Improving a training model for vascular surgical techniques.

We describe a low-cost model for training vascular surgical techniques. The model is constructed from cylindrical latex balloons filled with gelatin and fixed to a board for support. Arterial sutures, end-to-side and end-to-end anastomoses, patch, vascular shunt placement, and thromboembolectomy were simulated.

An Innovative Streaming Video System With a Point-of-View Head Camera Transmission of Surgeries to Smartphones and Tablets: An Educational Utility.

PURPOSE: In order to engage medical students and residents from public health centers to utilize the telemedicine features of surgery on their own smartphones and tablets as an educational tool, an innovative streaming system was developed with the purpose of streaming live footage from open surgeries to smartphones and tablets, allowing the visualization of the surgical field from the surgeon's perspective. The current study aims to describe the results of an evaluation on level 1 of Kirkpatrick's Model for Evaluation of the streaming system usage during gynecological surgeries, based on the perception of medical students and gynecology residents. METHODS: Consisted of a live video streaming (from the surgeon's point of view) of gynecological surgeries for smartphones and tablets, one for each volunteer. The volunteers were able to connect to the local wireless network, created by the streaming system, through an access password and watch the video transmission on a web browser on their smartphones. Then, they answered a Likert-type questionnaire containing 14 items about the educational applicability of the streaming system, as well as comparing it to watching an in loco procedure. This study is formally approved by the local ethics commission (Certificate No. 53175915.7.0000.5171/2016). RESULTS: Twenty-one volunteers participated, totalizing 294 items answered, in which 94.2% were in agreement with the items affirmative, 4.1% were neutral, and only 1.7% answers corresponded to negative impressions. Cronbach's α was .82, which represents a good reliability level. Spearman's coefficients were highly significant in 4 comparisons and moderately significant in the other 20 comparisons. CONCLUSIONS: This study presents a local streaming video system of live surgeries to smartphones and tablets and shows its educational utility, low cost, and simple usage, which offers convenience and satisfactory image resolution, thus being potentially applicable in surgical teaching.

Low-cost suture simulator to gain basic surgical skills.

PURPOSE: To introduce a new low-cost simulation model for training basic surgical skills. METHODS: The training model was made from a mixture of 20 g of acetic silicone with 11 g of maize starch. Validation consisted of serial training sessions, evaluating the mean pre- and post-training time and the mean final score according to the global rating scale. RESULTS: A decrease in the time required to perform the sutures was observed, comparing the average post and pre-training time of each training day, with a significant correlation between the order of training and the time for performing the simulation. CONCLUSIONS: The presented model proved to be capable of simulating the basic suture training skills. It is easy to make, has low cost, and can be easily reproduced in educational institutions.

Women in surgery: do surgical specialties keep up with the feminization of medicine in Brazil?

INTRODUCTION: historically, surgical medical specialties are mostly male, a scenario which, in recent years, has undergone changes. In this sense, despite the relevance of the growth of female participation in the medical career, little is discussed about the distribution between genders of the main surgical medical specialties in the country. OBJECTIVE: discuss the process of feminization in surgical specialties in Brazil over the last few years, tracing a distribution profile of these specialties. METHODS: this is a retrospective and cross-sectional study with secondary data from the Censuses of Medical Demography in Brazil in the years 2011, 2013, 2015, 2018, 2020 and 2023, including the surgical specialties: Urology, Orthopedics and Traumatology, Thoracic Surgery, Neurosurgery, Digestive System Surgery, Cardiovascular Surgery, Hand Surgery, General Surgery, Head and Neck Surgery, Vascular Surgery, Plastic Surgery, Ophthalmology, Coloproctology, Otorhinolaryngology, Pediatric Surgery, and Gynecology and Obstetrics. RESULTS: males prevails in numbers, among the surgical specialties, however, with a lower growth rate compared to females. Specialties such as urology, orthopedics and traumatology and neurosurgery are mostly male, while gynecology and obstetrics are female. CONCLUSION: it is evident that female participation in the surgical medical field has increased significantly over the last few years.

Incisional hernia repair in rats: description of the sublay technique under videomagnification system.

