Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Nursing Management of Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy and Jejunostomy (PEG/PEJ) in Adult Patients: An Executive Summary.

Enteral nutrition (EN) is the introduction of nutrients into the gastrointestinal tract through a tube placed in a natural or artificial stoma. Tubes may be passed into the stomach (gastrostomy) or the jejunum (jejunostomy) in patients who cannot obtain adequate nourishing via oral feeding. Following placement, nurses are typically responsible for management of gastrostomy or other enteral tube devices in both the acute and home care settings. This article summarizes guidelines developed for nursing management of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy or jejunostomy (PEG/PEJ) and gastrojejunostomy (PEGJ) tubes, developed by the Italian Association of Stoma care Nurses (AIOSS-Associazione Italiana Operatori Sanitari di Stomaterapia) in collaboration with the Italian Association of Endoscopic Operators (ANOTE-Associazione Nazionale Operatori Tecniche Endoscopiche) and the Italian Association of Gastroenterology Nurses and Associates (ANIGEA-Associazione Nazionale Infermieri di Gastroenterologia e Associati). The guidelines do not contain recommendations about EN through nasogastric tubes, indications for PEG/PEJ/PEGJ positioning, composition of EN, selection of patients, type of tube, modality of administration of the EN, and gastrointestinal complications.

Yttrium-90 Radioembolization for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Prior to Liver Transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Liver transplantation (LT) is a well-established procedure for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) within the Milan criteria. Yttrium-90 microspheres radioembolization (Y90-RE) has shown to be an effective and safe treatment of primary liver tumors. We retrospectively evaluate the efficacy of the Y90-RE in patients with HCC prior to LT. METHODS: From January 2002 to December 2015, 365 patients were transplanted at the San Camillo Hospital Center. One hundred forty-three patients were transplanted for HCC, and in 22 cases the patients were treated with Y90-RE before LT. RESULTS: Three patients were treated with Y90-RE within the Milan criteria, and 19 patients were out of criteria before Y90-RE. Four patients had an increasing MELD score between Y90-RE and LT. On the other hand, alpha-fetoprotein decreases after Y90-RE treatment in all cases. No patient death was observed in Y90-RE procedure or at LT. In 78.9 % of cases, a successful downstaging was observed, and in 100 % of cases bridging was achieved. From Y90-RE treatment overall survival was 43.9 months. From LT, overall mean survival was 30.2 months with a free survival of 29.6 months. The overall survival after LT analysis between the patients treated with Y90-RE and patients without was not significant (p = 0.113). Free survival analysis was not significant (p = 0.897) between the two populations. CONCLUSIONS: We successfully performed LT in patients after Y90-RE treatment both as bridging and downstaging for HCC and obtained a similar overall and free survival of LT for HCC within Milan criteria. Y90-RE becomes a real option to provide curative therapy for patients who traditionally are not considered eligible for surgery.

Massive pelvic recurrence of uterine leiomyomatosis with intracaval-intracardiac extension: video case report and literature review.

BACKGROUND: Uterine leiomyomas represent the gynecological neoplasm with the highest prevalence worldwide. This apparently benign pathological entity may permeate into the venous system causing the so-called intravenous leiomyomatosis of the uterus (IVL). IVL may seldom extend to large caliber veins and reach the right cardiac chambers or pulmonary arteries and cause signs of right sided congestive heart failure and sudden death. Due to its low incidence, however, IVL with intracardiac extension is often misdiagnosed resulting in deferred treatment. No consensus has been obtained regarding the standard surgical approach to be used for this rare condition. We describe the case of a massive pelvic recurrence of uterine leiomyomatosis with intracardiac extension and provide a review of the literature, analyzing management and surgical outcomes. CASE PRESENTATION: We present the case of a 46-year-old premenopausal woman presenting with lower-extremity edema, recurrent syncopes and a history of subtotal hysterectomy for multiple uterine fibroids. She was diagnosed with pelvic recurrence of uterine leiomyomatosis and IVL with cardiac involvement. A two-stage surgical excision of the intracardiac-intracaval mass and pelvic leiomyomatosis was performed. The patient had an uneventful recovery and no evidence of recurrence was observed on follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: By virtue of the rarity of the present pathology, awareness is widely scarce and diagnosis is often delayed. Early recognition is difficult due to initial aspecific and subtle clinical manifestations. Nevertheless, suspicion should be held high in premenopausal women with known history of uterine leiomyomata, presenting with cardiovascular symptoms and evidence of a free-floating mass within the right cardiac chambers. In-depth imaging is crucial for defining its anatomical origin and relations. Prompt surgical treatment with radical excision of pelvic and intravenous leiomyomatosis guarantees favorable outcomes and excellent prognosis with low rates of recurrence, whereas delayed diagnosis and treatment exposes to increased risk of congestive heart failure and sudden death.

