Intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging in glioma surgery: a single-center experience.

PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging (Io MRI) on overall and progression-free survival (OS and PFS), on the extent of resection (EOR) in patients with glioma, and impact of the radiological diagnosis on the decision to continue the surgery when a residual mass was detected on Io MRI. METHODS: The study comprised 153 glioma patients who received surgical treatment between 2013 and 2023. One-hundred twenty-five of them had Io MRI guidance during surgery. The remainder 28 patients constituted the control group who did not undergo Io MRI. All patients' age at surgery, gender, initial radiological diagnosis, primary tumor localization, EOR, last histopathological diagnosis, and the follow-up periods were recorded. RESULTS: The rate of tumor recurrence in Io MRI cases was significantly lower compared to the cases in the control group (p < .0001). It was decided to continue the operation in 45 Io MRI applied cases. This raised the gross total resection (GTR) rate from 33.6% to 49.6% in the Io MRI group. The frequency of GTR was significantly higher in patients with an initial radiological diagnosis of low grade glioma than those with high grade glioma. The shortest OS was seen in occipital gliomas. CONCLUSION: In this study, the convenience provided by the high-field MRI device was explored and proven both in reducing the tumor burden, increasing the PFS, and providing the surgeon with a maximal resection in the first operation.

Female Urethroplasty with a Buccal Mucosa Graft using a Supraurethral Approach.

INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: In the setting of recurrent female urethral stricture, urethroplasty offer the best chance of cure. However, which approach (dorsal or ventral) and which tissue (buccal mucosa, vaginal graft, vaginal flap) remain areas of controversy. In this article and accompanying video, we describe female urethroplasty with a supraurethral approach using a buccal mucosa graft. METHODS: A stricture of 3 cm in length was observed in the mid urethra. A supraurethral semi-lunar incision was made and dissection was performed up to the stricture. A dorsal urethrotomy was performed and a 3 × 2 cm oral mucosal graft was harvested from the left cheek. The mucosal graft was anastomosed to both urethral edges with running sutures. The graft was fixed to the supraurethral tissue with quilting sutures. A urethral catheter and a suprapubic catheter were left in place for 3 weeks. RESULTS: Following removal of the catheters, the patient was able to void satisfactorily with no incontinence. No complications were observed in the urethral area or at the graft harvest site. CONCLUSIONS: Buccal mucosa graft urethroplasty with a supraurethral approach is a reliable method in the treatment of female urethral stricture.

Correlation between Prostate Cancer Positive Cores and 68Ga-PSMA Distribution in Prostate Gland.

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of our study was to evaluate reliability of 68Ga-labeled prostate-specific membrane antigen positron emission tomography (68Ga-PSMA PET/CT) and identify appropriate SUVmax cutoff values in order to use for diagnosis, especially in patients remained clinically suspicious for prostate cancer (PCa). METHODS: Eighty-four patients applied 68Ga-PSMA PET/CT subsequent to transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy (TRUS-bx) involved in this study retrospectively. 68Ga-PSMA PET/CT imagings were analyzed by a nuclear medicine physician, and region of interests were drawn manually in prostate diagrams including 6 segments for each patient. These marked diagrams were analyzed with histopathology reports TRUS-bx. 504 segments were grouped with Gleason scoring system, and all groups were compared with mean SUVmax values. RESULTS: Mean SUVmax value of Gleason grade group 1 (GG1, n: 352 segments) was 6.6 (±4.6) and significantly lower than the other groups (p < 0.001). No significant difference was detected within GG2-5 groups (p > 0.05). According to receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, SUVmax cutoff values were 1.0 (AUC: 0.961) for tumor detection, yielding a sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value of 99.4%, 92.1%, 96.5%, 98%, respectively, and 4.2 (AUC: 0.853) for detection of clinically significant PCa with 88.8%, 62.4%, 84.5%, and 71%, respectively. Although tumor percentage of biopsy core and Gleason group were correlated with SUVmax uptake, but patient age was not. CONCLUSION: 68Ga-PSMA PET appears to be a reliable option for diagnosis and disease management in PCa and can be considered especially in discrimination of csPCa, and patients remained suspicious for disease.

Does STING failure affect short-term graft functions in renal transplant patients: a single-center study.