PURPOSE: To describe the technique of sublay correction of incisional hernia in Wistar rats under videomagnification system. METHODS: Five male rats of the species Rattus norvegicus, of the Wistar lineage, with body weight between 250-350 g and 60 days old were used. Incisional hernia was inducted in all animals. After that, the incisional hernia was immediately corrected by the sublay method. RESULTS: There were no cases of recurrence of the incisional hernia after placement of the polypropylene mesh using the sublay technique. No postoperative complications were observed. CONCLUSIONS: The technique is suitable for execution in Wistar rats.

Anatomical description of the ventral and dorsal cervical rootlets in rats: A microsurgical study.

PURPOSE: To describe the anatomical aspects of the cervical rootlets and to quantify the number of rootlets that compose C1 to T1. METHODS: Twenty male rats were used in this study. The dorsal rootlets from C1 to T1 were analyzed. To study the ventral rootlets, the posterior root avulsion was performed using a microhook, allowing exposure of the ventral roots through manipulation of the denticulate ligament and arachnoid mater. The parameters analyzed were the number of ventral and dorsal rootlets by side and level. RESULTS: The formation of the respective spinal nerve was observed in the spinal roots the union of the ventral and dorsal roots. In four animals the C1 spinal root had no dorsal and/or ventral contribution. There is no normal pattern of numerical normality of the dorsal and ventral rootlets. The average number of fascicles per root was 4.08, with a slight superiority on the left side. There was a slight superiority of the dorsal rootlets compared to the ventral rootlets. CONCLUSIONS: This investigation was the first to study cervical rootlets in rats. In 20% of the sample studied, the dorsal root of C1 was absent mainly on the left side. There is a nonlinear numerical increase from C1 to T1 in the rootlets. There is a numerical predominance of cervical fascicles on the left side, confronting several studies related to the functional predominance of right laterality, requiring new studies that correlate these variables.

Comparison of remote and local postconditioning against hepatic ischemic-reperfusion injury in rats.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study is to compare the hepatic protective effect of both remote and local postconditioning (POS). METHODS: Twenty-eight Wistar rats were assigned into four groups: sham group(SHAM), ischemia-reperfusion group (IR), local ischemic POS group (lPOS) and remote ischemic POS group (rPOS). Animals were subjected to liver ischemia for 30 min. Local ischemic POS group consisted of four cycles of 5 min liver ischemia, followed by 5 min reperfusion (40 min). Remote ischemic POS group consisted of four cycles of 5 min hind limb ischemia, followed by 5 min hind limb perfusion after the main liver ischemia period. After 190 minutes median and left liver lobes were harvested for biochemical and histopathology analysis. RESULTS: All the conditioning techniques were able to increase the level of bothglutathione reductase and peroxidase, showing higher values in the rPOS group when compared to the lPOS. Also, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances were higher in all intervention groups when compared to SHAM, but rPOS had the lower rates of increase, showing the best result. The histopathology analysis showed that all groups had worst injury levels than SHAM, but rPOS had lower degrees of damage when compared to the lPOS, although it was not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: Remote postconditioning is a promising technique to reduce liver ischemia-reperfusion injury, once it increased antioxidants substances and reduced the damage.

Ischemic perconditioning on mesenteric ischemia/reperfusion injury in rats.

PURPOSE: To evaluate if the perconditioning affects the antioxidant capacity in mesenteric ischemia and reperfusion injury. METHODS: Twenty-one Wistar rats were assigned into three groups, as follows: Sham, IR and rPER. The animals were subjected to mesenteric ischemia for 30 min. rPER consisted of three cycles of 5-min hindlimb ischemia followed by 5 min hindlimb perfusion at the same time to mesenteric ischemic period. After 5 minutes, blood and 5 cm of terminal ileum were harvested for thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) measurement. RESULTS: rPER technique was able to reduce intestinal tissue TBARS levels (p<0.0001), but no statistic difference was observed in blood levels between groups, although it was verified similar results in rPER and Sham group. rPER technique also enhanced TEAC levels in both blood (p = 0.0314) and intestinal tissue (p = 0.0139), compared to IR group. CONCLUSIONS: rPER appears as the most promising technique to avoid IR injury. This technique reduced TBARS levels in blood and intestinal tissue and promoted the maintenance of antioxidant defense in mesenteric acute injury.

