Low-grade malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumour presenting as retroperitoneal spindle cell neoplasm.

Retroperitoneal spindle cell neoplasms are diagnostically challenging. Malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumours (MPNSTs) can sometimes present as sporadic primary retroperitoneal tumours. MPNSTs are usually high-grade and highly aggressive tumours and are associated with a poor prognosis. Low-grade MPNSTs are very rarely described. This current case report describes a case of sporadic primary low-grade MPNST presenting as retroperitoneal spindle cell neoplasm. The diagnosis, imaging and immunohistopathological findings, as well as its successful surgical management, are presented.

Upadacitinib in Crohn's Disease: A Comprehensive Systematic Review of Efficacy and Safety.

Crohn's disease (CD) presents a formidable challenge as a chronic inflammatory condition. This systematic review aimed to comprehensively assess upadacitinib, a novel Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor, regarding its efficacy, safety, and mechanistic insights in CD treatment. A thorough search of electronic databases identified studies investigating upadacitinib's impact on CD patients. Study characteristics, efficacy outcomes (clinical remission and endoscopic response), safety profiles, and mechanistic insights were extracted and qualitatively synthesized. Methodological quality was assessed using established tools. The synthesis of three studies consistently demonstrated improvements in clinical remission rates and endoscopic outcomes in upadacitinib-treated patients. Adverse events, such as herpes zoster, intestinal perforation, non-melanoma skin cancer, adjudicated cardiovascular events, and anemia, were reported, necessitating vigilant safety monitoring. Upadacitinib emerges as a promising therapeutic option for CD, supported by its observed clinical benefits and mechanistic implications. However, safety concerns underscore the importance of careful patient selection. These findings contribute to the ongoing discussion surrounding personalized treatment approaches for CD, emphasizing the need for further research to confirm its enduring efficacy and safety.

Open Cholecystectomy among Patients undergoing Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy in a Tertiary Care Centre: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study.

Introduction: In the current era, laparoscopic cholecystectomy is the treatment of choice for symptomatic gallstone disease. The aim of this study is to find out the prevalence of open cholecystectomy among patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy in a tertiary care centre. Methods: It is a descriptive cross-sectional study done among 345 patients at the Department of Surgery of a tertiary care centre from June, 2020 to May, 2021 after receiving ethical clearance from the Institutional Review Committee (Reference number: CMC-IRC/0770798-271). Convenience sampling was done. Successive patients who underwent elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy during the study period were included. Standard 4 port laparoscopic technique was used for the laparoscopic cholecystectomy and sub-costal Kocher incision was used for the open cholecystectomy respectively. After data collection, entry and analysis were done in Microsoft Excel. Point estimate at a 95% Confidence Interval was calculated along with frequency and percentages for binary data. Results: Out of 345 patients, the prevalence of open cholecystectomy among patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy was 6 (1.73%) (0.35-3.11 at a 95% Confidence Interval). Conclusions: This study showed that the prevalence of open cholecystectomy among patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy was lower when compared to similar studies conducted in similar settings. Keywords: cholecystectomy; cholelithiasis; laparoscopic cholecystectomy.