PURPOSE: The aim of the present study was to evaluate outcomes of symptomatic VUR treatment in transplant patients, compare open and endoscopic approaches in terms of graft functions, success rates, complications and recurrent UTIs. METHODS: 67 patients who undergone only STING and STING followed redo UNC due to symptomatic VUR after kidney transplantation were included into the investigation. Patients who had lower urinary tract dysfunctions were excluded from the trial. For 67 patients, baseline and before final surgery and 3rd month creatinine and GFR levels were recorded. Twenty-six of those 67 patients had redo UNC due to failed STING. The data of those patients were compared with the remaining 41 patients who had only STING. RESULTS: In both groups no statistically significant variations in serum creatinine and GFR levels were detected during follow-up (p > 0.05). Serum levels after STING and in the 3rd month of redo UNC were compared. Although variation was observed in serum creatinine levels and in GFR levels, was not statistically significant (p: 0.59 and p: 0.23). The success rate of STING was %61.1 in 67 patients, and was not significantly different when three VUR grade groups (Grade 3 n:17, Grade 4 n:24, Grade 5 n:36) were compared (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The present study revealed that subureteral endoscopic injection is cost effective and safe for the first-line treatment due to its minimally invasive nature, does not cause delay which leads to deterioration of graft functions. Redo-UNC has acceptable morbidity and complication rates, should be considered when STING is failed.

Low-Grade Injury following Testicular Torsion: A Multicenter Study Confirming a Disturbing Possibility.

INTRODUCTION: There is an ongoing debate whether to perform orchiectomy or orchidopexy following testicular torsion (TT) in cases where the testis seems non-viable. The main problem is lack of objective criteria defining testicular viability. The aim of this study was to investigate the grade of injury in orchiectomy specimens obtained from cases of TT and its association with clinical findings. METHODS: This multicenter retrospective study involved double-blinded reassessment of the patient files and the pathological specimens using Mikuz classification to analyze the relation between clinical and pathological findings. RESULTS: A total of 289 patient charts from 14 centers were reviewed and 228 were included in this study. Twenty (8.8%) patients had grade 1 injury which refers to reversible injury. The clinical findings of these 20 patients were compared to 208 patients with higher grades of injury. As expected, there was statistically significant difference regarding duration of symptoms (p < 0.001); however, range was wide in both groups (as long as 96 h for grade 1 and as short as 7 h for higher grades). There was no statistically significant difference in any other variable including age (median 14 for both, p = 0.531), symptoms (pain: 19/20 vs. 189/202, p = 0.801; swelling: 13/19 vs. 168/197, p = 0.094), absence of blood flow in Doppler US (15/19 vs. 164/197, p = 0.635), or degree of torsion (median 720° for both, p = 0.172). CONCLUSION: Our study revealed necessity for better criteria to define viability of testis following TT. Histopathological injury appeared to be reversible even in some patients with more severe perioperative findings, late admission, or high degree of twisting. Our findings support the tendency for testicular fixation instead of orchiectomy as none of the clinical or perioperative findings could be attributed to high-grade injury.

The possible relation between temporal muscle mass and glioblastoma multiforme prognosis via sarcopenia perspective.

BACKGROUND: The optimal sarcopenia measurement method in patients with a diagnosis of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is unknown. It has been found that temporal muscle thickness (TMT) may reflect sarcopenia and be associated with survival, but the relationship between temporal muscle area (TMA) and GBM prognosis has never been evaluated before. The primary outcome of the study was to evaluate the relationship between TMA/TMT and overall survival (OS) time in newly diagnosed GBM patients. METHODS: The data of patients who presented at the university hospital between January 2009 and January 2019 with a confirmed diagnosis of glioblastoma multiforme at the time of diagnosis were analyzed retrospectively. Temporal muscle thickness and TMA were measured retrospectively from preoperative MRIs of patients diagnosed with GBM. Due to the small number of patients and the failure to determine a cut-off value with acceptable sensitivity and specificity using ROC analysis, the median values were chosen as the cut-off value. The patients were basically divided into two according to their median TMT (6.6 mm) or TMA (452 mm2 ) values, and survival analysis was performed with the Kaplan-Meier analysis. RESULTS: The median TMT value was 6.6 mm, and the median TMA value was 452 mm2 . The median overall survival (OS) was calculated as 25.8 months in patients with TMT < 6.6 mm, and 15.8 months in patients with TMT ≥ 6.6 mm (p = 0.29). The median overall survival (OS) of patients with TMA < 452mm2 was 26.3 months, and the group with TMA ≥ 452mm2 was 14.6 months (p = 0.06). The median disease-free survival was 18.3 months (%95 CI: 13.2-23.4) in patients with TMT < 6.6mm, while mDFS was 10.9 (%95 CI: 8.0-13.8) months in patients with TMT ≥ 6.6mm (p = 0.21). The median disease-free survival was found to be 21.0 months (%95 CI: 15.8-26.1) in patients with TMA < 452 mm2 and 10.5 months (%95 CI: 7.8-13.2) in patients with TMA ≥ 452 mm2 (p = 0.018). DISCUSSION: No association could be demonstrated between TMT or TMA and OS of GBM patients. In addition, the median DFS was found to be longer in patients with low TMA. There is an unmet need to determine the optimal method of sarcopenia in GBM patients.