Splenic ischemic preconditioning attenuates oxidative stress induced by hepatic ischemia-reperfusion in rats.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effects of splenic ischemic preconditioning (sIPC) on oxidative stress induced by hepatic ischemia-reperfusion in rats. METHODS: Fifteen male Wistar rats were equally divided into 3 groups: SHAM, IRI and sIPC. Animals from IRI group were subjected to 45 minutes of partial liver ischemia (70%). In the sIPC group, splenic artery was clamped in 2 cycles of 5 min of ischemia and 5 min of reperfusion (20 min total) prior to hepatic ischemia. SHAM group underwent the same surgical procedures as in the remaining groups, but no liver ischemia or sIPC were induced. After 1h, hepatic and splenic tissue samples were harvested for TBARS, CAT, GPx and GSH-Rd measurement. RESULTS: sIPC treatment significantly decreased both hepatic and splenic levels of TBARS when compared to IRI group (p<0.01). Furthermore, the hepatic and splenic activities of CAT, GPx and GSH- Rd were significantly higher in sIPC group than in IRI group. CONCLUSION: sIPC was able to attenuate hepatic and splenic IRI-induced oxidative stress.

New training model using chickens intestine for pediatric intestinal anastomosis.

PURPOSE: To develop a new low-cost, easy-to-make and available training model using chickens' intestine for infant intestinal anastomosis. METHODS: Segments of chicken intestine were used to create an intestinal anastomosis simulator. We tried to perform an end-to-end, end-to-side and side-to-side anastomosis. Handsewn sutured anastomosis were performed in single layered with interrupted prolene 5-0 suture. The parameters analyzed were cost, intestine's diameter and length, anastomosis patency and flow-through and leakage amount. RESULTS: In all cases it was possible to make the anastomosis in double layered without difficulties, different from the usual ones. There was a positive patency at all anastomoses after the end of the procedure, with no need for reinterventions. CONCLUSION: The new training model using chickens' intestine for infant intestinal anastomosis is low-cost, easy-to-make and easy available.

EFFECT OF COPAIBA OIL IN INTESTINAL MUCOSA OF RATS SUBMITTED TO HYPOVOLEMIC SHOCK.

BACKGROUND: Hypovolemic shock is a common disease in polytrauma patients and may develop ischemia in various organs, increasing morbidity and mortality. The bowel is usually most affected by this condition. AIM: To evaluate the effects of copaiba oil on the intestinal mucosa's injury of rats submitted to hypovolemic shock. METHOD: Fifteen rats were divided into three groups: sham - simulated surgery; ischemia - animals submitted to hypovolemic shock; and copaiba - animals submitted to hypovolemic shock previously treated with copaiba oil. Mean blood pressure, arterial blood gas after shock induction, degree of intestinal lesion and villus length were evaluated. RESULTS: The sham presented the lowest values of lactate and PaCO2 and the highest values of mean arterial pressure, pH and bicarbonate in relation to the other groups. The degree of mesenteric lesion was zero in the sham group; 3.00±1.00 in the ischemia group; and 3.00±0.71 in the copaiba group. The villus length was 173.60±8.42 in the sham, 142.77±8.33 in the ischemia and 143.01±9.57 in the copaiba group. There was a significant difference between the sham and the other groups (p<0.05); however, there not significant difference between groups Ischemia and copaiba. CONCLUSION: Administration of copaiba oil did not reduce the intestinal mucosa lesion of rats after hypovolemic shock.

INFLUENCE OF SPLENIC IMPLANTS IN THE SUBCUTANEOUS TISSUE ON ASPLENIC ANIMALS SURVIVAL.