Isolation of KPC 3-producing Enterobacter aerogenes in a patient colonized by MDR Klebsiella pneumoniae.

We describe the interspecies transmission of the plasmid-mediated blaKPC-3 gene, which confers carbapenem resistance, between clinically relevant gram-negative bacteria in a single patient. A KPC-3 producing Enterobacter aerogenes was isolated from a hospitalized patient previously colonized and then infected by a Klebsiella pneumoniae ST101 carrying the blaKPC-3 gene. The strains showed identical plasmids. Since intense horizontal exchanges among bacteria can occur in the gut, clinicians should be aware that patients colonized by carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae could become carriers of other carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae.

Ebola virus disease complicated with viral interstitial pneumonia: a case report.

BACKGROUND: In the current Ebola epidemic in Western Africa, many healthcare workers have become infected. Some of these have been medically evacuated to hospitals in Europe and the USA. These clinical experiences provide unique insights into the course of Ebola virus disease under optimized condition within high level isolation units. CASE PRESENTATION: A 50-year-old Caucasian male physician contracted Ebola virus diseases in Sierra Leone and was medically evacuated to Italy. Few days after the admission the course of the illness was characterized by severe gastro-intestinal symptoms followed by respiratory failure, accompanied by pulmonary infiltration and high Ebola viral load in the bronchial aspirate and Plasmodium vivax co-infection. The patient received experimental antiviral therapy with favipiravir, convalescent plasma and ZMAb. Ebola viral load started to steadily decrease in the blood after ZMAb administration and became undetectable by day 19 after admission, while it persisted longer in urine samples. No temporal association was observed between viral load decay in plasma and administration of favipiravir. The patient completely recovered and was discharged 39 days after admission. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first case of Ebola-related interstitial pneumonia documented by molecular testing of lung fluid specimens. This reports underlines the pivotal role of fluid replacement and advanced life support with mechanical ventilation in the management of patients with Ebola virus diseases respiratory failure. Beside our finding indicates a close temporal association between administration of cZMAb and Ebola virus clearance from blood.

Clinical experience of colistin-glycopeptide combination in critically ill patients infected with Gram-negative bacteria.

A colistin-glycopeptide combination (CGC) has been shown in vitro to be synergistic against multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (MDR GNB), especially Acinetobacter baumannii, and to prevent further resistance. However, clinical data are lacking. We carried out a retrospective multicenter study of patients hospitalized in intensive care units (ICUs) who received colistin for GNB infection over a 1-year period, to assess the rates of nephrotoxicity and 30-day mortality after treatment onset among patients treated with and without CGC for ≥48 h. Of the 184 patients treated with colistin, GNB infection was documented for 166. The main causative agents were MDR A. baumannii (59.6%), MDR Pseudomonas aeruginosa (18.7%), and carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (14.5%); in 16.9% of patients, a Gram-positive bacterium (GPB) coinfection was documented. Overall, 68 patients (40.9%) received CGC. Comparison of patients treated with and without CGC showed significant differences for respiratory failure (39.7% versus 58.2%), ventilator-associated pneumonia (54.4% versus 71.4%), MDR A. baumannii infection (70.6% versus 52%), and GPB coinfection (41.2% versus 0%); there were no differences for nephrotoxicity (11.8% versus 13.3%) and 30-day mortality (33.8% versus 29.6%). Cox analysis performed on patients who survived for ≥5 days after treatment onset showed that the Charlson index (hazard ratio [HR], 1.26; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01 to 1.44; P = 0.001) and MDR A. baumannii infection (HR, 2.51; 95% CI, 1.23 to 5.12; P = 0.01) were independent predictors of 30-day mortality, whereas receiving CGC for ≥5 days was a protective factor (HR, 0.42; 95% CI, 0.19 to 0.93; P = 0.03). We found that CGC was not associated with higher nephrotoxicity and was a protective factor for mortality if administered for ≥5 days.