External validation of a prostate cancer nomogram on magnetic resonance/transrectal ultrasound fusion biopsy in men with prior negative systematic biopsy.

OBJECTIVE: To observe how the nomogram, which was created by Truong et al, works in an independent patient group by performing external validation. PATIENTS AND METHODS: One hundred and eighty-one patients who had at least one prior negative 12-core standard systematic biopsy and lesions with PI-RADS scores of 3 or higher that were detected as a result of mpMRI were included in the study. Targeted biopsy with 12-core standard systematic biopsy was performed on all patients. Clinical and pathological features of the patients were recorded. The discrimination, calibration and decision curve analysis were performed to externally validate the nomogram. RESULTS: A total of 181 patients with previous negative 12-core systematic biopsies were analysed. One hundred and thirty-four patients (74%) had benign pathology. Radiological volume and PI-RADS scores of 4 and 5 were found as independent predictors of benign pathology. The area under the curve (CI 95%) was found to be 0.80 (0.73-0.87), indicating good discrimination. The median residual was calculated as -0.0873, the intercept as -0.0690, the slope as 0.8927 and r2 as 0.2586, indicating good calibration. The standardised net benefit of follow-up decisions was found to be 0.54 and 0.36 at the probability threshold of 0.7 and 0.8, respectively. CONCLUSION: The original model showed good discrimination and calibration with our data. Defining a high probability threshold for clinical use would be appropriate for centres with high benign biopsy rates similar to our centre.

Diagnostic accuracy of 68 Ga-PSMA PET/MRI and multiparametric MRI in detecting index tumours in radical prostatectomy specimen.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of the 68 gallium (68 Ga) prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (PET/MRI) and multiparametric MRI (mpMRI) by region-based comparison of index tumour localisations using histopathological tumour maps of patients who underwent radical prostatectomy because of clinically significant prostate cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The study included 64 patients who underwent radical prostatectomy after primary staging with mpMRI and 68 Ga-PSMA PET/MRI. Diagnostic analysis was performed by dividing the prostate into four anatomic regions as left/right anterior and left/right posterior. The extension of the lesions in mpMRI and the pathological uptake in 68 Ga-PSMA PET/MRI were matched separately for each region with the extension of the index tumour into each region. RESULTS: The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, and the accuracy of mpMRI and 68 Ga-PSMA PET/MRI are shown as 55.7%, 91.8%, 80.6%, 77.2%, 78.1%, and 60.8%, 94.3%, 86.8% 79.8%, 83.5%, respectively. 68 Ga-PSMA PET/MRI has higher sensitivity and specificity compared with mpMRI. However, no statistically significant difference was found (P = .464). Combined imaging had significantly higher diagnostic accuracy compared with mpMRI and 68 Ga-PSMA PET/MRI (change in AUC: 0.084 and 0.046, P < .001 and P = .028, respectively), while no statistically significant difference was found between mpMRI and 68 Ga-PSMA PET/MRI (change in AUC: 0.038, P = .246). CONCLUSION: 68 Ga-PSMA PET/MRI had higher clinical diagnostic accuracy in prostate cancer compared with mpMRI. Diagnostic accuracy was significantly increased in the combined use of both imaging modalities.

How did the COVID-19 pandemic affect audience's attitudes in webinars?