BACKGROUND: The best site for splenic implant was not defined, mainly evaluating the functionality of the implant. AIM: To evaluate the effects of autogenous splenic implantation on the subcutaneous tissue in the survival of splenectomized rats. METHOD: Twenty-one randomly assigned rats were studied in three groups (n=7): group 1 - manipulation of the abdominal cavity and preservation of the spleen; group 2 - total splenectomy; group 3 - splenectomy and implant of the tissue removed in the subcutaneous. The animals were followed for 90 days postoperatively. RESULTS: There was a higher mortality in groups 2 (p=0.0072) and 3 (p=0.0172) in relation to group 1. There was no difference between groups 2 and 3 (p=0.9817). CONCLUSION: The splenic implant in the subcutaneous is ineffective in the survival of rats submitted to splenectomy.

Women in surgery: do surgical specialties keep up with the feminization of medicine in Brazil? / Mulheres na cirurgia: as especialidades cirúrgicas acompanham a feminização da medicina no Brasil?

ABSTRACT Introduction: historically, surgical medical specialties are mostly male, a scenario which, in recent years, has undergone changes. In this sense, despite the relevance of the growth of female participation in the medical career, little is discussed about the distribution between genders of the main surgical medical specialties in the country. Objective: discuss the process of feminization in surgical specialties in Brazil over the last few years, tracing a distribution profile of these specialties. Methods: this is a retrospective and cross-sectional study with secondary data from the Censuses of Medical Demography in Brazil in the years 2011, 2013, 2015, 2018, 2020 and 2023, including the surgical specialties: Urology, Orthopedics and Traumatology, Thoracic Surgery, Neurosurgery, Digestive System Surgery, Cardiovascular Surgery, Hand Surgery, General Surgery, Head and Neck Surgery, Vascular Surgery, Plastic Surgery, Ophthalmology, Coloproctology, Otorhinolaryngology, Pediatric Surgery, and Gynecology and Obstetrics. Results: males prevails in numbers, among the surgical specialties, however, with a lower growth rate compared to females. Specialties such as urology, orthopedics and traumatology and neurosurgery are mostly male, while gynecology and obstetrics are female. Conclusion: it is evident that female participation in the surgical medical field has increased significantly over the last few years.

RESUMO Introdução: historicamente, as especialidades médicas cirúrgicas são, majoritariamente, masculinas, cenário o qual, nos últimos anos, passa por mudanças. Nesse sentido, apesar da relevância do crescimento da participação feminina na carreira médica, pouco se debate sobre a distribuição entre sexos das principais especialidades médicas cirúrgicas no país. Objetivo: discutir o processo de feminização nas especialidades cirúrgicas no Brasil ao longo dos últimos anos, traçando um perfil de distribuição dessas especialidades. Métodos: Trata-se de um estudo retrospectivo e transversal com dados secundários oriundos dos Censos de Demografia Médica no Brasil dos anos de 2011, 2013, 2015, 2018, 2020 e 2023, incluindo as especialidades cirúrgicas:Urologia, Ortopedia e Traumatologia, Cirurgia Torácica, Neurocirurgia, Cirurgia do Aparelho Digestivo, Cirurgia Cardiovascular, Cirurgia da Mão, Cirurgia Geral, Cirurgia de Cabeça e Pescoço, Cirurgia Vascular, Cirurgia Plástica, Oftalmologia, Coloproctologia, Otorrinolaringologia, Cirurgia Pediátrica e Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. Resultados: O sexo masculino prevalece em números, dentre as especialidades cirúrgicas, porém, com menor taxa de crescimento em comparação ao sexo feminino. Especialidades como a urologia, ortopedia e traumatologia e neurocirurgia são majoritariamente masculinas, enquanto a ginecologia e obstetrícia, feminina. Conclusão: evidencia-se que a participação feminina na área médica cirúrgica aumentou significativamente ao longo dos últimos anos.

Low-cost suture simulator to gain basic surgical skills

ABSTRACT Purpose: To introduce a new low-cost simulation model for training basic surgical skills. Methods: The training model was made from a mixture of 20 g of acetic silicone with 11 g of maize starch. Validation consisted of serial training sessions, evaluating the mean pre- and post-training time and the mean final score according to the global rating scale. Results: A decrease in the time required to perform the sutures was observed, comparing the average post and pre-training time of each training day, with a significant correlation between the order of training and the time for performing the simulation. Conclusions: The presented model proved to be capable of simulating the basic suture training skills. It is easy to make, has low cost, and can be easily reproduced in educational institutions.