Low plasma concentrations of albumin influence the affinity column-mediated immunoassay method for the measurement of tacrolimus in blood during the early period after liver transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Monitoring of tacrolimus (TAC) concentrations in transplanted patients is necessary to ensure effective immunosuppression and to avoid adverse side effects. The fully automated analysis of TAC by the affinity column-mediated immunoassay (ACMIA), which does not require a precipitation step, may represent an efficient alternative to liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), including in the clinically urgent situation. The aim of this work was to compare the analytical performances of ACMIA with those of LC-MS/MS and to evaluate the influence of hematological parameters, time posttransplant, and type of transplant on the results obtained from routine blood samples. METHODS: Performance characteristics of ACMIA were evaluated using quality control materials and samples spiked with TAC from the International Proficiency Testing Scheme. One hundred and fifty-eight whole-blood samples from patients who received a liver (n = 55) or kidney (n = 14) transplant were assayed by ACMIA and LC-MS/MS, and hematologic, biochemical, and demographic data were collected. Univariate and multivariate statistical analyses were also performed to assess associations between the interassay differences with clinical and laboratory parameters. RESULTS: For artificially spiked samples, the average difference between results obtained by ACMIA and LC-MS/MS was 0.24 ± 0.51 ng/mL (2.91 ± 7.03%). Crosschecking of calibrators and controls by both methods was in accordance with the nominal concentrations of TAC. The lower limit of quantification of ACMIA was found to be 3.0 ng/mL. The results with the 2 methods using routine samples from the transplant recipients correlated well (Spearman's r = 0.90). However, the ACMIA method demonstrated a positive mean bias of 1.78 ng/mL in comparison with LC-MS/MS. Multivariate analysis showed that liver transplant and albumin plasma concentrations significantly and independently affected ACMIA results (P = 0.033 and P = 0.001, respectively). Samples from liver transplant recipients early postsurgery were associated with a larger method bias than those from renal transplant recipients. CONCLUSIONS: Results obtained by ACMIA must be interpreted cautiously, particularly at lower TAC concentrations. Patients with low plasma concentrations of albumin are likely to display higher concentrations of TAC compared with LC-MS/MS in the early postsurgery period.

Association of profoundly impaired immune competence in H1N1v-infected patients with a severe or fatal clinical course.

BACKGROUND: Pandemic A/H1N1v influenza is characterized by a mild clinical course. However, a small subset of patients develops a rapidly progressive course caused by primary viral pneumonia or secondary bacterial infections that, in many cases, lead to death due to respiratory failure. The aim of the present study was to analyze the involvement of the immune response in the clinical presentation of H1N1v influenza. METHODS: The differentiation and functional capability of T cells from H1N1v-infected patients presenting with either mild disease (n=22) or severe or fatal disease (n=6) were compared. Moreover, plasma cytokines and chemokines were quantified. RESULTS: T cells from H1N1v-infected patients presenting with a severe clinical course resulted in impaired effector cell differentiation and failed to respond to mitogenic stimulation. T cell anergy was strictly associated with a severe acute phase of infection, but T cells could be restored in patients able to recover. Of interest, massive expression of CD95 marker was found on anergic T cells, suggesting an apoptosis-related mechanism. Finally, lower plasma levels of interferon-alpha and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 were found in patients with a worse clinical course of influenza, suggesting impaired production of these cytokines. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show a strict association between host immune competence and the severity of the clinical course of H1N1v infection. By monitoring host functional response, patients with an enhanced risk of developing influenza-associated severe complications could be identified in a timely manner.

Molecular analysis of clinical isolates of ceftazidime-avibactam-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae.