INTRODUCTION: Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the face-to-face meetings are delayed to a future date, which is still not clear. However, seminars, meetings and conferences are necessary for updating our knowledge and skills. Web-based seminars (webinars) are the solutions to this issue. This study aimed to show the participant behaviour when webinars present at the COVID-19 pandemic era. METHODS: From December 2017 to July 2020, 58 webinars were broadcasted via the Uropedia, electronic library of SUST. Data of all webinars were collected with the YouTube analytics and application of the Uropedia. Data of streaming webinars included participant behaviours such as content views, engagement time, total unique attendees, average engagement time and the number of audience to leads. Data were split into two groups; group-1 is webinars before COVID-19 (before March 2020) and group-2 is the webinars during COVID-19. RESULTS: Total broadcast time and total page view number were found to be 112.6 hours (6761 minutes) and 15 919, respectively. The median participant age was 40.1 y. Median content view and median engagement time were found to be 261.0 and 12.2 minutes, respectively. Comparison of two groups revealed a significant increment in the content views (group-1; 134.0 range = 86.0-87.0 and group-2; 414.0 range = 296.0-602.0, P < .001) and the number of the unique attendees (group 1; 18.0 range = 10.0-26.0 and group-2; 57.0 range = 27.0-100.0, P < .001) following COVID-19. However, the median engagement time of the audience did not seem to change with the COVID-19 pandemic (group-1; 11.5 range = 10.0-13.3 minutes and group-2; 13.2 range = 9.4-18.1 minutes, P = .12). CONCLUSION: The webinars are effective ways to share information and have many advantages, including low cost, reaching a high number of audiences. Audience number and page visits seemed to increase following the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this era did not seem to affect the critical attitude of the audience, which is engagement time.

Nation-wide analysis of the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on daily urology practice in Turkey.

OBJECTIVE: To present a nation-wide analysis of the workload of urology departments in Turkey week-by-week during Covid-19 pandemic. METHODOLOGY: The centres participating in the study were divided into three groups as tertiary referral centres, state hospitals and private practice hospitals. The number of outpatients, inpatients, daily interventions and urological surgeries were recorded prospectively between 9-March-2020 and 31-May-2020. All these variables were recorded for the same time interval of 2019 as well. The weekly change of the workload of urology during pandemic period was evaluated, also the workload of urology and the distributions of certain urological surgeries were compared between the pandemic period and the same time interval of the year 2019. RESULTS: A total of 51 centres participated in the study. The number of outpatients, inpatients, urological surgeries and daily interventions were found to be dramatically decreased by the 3rd week of pandemics in state hospitals and tertiary referral centres; however, the daily urological practice were similar in private practice hospitals throughout the pandemic period. When the workload of urology in pandemic period and the same time interval of the year 2019 were compared, a huge decrease was observed in all variables during pandemic period. However, temporary measures like ureteral stenting, nephrostomy placement and percutaneous cystostomy have been found to increase during Covid-19 pandemic compared with normal life. CONCLUSIONS: Covid-19 pandemic significantly affected the routine daily urological practice likewise other subspecialties and priority was given to emergent and non-deferrable surgeries by urologists in concordance with published clinical guidelines.

Evaluation of schwannoma using the 3D-SPACE sequence: comparison with the 3D-CISS sequence in 3T-MRI

Background/aim: The purpose of this study is to compare the diagnostic accuracy and interobserver reliability of the T2-weighted 3D-SPACE (three-dimensional sampling perfection with application-optimized contrasts by using different flip angle evolutions) sequence in comparison with T2-weighted 3D-CISS (three-dimensional constructive interference in steady state) sequences for diagnosis of schwannomas. Materials and methods: Forty patients with cerebellopontine angle (CPA), internal acoustic canal (IAC), and cochlear schwannoma who had undergone magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) using the 3D-CISS and 3D-SPACE sequences were identified. The sequences were retrospectively evaluated by two radiologists for the qualitative analyses, which were subsequently compared using the Mann­Whitney U test. Following this, kappa values were used for interobserver agreement. P < 0.05 was considered to be of statistical significance. Results: The interobserver agreement was found to be excellent between the two observers for the interpretation of all qualitative analyses for both sequences (kappa value > 0.8). The 3D-SPACE sequences demonstrated significantly better qualitative scores and fewer artifacts compared with the 3D-CISS sequences (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that 3D-SPACE is superior to 3D-CISS in the imaging process of the schwannoma in terms of image quality, description of the relationship between the lesion and cranial nerve, signal differentiation between lesion and cistern, and signal differentiation between the lesion and adjacent brain.

Can subfoveal choroidal thickness replace subjective tests in patients using tadalafil to treat erectile dysfunction?