DIFFERENT PROTOCOLS OF POSTCONDITIONING DOES NOT ATTENUATE MESENTERIC ISCHEMIA-REPERFUSION INJURY AFTER SHORT-TERM REPERFUSION.

Background: Mesenteric ischemia is a challenging diagnosis. Delay in diagnosis can lead to extent bowel necrosis and poor outcomes. Ischemia and reperfusion syndrome plays an important role in this scenario. Aim: To access effects of different post-conditioning cycles on mesenteric ischemia-reperfusion syndrome. Method: Twenty-five rats were assigned into five groups: Sham, used to establish normal parameters; control group, submitted to mesenteric ischemia for 30 min; in groups GP3, GP1 and GP30, ischemia was followed by post-conditioning protocol, which consisted of 1 cycle of 3 min (GP3), 3 cycles of 1 min (GP1) or 6 cycles of 30 s (GP30), respectively. Ileum samples were harvested after one hour of reperfusion. Intestinal mucosal injury was evaluated through histopathological analysis. Results: The average of mesenteric injury degree was 0 in the sham group, 3.6 in the control group, 3.4 in GP3, 3.2 in GP1, and 3.0 in GP30; villous length average was 161.59 in sham group, 136.27 in control group, 135.89 in GP3, 129.46 in GP1, and 135.18 in GP30. Was found significant difference between sham and other groups (p<0.05); however, there was no difference among post-conditioning groups. Conclusion: Post-conditioning adopted protocols were not able to protect intestinal mucosa integrity after mesenteric ischemia and short term reperfusion.

Racional: O desfecho satisfatório na abordagem cirúrgica da obesidade deve contemplar, além da perda de peso, alteração significativa nas comorbidades preexistentes e na qualidade de vida dos pacientes. Objetivo: Avaliar a qualidade de vida no pós-operatório tardio de pacientes submetidos à cirurgia de gastrectomia vertical por videolaparoscopia. Métodos: Foi aplicado o questionário "Bariatric Analysis and Reporting Outcome System" (BAROS) em pacientes submetidos à gastrectomia vertical por videolaparoscopia. Resultados: Foram avaliados 47 pacientes, entre 21 e 60 anos de idade. O IMC médio antes da operação era 43,06±5,87 kg/m². A média percentual de redução do excesso de peso após foi de 85,46±23,6%. A pontuação obtida pelos pacientes no questionário sobre a melhora na qualidade de vida evidenciou resultado excelente (36,17%), ótimo (40,43%), bom (21,28%) e razoável (2,13%). Houve melhora clínica após a operação em todas as comorbidades investigadas. Conclusão: A perda de peso foi fundamental para a melhoria na qualidade de vida e proporcionou resolução ou a melhora clínica em todas as comorbidades investigadas.

Incisional hernia repair in rats: description of the sublay technique under videomagnification system

Purpose: To describe the technique of sublay correction of incisional hernia in Wistar rats under videomagnification system. Methods: Five male rats of the species Rattus norvegicus, of the Wistar lineage, with body weight between 250­350 g and 60 days old were used. Incisional hernia was inducted in all animals. After that, the incisional hernia was immediately corrected by the sublay method. Results: There were no cases of recurrence of the incisional hernia after placement of the polypropylene mesh using the sublay technique. No postoperative complications were observed. Conclusions: The technique is suitable for execution in Wistar rats.

Effects of hypertonic saline solution associated to remote ischemic perconditioning in kidney ischemia/reperfusion injury in rats.