OBJECTIVES: To analyse the strains collected during a 1-year survey of ceftazidime-avibactam-resistant KPC-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae, in order to investigate the molecular mechanisms potentially responsible for their resistant phenotype. METHODS: Clinical KPC-producing K. pneumoniae isolates were collected from 31 patients in six different hospitals in Rome. For eight of the patients, an additional strain grown before the start of treatment was also available, bringing the total of isolates studied to 39. Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined by automated system, broth microdiluition and E-test as appropriate. In silico analysis of acquired resistance genes was achieved by whole-genome sequencing, while multilocus sequence typing and core genome multilocus sequence typing were employed for molecular typing. Mutations associated with ceftazidime-avibactam resistance were identified by Sanger sequencing of the blaKPC gene. Possible mutations in OmpK35 and OmpK36 outer membrane proteins were also investigated. RESULTS: Molecular analyses highlighted the circulation of the ST512, 101 and 307 high-risk clones; 26 of the 31 patients carried a mutated KPC variant, five had a wild-type KPC-3. Among the KPC variants detected, 11 were different mutations within the blaKPC-3 gene, four of which were novel mutational changes. CONCLUSIONS: Different mutations including single amino-acid substitutions, insertions or deletions within the blaKPC gene were found in 26/31 ceftazidime-avibactam-resistant KPC-producing K. pneumoniae strains belonging to high-risk clones circulating in Italy. Of note, in 14/31 cases the isolates displayed resistance to both ceftazidime-avibactam and carbapenems, raising concerns for the possible selection of a multidrug-resistant phenotype.

Risk and predictive factors of prolonged viral RNA shedding in upper respiratory specimens in a large cohort of COVID-19 patients admitted to an Italian reference hospital.

BACKGROUND: Limited data are available about the predictors and outcomes associated with prolonged SARS-CoV-2 RNA shedding (VS). METHODS: A retrospective study including COVID-19 patients admitted to an Italian hospital between March 1 and July 1, 2020. Predictors of viral clearance (VC) and prolonged VS from the upper respiratory tract were assessed by Poisson regression and logistic regression analyses. The causal relation between VS and clinical outcomes was evaluated through an inverse probability weighted Cox model. RESULTS: The study included 536 subjects. The median duration of VS from symptoms onset was 18 days. The estimated 30-day probability of VC was 70.2%. Patients with comorbidities, lymphopenia at hospital admission, or moderate/severe respiratory disease had a lower chance of VC. The development of moderate/severe respiratory failure, delayed hospital admission after symptoms onset, baseline comorbidities, or D-dimer >1000ng/mL at admission independently predicted prolonged VS. The achievement of VC doubled the chance of clinical recovery and reduced the probability of death/mechanical ventilation. CONCLUSIONS: Respiratory disease severity, comorbidities, delayed hospital admission and inflammatory markers negatively predicted VC, which resulted to be associated with better clinical outcomes. These findings highlight the importance of prompt hospitalization of symptomatic patients, especially where signs of severity or comorbidities are present.

Continuing our work: transplant surgery and surgical oncology in a tertiary referral COVID-19 center.

COVID-19 is rapidly spreading worldwide. Healthcare systems are struggling to properly allocate resources while ensuring cure for diseases outside of the infection. The aim of this study was to demonstrate how surgical activity was affected by the virus outbreak and show the changes in practice in a tertiary referral COVID-19 center. The official bulletins of the Italian National Institute for the Infectious Diseases "L. Spallanzani" were reviewed to retrieve the number of daily COVID-19 patients. Records of consecutive oncological and transplant procedures performed during the outbreak were reviewed. Patients with a high probability of postoperative intensive care unit (ICU) admission were considered as high risk and defined by an ASA score ≥ III and/or a Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) ≥ 6 and/or a Revised Cardiac Risk Index for Preoperative Risk (RCRI) ≥ 3. 72 patients were operated, including 12 (16.6%) liver and kidney transplantations. Patients had few comorbidities (26.3%), low ASA score (1.9 ± 0.5), CCI (3.7 ± 1.3), and RCRI (1.2 ± 0.6) and had overall a low risk of postoperative ICU admission. Few patients had liver cirrhosis (12.5%) or received preoperative systemic therapy (16.6%). 36 (50%) high-risk surgical procedures were performed, including major hepatectomies, pancreaticoduodenectomies, total gastrectomies, multivisceral resections, and transplantations. Despite this, only 15 patients (20.8%) were admitted to the ICU. Only oncologic cases and transplantations were performed during the COVID-19 outbreak. Careful selection of patients allowed to perform major cancer surgeries and transplantations without further stressing hospital resources, meanwhile minimizing collateral damage to patients.