We aimed to determine the effect on choroidal thickness of daily 5 mg tadalafil use in patients with erectile dysfunction (ED) and to evaluate agreement between short form of International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF 1-5, 15) scores and choroidal thickness during follow-up. Enhanced depth imaging spectral domain-optical coherence tomography (EDI-OCT) was used to measure full choroidal thickness in the subfoveal area, choroidal thickness (CT) and small-choroidal-vessel-layer (SCVL) thickness. Thirty of the 45 patients included complete their follow-ups and exhibited medication continuity. Patients were divided into two groups, five (16.7%) with ED at any level at third-month follow-up, and 25 (83.3%) with no ED, and subgroup analysis was then performed. Median changes in SCVL thickness at first- and sixth-month follow-ups were 20.5 µm versus 9.0 µm (p = .001) and 23.5 µm versus 12.5 µm (p = .005) in patients without and with ED respectively. The SCVL thickness increased by 20 µm compared with the baseline level, indicating an improvement in the patient's complaints of erectile dysfunction. The level of increase in SCVL thickness can be a useful and objective guide to clinicians if they cannot be present when the IIEF questionnaire is administered.

Correlation of language lateralization with resting state hippocampal connectivity in temporal lobe epilepsy patients

Background/aim: The main purpose of this study is to evaluate the resting state hippocampal connectivity with language areas and to correlate them with laterality index calculations on single subject basis, hence to present hippocampal lateralization for language with rs-fMRI. Materials and methods: Task based and rs-fMRI data were gathered from a total of 45 subjects in 3T scanner. BrainVoyager QX, SPM, and CONN softwares were used for data analysis. LI score of each subject was calculated and converted into normalized LI score (nLI). Intrahemispheric rs-connectivity analysis was performed between hippocampus and Broca's regions on both sides. Correlation between these variables was measured with SPSS software. Results: Right-TLE patients were found to have highest whereas left-TLE group were found to have lowest mean LI scores. Regarding hippocampal-lingual networks; left intrahemispheric connectivity values showed strong positive correlation with nLI values in left, right-TLE patients and healthy controls (P = 0.035, 0.014, 0.047). There were no significant correlation between right intrahemispheric connectivity values and nLI scores in all groups. Conclusions: This study seems to depict the existence of resting state hippocampal-lingual functional network which correlates well with lateralization of language function in the left hemisphere in both temporal lobe epilepsy patients and healthy controls.

Posterior fossa horns; a new calvarial finding of mucopolysaccharidoses with well-known cranial MRI features

Background/aim: Mucopolysaccharidoses (MPS) are a group of hereditary metabolic diseases. The aim of this study was to share the previously unreported calvarial finding of internal hypertrophy of the occipitomastoid sutures (IHOMS) together with some other well-known cranial MRI findings in this patient series. Materials and methods: A retrospective evaluation was conducted of 80 cranial MRIs of patients who had been diagnosed and followed up with MPS from 2008 to 2019 in our center. Of these patients, 11 had Hurler, 14 had Hunter, 24 had Sanfilippo, 15 had Morquio, 14 had Maroteaux­Lamy, and 2 had Sly disease. The cranial MRIs were assessed in two main groups as parenchymal intradural cranial MRI findings and extradural calvarial findings. Results: The most common parenchymal intradural cranial MRI findings were white matter signal alterations (n = 51, 63%) and perivascular space enlargements (n = 39, 48%). The most common extradural calvarial findings were J-shaped sella (n = 45, 56%) and tympanic effusion (n = 44, 55%). Although IHOMS was defined in a relatively small number of the patients (n = 12, 15%), the prevalence rate was high in MPS type I (n = 6, 54%). Conclusion: The abnormal cranial MRI findings of the MPS patients, including the newly identified IHOMS, may provide diagnostic clues to differentiate the type of the disease in radiological imaging.

Can antibiotic preference affect bleeding in percutaneous nephrolithotomy? Retrospective comparative study of two commonly used antibiotics.