PURPOSE:: To evaluate the effects of hypertonic saline solution associated to remote ischemic perconditioning in renal ischemia/reperfusion injury in rats. METHODS:: Twenty five male rats (Wistar) underwent right nephrectomy and were distributed into five groups: Sham group (S); Ischemia/Reperfusion group (I/R) with 30 minutes of renal ischemia; Remote ischemic perconditioning group (Per) with three cycles of 10 minutes of I/R performed during kidney ischemia; Hypertonic saline solution group (HSS) treated with hypertonic saline solution (4ml/kg); remote ischemic perconditioning + Hypertonic saline solution group (Per+HSS) with both treatments. After reperfusion, blood samples were collected for BUN and creatinine serum levels analyzes. TBARS were evaluated in plasma and renal tissue to assess oxidative stress. Kidney histopathological examination were performed. RESULTS:: Per+HSS group showed a lower degree of renal dysfunction in relation to I/R group, whereas the technique of remote ischemic perconditioning isolated or associated with saline solution significantly reduced oxidative stress and histological damage. CONCLUSION:: Remote ischemic perconditioning associated or not to saline solution promoted reduction of acute renal injury induced by ischemia/reperfusion.

Perconditioning combined with postconditioning on kidney ischemia and reperfusion.

PURPOSE:: To evaluate if combination of perconditioning and postconditioning provides improved renal protection compared to perconditioning alone in a model of renal reperfusion injury. METHODS:: Thirty rats were assigned into 6 groups: normality; sham; ischemia and reperfusion; postconditioning; perconditioning; perconditioning + postconditioning. Animals were subjected to right nephrectomy and left renal ischemia for 30 minutes. Postconditioning consisted of 3 cycles of 5 min renal perfusion followed by 5 min of renal ischemia after major ischemic period. Perconditioning consisted of 3 cycles of 5 min hindlimb ischemia followed by 5 min of hindlimb perfusion contemporaneously to renal major ischemic period. After 24 hours, kidney was harvested and blood collected to measure urea and creatinine. RESULTS:: Perconditioning obtained better values for creatinine and urea level than only postconditioning (p<0.01); performing both techniques contemporaneously had no increased results (p>0.05). Regarding tissue structure, perconditioning was the only technique to protect the glomerulus and tubules (p<0.05), while postconditioning protected only the glomerulus (p<0.05). Combination of both techniques shows no effect on glomerulus or tubules (p>0.05). CONCLUSIONS:: Perconditioning had promising results on ischemia and reperfusion induced kidney injury, enhanced kidney function and protected glomerulus and tubules. There was no additive protection when postconditioning and perconditioning were combined.

Development of a laparoscopic training model using a smartphone.

OBJECTIVE: to develop a model of training in video-surgery, of low cost and that uses a smartphone as an image-generating source. METHODS: We developed a 38cm high, 40cm wide, 40cm long hexagonal-shaped training box, with a front opening of 12x8 cm for coupling the smartphone. The internal illumination is made with LED lamps and for the support of the smartphone, we used a selfie stick, fixed in the upper part of the box, that allows control of height, distance, angulation, and the coupling of devices with different formats. We selected 20 undergraduate students without previous training in video-surgery, who performed four exercises in the box, with assessment of the time and amount of errors in the execution of the tasks. Each student completed the training for three consecutive weeks. We collected the data in spreadsheets for later analysis. RESULTS: Nineteen students completed the training program, with significant improvement in the times and in the number of errors. CONCLUSION: the developed model was feasible and promoted the acquisition of skills in this group of students. In addition, it presents low cost, is portable and uses common equipment, such as smartphones.

Perconditioning associated to hypertonic saline solution on liver function improvement after ischemia/reperfusion injury.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effects of hypertonic saline solution associated to remote ischemic perconditioning in liver ischemia/reperfusion injury in rats. METHODS: 25 male rats (Wistar) were distributed into five groups: Sham group (S); Ischemia/Reperfusion group (I/R) with 30 minutes of liver ischemia; Remote ischemic perconditioning group (Per) with three cycles of 10 minutes of I/R performed during liver ischemia; Hypertonic saline solution group (HSS) treated with hypertonic saline solution (4ml/kg); Remote ischemic perconditioning + Hypertonic saline solution group (Per+HSS) with both treatments. RESULTS: Per+HSS group showed a lower degree of liver dysfunction in relation to I/R group, whereas the technique of remote ischemic perconditioning isolated or associated with saline solution significantly improved liver function and reduced histological damage. CONCLUSION: Remote ischemic perconditioning associated or not to saline solution promoted reduction of acute liver injury induced by ischemia/reperfusion.