Association of Sarcopenia and Body Composition With Short-term Outcomes After Liver Resection for Malignant Tumors.

Importance: Previous retrospective studies have shown that sarcopenia substantially alters the postoperative and oncological outcomes after liver resection for malignant tumors. However, the evidence is limited to small retrospective studies with heterogeneous results and the lack of standardized measurements of sarcopenia. Objective: To investigate the role of sarcopenia as a risk factor associated with 90-day morbidity after liver resection for malignant tumors. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cohort study included 234 consecutive patients undergoing liver resection for malignant tumors at San Camillo Forlanini Hospital, Rome, Italy, between June 1, 2018, and December 15, 2019. Muscle mass and strength were assessed using the skeletal muscle index (SMI) on preoperative computed tomographic scans and the handgrip strength test, respectively. Patients were then divided into the following 4 groups: group A (normal muscle mass and strength), group B (reduced muscle strength), group C (reduced muscle mass), and group D (reduced muscle mass and strength). Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome of the study was 90-day morbidity. The following secondary outcomes were investigated: 90-day mortality, hospital stay, and readmission rate. Results: Sixty-four major and 170 minor hepatectomies were performed in 234 patients (median age, 66.50 [interquartile range, 58.00-74.25] years; 158 men [67.5%]). The median SMI of the entire population was 46.22 (interquartile range, 38.60-58.20) cm/m2. The median handgrip strength was 30.80 (interquartile range, 22.30-36.90) kg. Patients in group D had a statistically significantly higher rate of 90-day morbidity than patients in the other groups (51.5% [35 of 68] vs 38.7% [29 of 75] in group C, 23.1% [3 of 13] in group B, and 6.4% [5 of 78] in group A; P < .001). Compared with patients in the other groups, those in group D had a longer hospital stay (10 days vs 8 days in group C, 9 days in group B, and 6 days in group A; P < .001), and more patients in this group were readmitted to the hospital (8.8% [6 of 68] vs 5.3% [4 of 75] in group C, 7.7% [1 of 13] in group B, and 0% [0 of 78] in group A; P = .02). Sarcopenia, portal hypertension, liver cirrhosis, and biliary reconstruction were independent risk factors associated with 90-day morbidity. Conclusions and Relevance: Sarcopenia appears to be associated with adverse outcomes after liver resection for malignant tumors. Both muscle mass measurements on computed tomographic scans and muscle strength assessments with the handgrip strength test should be performed at the first clinical encounter to better classify patients and to minimize the risk of morbidity.

Molecular and phenotypical characterization of two cases of antibiotic-driven ceftazidime-avibactam resistance in bla KPC-3-harboring Klebsiella pneumoniae.

Background: For years, Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)-producing K. pneumoniae have represented a serious health problem in hospitals worldwide. Since its approval in 2015, ceftazidime-avibactam (CAZ-AVI) had been successfully used for treating complicated KPC-K. pneumoniae infections, until increasing reports of resistance began to emerge. Methods: Phenotypic tests and molecular analysis were performed in four multidrug-resistant K. pneumoniae isolates, collected from two patients following treatment with CAZ-AVI. Results: In this study, we report two cases of emergence of CAZ-AVI resistance in KPC-3-producing K. pneumoniae isolates, collected from two patients following treatment with CAZ-AVI. Molecular analysis highlighted the D179Y mutation in the bla KPC-3 gene, whose role in the loss of hydrolytic activity (resulting in decreased carpabenem minimum inhibitory concentrations and negative phenotypic tests) of the enzyme has already been shown. Conclusion: Most surveillance schemes aimed at detecting carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) rely on confirmatory phenotypic tests for detecting carbapenemase production. As reports of these treatment-induced, altered CRE phenotypes are increasing, the initial susceptibility testing should be followed by a combination of phenotypic and molecular methods, to make sure that no potential carbapenemase-producing bacteria are missed.

