Transplantation-mediated alloimmune thrombocytopenia successfully treated by retransplantation.

INTRODUCTION: Transplantation-mediated alloimmune thrombocytopenia (TMAT) is a rare complication affecting the recipient of an organ from a donor with immune thrombocytopenia (ITP). METHODS: We present a case of TMAT following liver transplantation successfully treated by retransplantation, along with a review of previously published cases.Clinical presentation: The liver donor had lupus and ITP and died from an intracranial hemorrhage. The recipient's platelet count fell to 2x109/L on postoperative day 2. Due to the lack of response to medical treatment, emergency retransplantation was undertaken with a steady recovery of the platelet count within a few days. DISCUSSION: Six additional cases of transplantation-mediated alloimmune thrombocytopenia after liver transplantation have been reported. In all cases, severe thrombocytopenia ensued within 3 days after liver transplantation. Four patients suffered hemorrhagic complications. Three patients died. Early retransplantation was needed in three out of four patients receiving a graft from a donor with ITP and splenectomy. All recovered shortly after the new graft was in place. CONCLUSION: Severe refractory transplantation-mediated alloimmune thrombocytopenia can develop in liver recipients from donors with ITP, especially those with previous splenectomy. Early retransplantation should be considered if there is no rapid response to medical therapy.

Cystic duct cyst: type VI in Todani's classification.

Regarding the article recently published by Junquera E et al. that referenced our work, we agree with the authors that the cystic duct cyst (CDC) is type VI according to Todani's classification, which describes five different types of biliary cysts.

Prognostic value of the nodal ratio in gastric cancer: unicentric analysis of 199 patients.

INTRODUCTION: In the gastric cancer the most widely used classification is the AJCC TNM system. However, it presents limitations, such as staging migration in cases with suboptimal lymphadenectomies. The nodal ratio has been proposed as an alternative system, proving to be a good prognostic predictor of survival. The aim was to assess the influence of the nodal ratio measured in tertiles [tNR] as a prognostic factor and compare with the TNM systems (7th ed.) and log odds of positive lymph nodes [LODDS]. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Retrospective and single-center study on 199 patients operated on with curative intent between 2010 and 2014. For each system an univariate and multivariate analysis was performed and the overall survival rates [OS] were compared by the ROC test. RESULTS: The prognostic factors that showed statistical significance in the multivariate analysis were: tRN2 (HR2.87) and tRN3 (HR7.29); LODDS 2 (HR1.55), LODDS3 (HR2.6) and LODDS4 (HR4.9); pN2 (HR1.84) and pN3 (HR2.91). The 5-year OS was 75.8%, 61.4%, 25.8%, and 3.84% for tRN0, tRN1, tRN2 and tRN3; 72.4%, 60%, 29.1% and 13.9% for LODDS1, LODDS2, LODDS3 and LODDS4; and 77.6%, 59.4%, 28.8% and 25.5% for pN0, pN1, pN2 and pN3, respectively. The three systems behaved as good predictors, with areas under the curve >0.75. CONCLUSION: tNR was an independent prognostic factor for estimating survival in gastric cancer. Furthermore, the ease of its calculation in clinical practice could reduce the effect of staging migration.

Prognostic value of the nodal ratio in gastric cancer: Unicentric analysis pf 199 patients. / Valor pronóstico del ratio nodal en el cáncer gástrico: análisis unicéntrico de 199 pacientes.

INTRODUCTION: In the gastric cancer the most widely used classification is the AJCC TNM system. However, it presents limitations, such as staging migration in cases with suboptimal lymphadenectomies. The nodal ratio has been proposed as an alternative system, proving to be a good prognostic predictor of survival. The aim was to assess the influence of the nodal ratio measured in tertiles [tNR] as a prognostic factor and compare with the TNM systems (7th ed.) and log odds of positive lymph nodes [LODDS]. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Retrospective and single-center study on 199 patients operated on with curative intent between 2010 and 2014. For each system an univariate and multivariate analysis was performed and the overall survival rates [OS] were compared by the ROC test. RESULTS: The prognostic factors that showed statistical significance in the multivariate analysis were: tNR2 (HR 2.87) and tNR 3 (HR 7.29); LODDS 2 (HR 1.55), LODDS3 (HR 2.6) and LODDS4 (HR 4.9); pN2 (HR 1.84) and pN3 (HR 2.91). The 5-year OS was 75.8, 61.4, 25.8 and 3.84% for tNR0, tNR1, tNR2 and tNR3; 72.4, 60, 29.1 and 13.9% for LODDS1, LODDS2, LODDS3 and LODDS4; and 77.6, 59.4, 28.8 and 25.5% for pN0, pN1, pN2 and pN3, respectively. The three systems behaved as good predictors, with areas under the curve >0.75. CONCLUSION: tNR was an independent prognostic factor for estimating survival in gastric cancer. Furthermore, the ease of its calculation in clinical practice could reduce the effect of staging migration.

Liver transplantation following hepatic artery avulsion in a trauma patient.

