Combined effect of age and body mass index on postoperative mortality and morbidity in laparoscopic cholecystectomy patients.

Background: Previous studies have assessed the impact of age and body mass index (BMI) on surgery outcomes separately. This retrospective cohort study aimed to investigate the combined effect of age and BMI on postoperative mortality and morbidity in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Methods: Data from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) database for laparoscopic cholecystectomy patients between 2008 and 2020 were analyzed. Patient demographics, functional status, admission sources, preoperative risk factors, laboratory data, perioperative variables, and 30-day postoperative outcomes were included in the dataset. Logistic regression was used to determine the association of age, BMI, and age/BMI with mortality and morbidity. Patients were stratified into different subcategories based on their age and BMI, and the age/BMI score was calculated. The chi-square test, independent sample t-test, and ANOVA were used as appropriate for each category. Results: The study included 435,052 laparoscopic cholecystectomy patients. Logistic regression analysis revealed that a higher age/BMI score was associated with an increased risk of mortality (adj OR 13.13 95% CI, 9.19-18.77, p < 0.0001) and composite morbidity (adj OR 2.57, 95% CI 2.23-2.95, p < 0.0001). Conclusion: Older age, especially accompanied by a low BMI, appears to increase the post-operative mortality and morbidity risks in laparoscopic cholecystectomy patients, while paradoxically, a higher BMI seems to be protective. Our hypothesis is that a lower BMI, perhaps secondary to malnutrition, can carry a greater risk of surgery complications for the elderly. Age/BMI is strongly and positively associated with mortality and morbidity and could be used as a new scoring system for predicting outcomes in patients undergoing surgery. Nevertheless, laparoscopic cholecystectomy remains a very safe procedure with relatively low complication rates.

Kinetics of antibody response in critically ill patients with Middle East respiratory syndrome and association with mortality and viral clearance.

The objective of this study is to examine the IgG antibody response in critically ill patients with the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) and to examine the association of early antibody response with mortality and viral clearance. We collected blood samples from 40 consecutive real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) confirmed critically ill MERS patients on ICU days 1, 3, 7, 14 and 28. MERS-CoV antibodies were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), using wells coated with MERS-CoV S1 antigen. Patients were admitted to ICU after a median (Q1, Q3) of 9 (4, 13) days from onset of symptoms with an admission Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score of 11 (6.5, 12). Among the study cohort, 38 patients (95%) received invasive ventilation, 35 (88%) vasopressors, 21 (53%) renal replacement therapy and 17 (43%) corticosteroids. Median (Q1,Q3) ELISA optical density (OD) ratio significantly increased with time (p < 0.001) from 0.11 (0.07, 1.43) on day 1; to 0.69 (0.11, 2.08) on day 3, 2.72 (1.84, 3.54) on day 7, 2.51 (0.35, 3.35) on day 14 and 3.77 (3.70, 3.84) on day 28. Early antibody response (day 1-3) was observed in 13/39 patients (33%) and was associated with lower mortality (hazard ratio: 0.31, 95% CI 0.10, 0.96, p = 0.04) but was not associated with faster clearance of MERS-CoV RNA. In conclusion, among critically ill patients with MERS, early antibody response was associated with lower mortality but not with faster clearance of MERS-CoV RNA. These findings have important implications for understanding pathogenesis and potential immunotherapy.

Histopathology of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronovirus (MERS-CoV) infection - clinicopathological and ultrastructural study.

AIMS: The pathogenesis, viral localization and histopathological features of Middle East respiratory syndrome - coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in humans are not described sufficiently. The aims of this study were to explore and define the spectrum of histological and ultrastructural pathological changes affecting various organs in a patient with MERS-CoV infection and represent a base of MERS-CoV histopathology. METHODS AND RESULTS: We analysed the post-mortem histopathological findings and investigated localisation of viral particles in the pulmonary and extrapulmonary tissue by transmission electron microscopic examination in a 33-year-old male patient of T cell lymphoma, who acquired MERS-CoV infection. Tissue needle biopsies were obtained from brain, heart, lung, liver, kidney and skeletal muscle. All samples were collected within 45 min from death to reduce tissue decomposition and artefact. Histopathological examination showed necrotising pneumonia, pulmonary diffuse alveolar damage, acute kidney injury, portal and lobular hepatitis and myositis with muscle atrophic changes. The brain and heart were histologically unremarkable. Ultrastructurally, viral particles were localised in the pneumocytes, pulmonary macrophages, renal proximal tubular epithelial cells and macrophages infiltrating the skeletal muscles. CONCLUSION: The results highlight the pulmonary and extrapulmonary pathological changes of MERS-CoV infection and provide the first evidence of the viral presence in human renal tissue, which suggests tissue trophism for MERS-CoV in kidney.

A novel genomic signature reclassifies an oral cancer subtype.