Epidemiological investigation of an Acinetobacter baumannii outbreak using core genome multilocus sequence typing.

OBJECTIVES: Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) is a serious nosocomial pathogen that causes a variety of serious, often life-threatening, infections and outbreaks. This study aimed to investigate the molecular epidemiology of clinical CRAB isolates from an outbreak that occurred in the intensive care unit (ICU) of an Italian hospital. METHODS: From December 2016 to April 2017, 13 CRAB isolates were collected from seven patients treated in the ICU at 'L. Spallanzani' Hospital (Rome, Italy). Typing was performed by repetitive extragenic palindromic PCR (rep-PCR) using a DiversiLab® system. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) data were used for in silico analysis of traditional multilocus sequence typing (MLST) results, to identify resistance genes and for core genome MLST (cgMLST) analysis. Epidemiological data were obtained from hospital records. RESULTS: All isolates showed a carbapenem-resistant profile and carried the blaOXA-23 carbapenemase gene. Typing performed by rep-PCR and MLST showed that the isolates clustered into one group, whilst the cgMLST approach, which uses 2390 gene targets to characterise the gene-by-gene allelic profile, highlighted the presence of two cluster types. These results allowed us to identify two patients who were likely to be the source of two separate transmission chains. CONCLUSION: These results show that WGS by cgMLST is a valuable tool, better suited for prompt epidemiological investigations than traditional typing methods because of its higher discriminatory ability in determining clonal relatedness.

Imported severe malaria and risk factors for intensive care: A single-centre retrospective analysis.

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to identify the risk factors for intensive care (IC) in severe malaria patients admitted to the "Lazzaro Spallanzani" National Institute for Infectious Diseases, Rome, Italy. METHODS: All patients with confirmed severe malaria and hospitalized between 2007 and 2015 were included in the analysis and stratified into two groups: those requiring IC and those who did not. Five prognostic malaria scores were estimated; clinical severity at IC unit admission was assessed using the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment and the quick-Sequential Organ Failure Assessment scores. Univariate and multivariate analysis were performed to assess factors independently associated to IC. RESULTS: A total of 98 severe malaria patients were included; 10 of them required IC. There were no deaths or sequelae. Patients requiring IC had higher severity scores. At the multivariate analysis, only the number of World Health Organization criteria and the aspartate aminotransferase value were independently associated with the need of IC. CONCLUSIONS: An early and accurate assessment of the severity score is essential for the management of severe malaria patients.

A proposal for classifying peristomal skin disorders: results of a multicenter observational study.

The challenges of caring for abdominal ostomy disorders have grown over the years. Because the literature shows no evidence of a tool to classify peristomal skin disorders, a study group comprised of seven enterostomal therapy nurses and four surgeons sought to provide an objective, reproducible, standardized classification instrument. A prospective, observational study was conducted among eight ostomy centers across Italy. The 339 patient participants (272 men, 67 women, average age 63 [25 to 85] years) were divided into two groups according to onset of complications (less than or greater than 1 year); 800 digital photographs were taken to enhance observation and blood samples were drawn for additional data. From the data obtained, a classification scheme was created and subsequently tested using four non-study group experts. The resulting instrument facilitated lesion interpretation and detection, including topography. Thus far, this is the first validated classification attempt not based on assessments of lesions attributable to entirely different etiopathogenetic factors. Further research to refine the tool and to correlate the additional data obtained from blood samples with the classification system is underway.

Liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma ≥5 cm.