OBJECTIVE: Bleeding is one of the most common and alarming complication of percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL). In this study, we aimed to compare the effects of ciprofloxacin and cefuroxime on the bleeding in PCNL procedures. METHODS: The study was a retrospective analysis of 97 patients who underwent PCNL between February 2011 and June 2017. We just included the patients who had single tract lower pole PCNL for more objective evaluation of bleeding in the study. The patients were divided into two groups as ciprofloxacin group (Group-I, n:40) and cefuroxime group (Group-II, n:56) according to the type of antibiotic used in the operation. Patient age, gender, body mass index, stone size, preoperative INR, preoperative and postoperative platelet counts and difference, operative time, need for blood transfusion, postoperative fever, hospital stay, postoperative hemoglobin and hematocrit drop were analyzed. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference in patients' gender distribution, body mass index, preoperative INR, preoperative and postoperative platelet counts, preoperative and postoperative platelet difference, duration of operation, hospital stay, postoperative fever and need for postoperative blood transfusion between two antibiotic groups (p > 0.05). Mean patient age was 42,75±16,97 in Group-I and 35,54±14,71 in Group-II (p < 0.05). The mean stone size of Group-I and Group-II were 27,23±7,05 mm and 30,59±8,20, respectively (p < 0.05). The mean postoperative hemoglobin and hematocrit drop were significantly higher in Group-I than in Group-II. The mean hemoglobin drop was 1,73±0,95 for Group-I and 1,28±0,67 for Group-II (p < 0.05). The mean hematocrit drop was 5,17±2,76 for Group-I and 3,80±1,99 for Group-II (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: On the basis of the results of the initial study, the antibiotic preference in patients undergoing surgery may be one of the bleeding factors during and after PCNL.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension: Before and After Treatment.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to identify the reversibility of MRI findings indicative of increased intracranial hypertension in idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) patients after treatment. METHODS: This retrospective, observational study included demographic and clinical data from 10 patients with IIH and 10 controls. Brain MRI findings in IIH patients were recorded twice: once when patients had papilledema and again after resolution of papilledema. Neuroradiologists graded MRI findings in both groups based on an imaging grading scale. RESULTS: After resolution of papilledema, all patients showed improvement in 2 or more of the MRI characteristics of IIH. This was especially the case for the height of the midsagittal pituitary gland and optic nerve sheath thickness (ONST), which were significantly different in all pairwise group comparisons. Sellar configuration, globe configuration, and horizontal orbital optic nerve tortuosity were different between the IIH pre-treatment group and controls, but not between controls and the IIH post-treatment group. We found no difference in optic nerve head hyperintensity or optic nerve thickness among the 3 groups. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated that several morphometric MRI characteristics in IIH are reversible to a certain extent after treatment. Enlarged subarachnoid spaces filled with cerebrospinal fluid seem to remain reduced, and the ONST and height of the pituitary gland are not fully normalized after treatment.

Anatomical variations related to pathological conditions of the peroneal tendon: evaluation of ankle MRI with a 3D SPACE sequence in symptomatic patients.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate anatomical variations in the lateral ankle and their relationships with pathological conditions of the peroneal tendon on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in symptomatic patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty-nine ankles MRIs of 60 adult patients with symptomatic ankles were included. The presence and sizes of peroneal tubercle and retrotrochlear eminence (RTE), the prevalence of peroneus quartus (PQ), os peroneum, and boomerang-shaped peroneus brevis (PB) tendon, the shape of the retromalleolar fibular groove (RMFG), and the location of the PB muscle-tendon junction were evaluated. The relationships of these variations with peroneal tendinopathies were assessed. The correlations between pathological peroneal conditions on MRI and clinical findings were evaluated. RESULTS: Peroneal tubercle (mean size, 3.2 mm) and RTE (mean size, 4.5 mm) were identified in 58 (84%) and 69 (100%) ankles respectively. PQ muscle, os peroneum, and boomerang-shaped PB tendon were found in 9 (13%), 7 (10%), and 24 (34.8%) ankles respectively. The RMFG was concave, flat, convex, and irregular in 14 (20.3%), 40 (58%), 13 (18.8%), and 2 (2.9%) ankles respectively. Sixteen (23.2%) patients had low-lying PB muscle belly. Only boomerang-shaped PB tendons showed a significant relationship with peroneal tendinopathies. MRI and clinical findings had a poor correlation in pathological peroneal conditions and both had low sensitivity in diagnosis. CONCLUSION: Lateral ankle anatomical variations are common and cannot be attributed to pathological conditions of the peroneal tendon, except for boomerang-shaped PB tendons. Both clinical and MRI findings have low sensitivity in the diagnosis of peroneal tendinopathies, which are often incidental findings on MRI.

Preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio as a new prognostic predictor after microsurgical subinguinal varicocelectomy.

