"Five steps four quadrants" modularized en bloc dissection technique for accessing hepatic hilum lymph nodes in laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy.

BACKGROUND: Although en bloc dissection of hepatic hilum lymph nodes has many advantages in radical tumor treatment, the feasibility and safety of this approach for laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy (LPD) require further clinical evaluation and investigation. AIM: To explore the application value of the "five steps four quadrants" modularized en bloc dissection technique for accessing hepatic hilum lymph nodes in LPD patients. METHODS: A total of 52 patients who underwent LPD via the "five steps four quadrants" modularized en bloc dissection technique for hepatic hilum lymph nodes from April 2021 to July 2023 in our department were analyzed retrospectively. The patients' body mass index (BMI), preoperative laboratory indices, intraoperative variables and postoperative complications were recorded. The relationships between preoperative data and intraoperative lymph node dissection time and blood loss were also analyzed. RESULTS: Among the 52 patients, 36 were males and 16 were females, and the average age was 62.2 ± 11.0 years. There were 26 patients with pancreatic head cancer, 16 patients with periampullary cancer, and 10 patients with distal bile duct cancer. The BMI was 22.3 ± 3.3 kg/m², and the median total bilirubin (TBIL) concentration was 57.7 (16.0-155.7) µmol/L. All patients successfully underwent the "five steps four quadrants" modularized en bloc dissection technique without lymph node clearance-related complications such as postoperative bleeding or lymphatic leakage. Correlation analysis revealed significant associations between preoperative BMI (r = 0.3581, P = 0.0091), TBIL level (r = 0.2988, P = 0.0341), prothrombin time (r = 0.3018, P = 0.0297) and lymph node dissection time. Moreover, dissection time was significantly correlated with intraoperative blood loss (r = 0.7744, P < 0.0001). Further stratified analysis demonstrated that patients with a preoperative BMI ≥ 21.9 kg/m² and a TIBL concentration ≥ 57.7 µmol/L had significantly longer lymph node dissection times (both P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The "five steps four quadrants" modularized en bloc dissection technique for accessing the hepatic hilum lymph node is safe and feasible for LPD. This technique is expected to improve the efficiency of hepatic hilum lymph node dissection and shorten the learning curve; thus, it is worthy of further clinical promotion and application.

Green and Rapid Preparation of Fluorosilicone Rubber Foam Materials with Tunable Chemical Resistance for Efficient Oil-Water Separation.

Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) foam materials with lightweight, excellent oil resistance and mechanical flexibility are highly needed for various practical applications in aerospace, transportation, and oil/water separation. However, traditional PDMS foam materials usually present poor chemical resistance and easily swell in various solvents, which greatly limits their potential application. Herein, novel fluorosilicone rubber foam (FSiRF) materials with different contents of trifluoropropyl lateral groups were designed and fabricated by a green (no solvents used) and rapid (<10 min foaming process) foaming/crosslinking approach at ambient temperature. Typically, vinyl-terminated poly(dimethyl-co-methyltrifluoropropyl) siloxanes with different fluorine contents of 0−50 mol% were obtained through ring-opening polymerization to effectively adjust the chemical resistance of the FSiRFs. Notably, the optimized FSiRF samples exhibit lightweight (~0.25 g/cm−3), excellent hydrophobicity/oleophilicity (WCA > 120°), reliable mechanical flexibility (complete recovery ability after stretching of 130% strain or compressing of >60%), and improved chemical resistance and structural stability in various solvents, making them promising candidates for efficient and continuous oil−water separation. This work provides an innovative concept to design and prepare advanced fluorosilicone rubber foam materials with excellent chemical resistance for potential oil−water separation application.

[A randomized controlled trial of postoperative artificial nutrition in malnourished patients with gastrointestinal cancer].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the potential benefits of postoperative nutrition in malnourished patients with gastrointestinal cancer. METHODS: A total of 646 malnourished patients with gastrointestinal cancer defined by the subjective global assessment (SGA) were randomly divided into parenteral nutrition group (n=215), enteral nutrition group (n=215) and conventional group (n=216). Two nutritional regimens were designed to be isocaloric 125.5 kJ(30 kcal).kg(-1).d(-1) and isonitrogenous 0.25 g.kg(-1).d(-1) for 7 postoperative days. Conventional group did not receive artificial nutrition before and after surgery. Postoperative complications, mortality and postoperative length of hospital stay were compared. RESULTS: All baseline and surgical characteristics were comparable among 3 groups. Overall postoperative mortality was 1.5%, and no difference was observed among 3 groups. Postoperative complications occurred in 61(28.4%) patients in enteral nutrition group, 72(33.5%) in parenteral nutrition group, and 97 (44.9%) in conventional group (P=0.000 vs enteral nutrition group; P=0.001 vs parenteral nutrition group). Postoperative length of hospital stay was (9.8+/-3.4) d in enteral nutrition group, (11.2+/-5.0) d in parenteral nutrition group, and (14.5+/-7.1) d in conventional group (P=0.001 vs enteral nutrition group; P=0.003 vs parenteral nutrition group). CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative artificial nutrition support is beneficial to the malnourished patients with gastrointestinal cancer, which improves postoperative outcome. Early enteral nutrition significantly reduces the infectious complication rate and length of postoperative hospital stay as compared with parenteral nutrition.