BACKGROUND: Management of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) larger than 5 cm is still debated. The aim of our study was to compare morbidity and mortality after the surgical resection of HCC according to the nodule size. METHODS: Since 2001, 429 liver resections for HCC were performed in our institution. We divided the cohort into two groups, 88 patients in group 1 patients with HCC diameter from 5 to 10 cm and 39 patients in group 2 with HCC diameter ≥10 cm. RESULTS: In 30.7% of cases in the first group and in 35.9% of cases in the second group the HCC grew into a healthy liver. A major liver resection was performed in 36.3% of cases in group 1 vs. 66.6% in group 2 (P=0.001). In two cases for the first group and in ten cases in the second group a laparoscopic approach was performed. Median operative time was higher in group 2 (P=0.001). The median post-operative hospital stay was similar in the two groups (P=0.897). The post-operative morbidity was not different between the two groups (P=0.595). CONCLUSIONS: The tumour size does not contraindicate a surgical resection of HCC even in patient with HCC ≥10 cm.

Trans-arterial radio-embolization: a new chance for patients with hepatocellular cancer to access liver transplantation, a world review.

Liver transplantation (LT) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) within the Milan criteria (MC) is nowadays a curative procedure. Yttrium-90 microspheres radioembolization (Y90-RE) has shown to be an effective and safe treatment of primary liver tumors. The aim of this work is to offer a view on the publications which report on the use of Y90-RE as bridge or downstaging prior to LT. Twenty articles have been considered for this world review. About 178 LT in patients were treated with Y90-RE prior to LT. Most of patients had a downstaging strategy. In all series alpha-fetoproteins decreased between Y90-RE and LT. Therefore, Y90-RE may have an important role in the bridge and downstaging treatments.

A 15-year experience of two hundred and twenty five consecutive right hepatectomies.

BACKGROUND: In case of liver tumor, surgical resection is the therapeutic gold standard to increase patient survival. Among liver resections, right hepatectomy (RH) is defined as a major hepatectomy. The first aim of this study was to analyze the overall morbidity and mortality of patients undergoing RH, the second aim was to assess changes in both patients characteristic and surgical parameters and mortality rates in a single center institution. MATERIALS: From 2001 to December 2015, 225 RH were performed in our center. We analyzed two time period: 2001-2007 and 2008-2015. RESULTS: Ninety days post operative mortality was observed in 9 cases (4%) for the overall cohort. We observed a difference between the two groups in the use of Pringle Maneuver (p<0,001). This result is consistent in each major surgical indication: HCC (p=0,001), CLM (p=0,015) and BT (p=0,015). The estimated blood losses improved (p=0,028), particularly for the HCC cases (p=0,024). No difference was observed in terms of number of transfusions received between the two groups. Reduced length of stay was observed in the second group (p<0,001), more markedly for CLM cases (p=0,001). CONCLUSION: To further improve the outcomes of RH, it is important to performed this major hepatectomy in hepatobiliary centers with an overall liver resection experience of at least few hundred cases.

[Massive intrahepatic haemorrhage responsible for an inferior vena cava syndrome: an exceptional complication of hepatocellular carcinoma]. / Hémorragie intra-tumorale massive responsable d'un syndrome cave: une complication rare d'un carcinome hépato-cellulaire.

Intralesional massive haemorrhage responsible for inferior vena cava syndrome is a very rare complication of hepatocellular carcinoma. A 36-year-old man with no past medical history was referred to hospital for abdominal pain with clinical and biological signs of internal bleeding. An abdominal CT scan showed a huge right liver mass, with regular margins and a fluid content, indicating a large intratumoral haemorrhage complicating hepatocellular carcinoma. Due to haemodynamic stability and the signs of inferior vena cava compression conservative management was chosen prior to surgical treatment of the tumour. Three months later, the huge liver mass remained unchanged but the inferior vena cava syndrome had decreased and the patient's condition improved. After evaluation of liver function and the extent of the tumour, a surgical procedure was performed via a subcostal incision with midline extension and sternotomy to control the intrapericardial inferior vena cava and perform a veno-venous bypass with the technique used for orthotopic liver transplantation. Then, right hepatectomy (segments V to VIII) was performed with an anterior approach. The postoperative course was uneventful. This two-step strategy allowed successful surgery for this rare complication of a hepatocellular carcinoma on a normal liver and could be recommended for the management of any unruptured intratumoral haemorrhages.