Verrucous carcinoma of the oral cavity (OVC) is considered a subtype of classical oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Diagnosis is problematic, and additional biomarkers are needed to better stratify patients. To investigate their molecular signature, we performed low-coverage copy number (CN) sequencing on 57 OVC and exome and RNA sequencing on a subset of these and compared the data to the same OSCC parameters. CN results showed that OVC lacked any of the classical OSCC patterns such as gain of 3q and loss of 3p and demonstrated considerably fewer genomic rearrangements compared to the OSCC cohort. OVC and OSCC samples could be clearly differentiated. Exome sequencing showed that OVC samples lacked mutations in genes commonly associated with OSCC (TP53, NOTCH1, NOTCH2, CDKN2A and FAT1). RNA sequencing identified genes that were differentially expressed between the groups. In silico functional analysis showed that the mutated and differentially expressed genes in OVC samples were involved in cell adhesion and keratinocyte proliferation, while those in the OSCC cohort were enriched for cell death and apoptosis pathways. This is the largest and most detailed genomic and transcriptomic analysis yet performed on this tumour type, which, as an example of non-metastatic cancer, may shed light on the nature of metastases. These three independent investigations consistently show substantial differences between the cohorts. Taken together, they lead to the conclusion that OVC is not a subtype of OSCC, but should be classified as a distinct entity.

Breast cancer: is there a viral connection?

Viruses are known to be etiologically related to several types of human cancer. In several published studies, viruses such as human mammary tumor virus, human papillomaviruses, Epstein-Barr virus, human cytomegalovirus, herpes simplex virus, and measles virus have been implicated in the pathogenesis of a subset of breast cancers (BC). However, these studies have produced conflicting results, causing considerable controversy. In this context, recent demonstration of elevated levels of mutagenic antiviral enzyme APOBEC3B in a majority of BCs is a highly significant development, as it provides a possible mechanism for development of large numbers of mutations (kataegis) that characterize many of the BCs. It has also provided further impetus for revaluating the role of viruses in the pathogenesis of BC.

Next-generation sequencing analysis for detecting human papillomavirus in oral verrucous carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: The etiology of oral verrucous carcinoma is unknown, and human papillomavirus 'involvement' remains contentious. The uncertainty can be attributed to varied detection procedures and difficulties in defining 'gold-standard' histologic criteria for diagnosing 'verrucous' lesions. Their paucity also hampers investigation. We aimed to analyze oral verrucous lesions for human papillomavirus (HPV) subtype genomes. STUDY DESIGN: We used next-generation sequencing for the detection of papillomavirus sequences, identifying subtypes and computing viral loads. We identified a total of 78 oral verrucous cases (62 carcinomas and 16 hyperplasias). DNA was extracted from all and sequenced at a coverage between 2.5% and 13%. RESULTS: An HPV-16 sequence was detected in 1 carcinoma and 1 hyperplasia, and an HPV-2 sequence was detected in 1 carcinoma out of the 78 cases, with viral loads of 2.24, 8.16, and 0.33 viral genomes per cell, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate no conclusive human papillomavirus involvement in oral verrucous carcinoma or hyperplasia.

Relationship between desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria (Forskål), infestation, environmental factors and control measures in Gazan and Makkah Regions, Saudi Arabia.

Desert Locust, Schistocerca gregaria (Forskål), is one of the most important insect pests in Saudi Arabia. Cultivated crops and the range lands are heavily affected by desert locust in some regions of Saudi Arabia. The objective of this study was to determine the extent of damage by the Desert Locust, Schistocerca gregaria (Forskål) to the range lands being used for grazing range animals in Gazan and Makkah regions of Saudi Arabia. However, it is very difficult to estimate accurately the total infested areas, which were sprayed with insecticides to control upsurges, outbreaks and plagues over the last five decades. Records of Desert Locust control are kept in the National Desert Locust Control and Research Center in Jeddah. Meteorological data was obtained from the Meteorology and Environmental Protection Administration (MEPA), Saudi Arabia. The data shows that the Desert Locust infestation was associated partially with the rainfall intensity in Gazan and Makkah regions. There was found a good relationship between Desert Locust infestation (Solitary phase), temperature and the relative humidity. The locust infestation was heavy during 1986-88, 1992-95 and 1997-98 and about 1.8 million ha were treated with insecticides. Out of the total breeding/infested area, 43% was treated in winter months (October-February) and the remaining 57% was treated in spring season (March-June). The infested area was sprayed with Marshall, Carbosulfan (20%), Malathion (96%, Clorpyrifos; (48%) Fipronil (12.5%), Sumithion (100%) and Decis (12.5%). The study showed an excellent potential to determine the active locust infestation period in relation to the environmental factors for its effective control with insecticide sprays to minimize crop damage. The study highlighted the needs for further investigations in other locust infested areas with different environmental factors for planning future desert locust control programs.

Interferon-ribavirin therapy for chronic hepatitis C: efficacy in Saudi patients.

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis C affects 2% of Saudi population. Previous local trials showed low response to interferon monotherapy for six-months. AIM: To evaluate biochemical and virological response of interferon-ribavirin combination on naive Saudi patients infected with HCV. METHODS: A prospective single armed study was conducted at Riyadh Armed Forces Hospital from July 1999 to July 2002 for fifty patients who have hepatitis C virus (HCV-PCR) positive and chronic hepatitis on liver biopsy were started on the combination therapy for one-year. All had HCV-PCR at the end of therapy and at six months follow-up. RESULTS: Thirty-one patients (62%) normalized their ALT levels, and 25 patients (50%) became HCV-PCR negative achieving end-of-treatment response (ETR). The sustained virological response (SR) was achieved in 19 patients (38%) at six months follow-up after stopping the treatment. Side effects were mainly flu like syndrome in 36 patients (72%). CONCLUSION: Combination therapy of interferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin is an effective treatment modality for HCV infected Saudi patients, with tolerable side effects. Our virological response rates are compatible with international published literatures.