BACKGROUND: Hepatic artery avulsion following politrauma is an extremely rare condition with a very high mortality rate. Management is based on damage control surgery given the precarious situation of these patients. Ligating the artery is one option under such circumstances, despite potential consequences including ischemic cholangiopathy (IC). Ischemic cholangiopathy, which can be caused by an insufficient blood supply to the bile duct, generally results in stricture and recurrent cholangitis, and the need for a liver transplant in extreme cases. CASE PRESENTATION: We present the case of a 37-year-old male with multiple traumas after falling from the third floor of a building. He was hemodynamically unstable upon arrival at the emergencies department, with no improvement on administration of aggressive fluid therapy. A Echo-FAST exam evidenced fluid in all quadrants, so the patient was transferred to the operating room where a 4-litre hemoperitoneum secondary to total avulsion of the proper hepatic artery was observed. The patient required massive transfusion and vasoactive drugs, with instability throughout the intervention; therefore, we decided to ligate the proper hepatic artery. Hepatic dysfunction and diffuse IC with multiple episodes of recurrent cholangitis were observed during the postoperative period. Given the irreversible clinical picture, we opted for a liver transplant 70 days after the patient's initial admission. The patient died on Day 34 post-transplant due to irreversible ischemic brain damage and a right occipital hemorrhage. CONCLUSIONS: Hepatic artery avulsion due to trauma is very rare and its management very complex, and in certain situations the artery must be ligated. The main consequence of ligating the hepatic artery is IC, which is more frequently observed secondary to iatrogenic lesions or systemic diseases, while very few cases have been published in which IC is secondary to hepatic artery avulsion caused by hepatic trauma. Treatment depends on the extent of ischemia, and when the damage is diffuse, as in our case, it may involve a liver transplant.

Prolapso rectal incarcerado secundario a adenoma velloso gigante / Incarcerated rectal prolapse due to a giant villous adenoma

Los adenomas vellosos pueden manifestarse con sangrado, diarrea, alteraciones hidroelectrolíticas (síndrome Mackittrick-Weelock), obstrucción intestinal, y, muy infrecuentemente, condicionar un prolapso rectal. El prolapso rectal es la protrusión de la pared completa del recto a través del canal anal, su presentación como prolapso rectal incarcerado es poco habitual. Cuando la reducción manual no es posible, la rectosigmoidectomía vía perineal o procedimiento de Altemeier es una buena opción quirúrgica; como alternativa puede realizarse una resección transanal del pólipo y la posterior reducción manual del prolapso rectal. Referiremos el caso de una mujer que acude al Servicio de urgencias presentando un prolapso rectal incarcerado con una masa ulcerada, friable, de 10 × 8 × 5 cm compatible con un pólipo velloso en la cara posterior del recto. Ante la imposibilidad de reducirlo se decide una resección transanal del pólipo con posterior reducción manual del prolapso rectal. Este caso es de interés por la infrecuente asociación entre un prolapso rectal incarcerado y un pólipo velloso gigante, con solo 4 casos comunicados en la literatura.

Villous adenomas may present with bleeding, diarrhea, electrolyte imbalance (Mackittrick-Weelock syndrome), obstruction, being a very rare cause of rectal prolapse. Rectal prolapse is a full thickness protrusion of the rectum through the anal canal and its presentation as an incarcerated rectal prolapse is very infrequent. If manual reduction is deemed impossible, perineal recto-sigmoidectomy, or Altemeier's procedure, is one of the best surgical options, as an alternative transanal excision of the polyp could be performed with subsequent manual reduction of the rectal prolapse. We report the case of a female patient, admitted to the emergency room presenting an incarcerated rectal prolapse with a friable ulcerated mass of 10 × 8 × 5 cm, compatible with a villous polyp in the back side of the rectum. Since manual reduction was considered not feasible, surgery was decided and a transanal excision of the polyp was performed, following a successful manual reduction of the rectal prolapse. This case is of particular interest for its unusual association of incarcerated rectal prolapse due to a giant villous adenoma, having only 4 cases been reported in the literature.

Controversias en el tratamiento de la hernia de Amyand / Controversies in the treatment of Amyand´s hernia

La hernia de Amyand tiene baja incidencia (0,1 a 1 %) pero, en caso de complicación, puede asociarse con una alta tasa de mortalidad. A pesar de haber sido descrita hace más de 200 años por Claudius Amyand, siguen existiendo ciertas controversias sobre su correcto tratamiento en determinadas situaciones. La práctica o la evitación de la apendicectomía en ausencia de apendicitis y la técnica para reparar el defecto herniario según el grado de contaminación de la zona, son temas tratados en el presente artículo. Ante la falta de consenso global en la literatura científica, la individualización de cada caso y el buen juicio del cirujano deben primar a la hora de decidir el tratamiento más adecuado. Se presentan dos casos clínicos que, a pesar de tratarse de la misma enfermedad, tuvieron formas de presentación, manejo y evolución dispares. Asimismo, se adjunta la iconografía de un excepcional caso de hernia de Amyand, izquierda, junto con el hallazgo de una hernia de Littré no complicada en el mismo saco herniario

Amyand's hernia has a low incidence (0.1%-1.0%) but it may be associated with high mortality rates. Despite having been described more than 200 years ago by Claudius Amyand, there are still controversies regarding treatment in some particular situations. Performing or not appendectomies in the absence of appendicitis, or how to perform the hernia repair depending on the degree of contamination, are topics discussed in this article. There is not a global consensus in the literature yet. The individualization of each case and the surgeon´s proper judgment should be the priority for selecting the most appropriate treatment. Two clinical cases of Amyand's hernia are reported with very different clinical presentations, management and evolution. Also, an image of a left sided Amyand's hernia together with a Littre's hernia in the same hernia sac is shown