 6 years of microneurosurgery experience compared to the more experienced participants (13 min, 24%). After training, the participants with at least 1-year experience of using the exoscope did not improve their task duration. The training with the exoscope led to a greater time reduction than the training with the microscope (44% vs 17%). CONCLUSIONS: Even short-term training with the exoscope led to marked improvements in exoscope-assisted bypass suturing among novice microneurosurgeons. For the more experienced participants, a plateau in the initial learning curve was reached quickly. A much longer-term effort might be needed to witness further improvement in this user group.

The adverse inpatient medication event and frailty (AIME-frail) risk prediction model.

BACKGROUND: Medication harm affects between 5 and 15% of hospitalised patients, with approximately half of the harm events considered preventable through timely intervention. The Adverse Inpatient Medication Event (AIME) risk prediction model was previously developed to guide a systematic approach to patient prioritisation for targeted clinician review, but frailty was not tested as a candidate predictor variable. AIM: To evaluate the predictive performance of an updated AIME model, incorporating a measure of frailty, when applied to a new multisite cohort of hospitalised adult inpatients. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted at two tertiary Australian hospitals on patients discharged between 1st January and April 31, 2020. Data were extracted from electronic medical records (EMRs) and clinical coding databases. Medication harm was identified using ICD-10 Y-codes and confirmed by senior pharmacist review of medical records. The Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) was calculated for each patient. Logistic regression analysis was used to construct a modified AIME model. Candidate variables of the original AIME model, together with new variables including HFRS were tested. Performance of the final model was reported using area under the curve (AUC) and decision curve analysis (DCA). RESULTS: A total of 4089 patient admissions were included, with a mean age ± standard deviation (SD) of 64 years (±19 years), 2050 patients (50%) were males, and mean HFRS was 6.2 (±5.9). 184 patients (4.5%) experienced one or more medication harm events during hospitalisation. The new AIME-Frail risk model incorporated 5 of the original variables: length of stay (LOS), anti-psychotics, antiarrhythmics, immunosuppressants, and INR greater than 3, as well as 5 new variables: HFRS, anticoagulants, antibiotics, insulin, and opioid use. The AUC was 0.79 (95% CI: 0.76-0.83) which was superior to the original model (AUC = 0.70, 95% CI: 0.65-0.74) with a sensitivity of 69%, specificity of 81%, positive predictive value of 0.14 (95% CI: 0.10-0.17) and negative predictive value of 0.98 (95% CI: 0.97-0.99). The DCA identified the model as having potential clinical utility between the probability thresholds of 0.05-0.4. CONCLUSION: The inclusion of a frailty measure improved the predictive performance of the AIME model. Screening inpatients using the AIME-Frail tool could identify more patients at high-risk of medication harm who warrant timely clinician review.

Evaluating automated machine learning platforms for use in healthcare.

Objective: To describe development and application of a checklist of criteria for selecting an automated machine learning (Auto ML) platform for use in creating clinical ML models. Materials and Methods: Evaluation criteria for selecting an Auto ML platform suited to ML needs of a local health district were developed in 3 steps: (1) identification of key requirements, (2) a market scan, and (3) an assessment process with desired outcomes. Results: The final checklist comprising 21 functional and 6 non-functional criteria was applied to vendor submissions in selecting a platform for creating a ML heparin dosing model as a use case. Discussion: A team of clinicians, data scientists, and key stakeholders developed a checklist which can be adapted to ML needs of healthcare organizations, the use case providing a relevant example. Conclusion: An evaluative checklist was developed for selecting Auto ML platforms which requires validation in larger multi-site studies.

Three-dimensional assessment of external apical root resorption after maxillary posterior teeth intrusion with miniscrews in anterior open bite patients

ABSTRACT Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the external apical root resorption (EARR) of the maxillary posterior teeth after intrusion with miniscrews. Methods: Fifteen patients (13 females and 2 males) with age ranging from 14.5 to 22 years (mean 18.1 ±2.03 years) were selected to participate in this study. All patients presented with anterior open bite of 3 mm or more. An intrusion force of 300 g was applied on each side to intrude the maxillary posterior teeth. Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans were taken pretreatment and post-intrusion and were analyzed to evaluate the EARR. Results: The maxillary posterior teeth were intruded in average 2.79 ± 0.46 mm (p< 0.001) in 5.1 ± 1.3 months, and all examined roots showed statistically significant EARR (p< 0.05) with an average of 0.55 mm, except the distobuccal root of the left first permanent molars and both the palatal and buccal roots of left first premolars, which showed no statistically significant changes. Conclusions: The evaluated teeth presented statistically significant EARR, but clinically, due to the small magnitude, it was not considered significant. Moreover, the CBCT provided a good visualization of all roots in all three planes, and it was effective in detecting minimal degrees of EARR.

RESUMO Objetivo: o objetivo desse estudo foi verificar a existência de reabsorção radicular apical externa (RRAE) em dentes posterossuperiores após intrusão ancorada em mini-implantes. Métodos: quinze pacientes (13 mulheres e 2 homens) com a idade variando entre 14,5 e 22 anos (média de 18,1 ± 2,03 anos) foram selecionados para participar desse estudo. Todos os pacientes possuíam mordida aberta anterior de 3mm ou mais. Uma força de 300 gramas foi aplicada em cada lado para intruir os dentes posterossuperiores. Tomografias computadorizadas de feixe cônico (TCFC), adquiridas antes do tratamento e após a intrusão, foram comparadas para se avaliar a RRAE. Resultados: os dentes posterossuperiores foram intruídos em média 2,70 ± 0,46 mm (p< 0,001) em 5,1 ± 1,3 meses, e todas as raízes examinadas mostraram RRAE estatisticamente significativa (p< 0,05), com média de 0,55 mm, exceto pela raiz distovestibular dos primeiros molares permanentes esquerdos, e pelas raízes palatina e vestibular dos primeiros pré-molares esquerdos, que não apresentaram mudanças estatisticamente significativas. Conclusões: os dentes avaliados apresentaram RRAE estatisticamente significativa, a qual, porém, não foi considerada clinicamente significativa, devido à sua reduzida magnitude. Além disso, a TCFC possibilitou uma boa visualização de todas as raízes nos três planos espaciais, e foi eficaz para detecção de níveis mínimos de RRAE.