Various studies have been reported to predict the success of varicocelectomy. Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is a frequently used indicator of systemic inflammation. We aimed to evaluate the effect of inflammation on the success of varicocelectomy using the NLR. The data of 86 patients who underwent varicocelectomy for infertility were evaluated retrospectively. Pre-operative demographic characteristics of patients, laboratory results such as haemogram, and semen analysis and clinical data were recorded. The semen analysis with the highest total motile sperm count was accepted as pre-operative value. Control was performed with semen analysis at post-operative 6th month. As described in previous studies, in our study, more than 50% increase in total motile sperm count in post-operative semen analysis was defined as a significant improvement. However, at least a 100% increase was required for patients with a total motile sperm count <5 million in the definition of recovery. Patients were divided into two groups as those with improvement in the semen parameters (Group 1) and those without (Group 2). NLR was statistically significantly higher in Group 2 compared with Group 1. The area under the curve (AUC) in the ROC curve for NLR was 0.89. According to the Youden index, the best cut-off value of NLR for varicocelectomy success was 1.98 (sensitivity: 94.7%, specificity: 75.9%, p < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that NLR (odds ratio: 3.6, 95% confidence interval: 1.69-8.38, p < 0.001) is independent predictor factors in predicting the success of varicocelectomy. The results of this study show that systemic inflammation adversely affects the likelihood of improvement in sperm parameters by varicocelectomy. Additionally, NLR has been shown to be an independent factor in the prediction of varicocelectomy success.

Retroperitoneal high ligation versus subinguinal varicocelectomy: Effectiveness of two different varicocelectomy techniques on the treatment of painful varicocele.

In the present study, we compared the retroperitoneal high ligation with subinguinal varicocelectomy on the treatment of painful varicocele. A total of 90 patients who underwent retroperitoneal high ligation (n = 45) and subinguinal varicocelectomy (n = 45) for painful varicocele were included in this prospective study. Varicocele in all patients was diagnosed with by physical examination and coloured Doppler ultrasonography. All the patients underwent a conservative treatment for pain for 4 weeks. Patient ages, varicocele grades, preoperative pain scores, postoperative pain scores at 6 months, duration of surgeries, complications and recurrences were recorded. Complete success rate for chronic scrotal pain was found to be 80% in retroperitoneal varicocelectomy group and 71% in subinguinal varicocelectomy group. Partial success rate was 11% for retroperitoneal varicocelectomy group and 18% for subinguinal ligation group. There was no significant difference between two groups in terms of pain and complications. However, the operation time was significantly lower in the Palomo group. Although microsurgical subinguinal varicocelectomy is the current approach for the treatment of varicocele, retroperitoneal high ligation can achieve the same pain resolution with shorter operative duration compared to loupe-assisted subinguinal varicocelectomy.

Can we Predict Preoperative Tumor Aggressivity with Hemogram Parameters in Renal Cell Carcinoma? a Novel Calculation Method.

We aim to investigate the prognostic significance of the hemoglobin X lymphocyte / neutrophil ratio (HLNR) and hemoglobin x lymphocyte / platelet ratio (HLPR) with tumor aggressivity in patients with renal cell carcinoma. We retrospectively analyzed 127 patients' data who had diagnosed as renal cell carcinoma between 2008 and 2019 in Suleyman Demirel University Hospital. Tumor and patient characteristics, hemoglobin, neutrophil, lymphocyte, platelet values HLNR and HLPR were calculated in preoperative hemogram parameters. The relationship between tumor pathological stage, Fuhrman nuclear grade and tumor necrosis with HLPR and HLNR analyzed with statistically. There was a negative correlation between pathologic stage, Fuhrman nuclear grade and tumor necrosis with HLNR. P values are 0.003, 0.012 and 0.015 respectively. HLNR was lower in patients with high pathologic stage, high Fuhrman nuclear grade and accompanying tumor necrosis positiveness. There was a negative correlation between pathologic stage, Fuhrman nuclear grade and tumor necrosis with HLPR. P values are 0.001, 0.014 and 0.047 respectively. HLPR was lower in patients with high pathologic stage, high Fuhrman nuclear grade and accompanying tumor necrosis positiveness. High pathological stage, high Fuhrman nuclear grade and existence of tumor necrosis are associates with preoperative low HLNR and low HLPR in renal cell carcinoma patients. They can be used as prognostic markers in patients with renal mass preoperatively.