Ambulatory robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy with extended recovery by total extraperitoneal approach.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the feasibility of performing robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy in an ambulatory with extended recovery setting by using a total extraperitoneal approach. METHODS: Patients with low- to intermediate-risk, prostate cancer were prospectively recruited in the ambulatory robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy with extended recovery by total extraperitoneal approach group (n = 30), and a matched-pair inpatient surgery control group by total extraperitoneal approach (n = 20). Objective discharge criteria were based on the postanesthesia discharge scoring system. All patients underwent preoperative counseling on preoperative preparation and postoperative care. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences between the ambulatory with extended recovery-total extraperitoneal approach and inpatient-total extraperitoneal approach groups in patient factors (age, body mass index, American Society of Anesthesiologists score, Charlson Comorbidity Index), disease factors (prostate-specific antigen, clinical T stage, biopsy Gleason score, prostate volume) and peri-operative parameters (operative time, blood loss, Trendelenburg angle). All total extraperitoneal robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy patients (ambulatory with extended recovery and inpatient surgery groups) met the postanesthesia discharge scoring system discharge criteria ≤23 h from admission. The mean hospital stays for ambulatory with extended recovery-total extraperitoneal and inpatient-total extraperitoneal groups were 20.3 and 52.4 h, respectively (P < 0.001). A total of 29 of 30 patients (97%) in the ambulatory with extended recovery-total extraperitoneal group were discharged ≤23 h of admission. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first prospective evaluation of robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy by the total extraperitoneal approach, showing that the short-stay ambulatory with extended recovery approach is safe, feasible and with a high success rate. Total extraperitoneal surgical approach is a critical factor for the success of the ambulatory with extended recovery protocol.

Urine osmolality assessment through the integration of urea hydrolysis and impedance measurement.

We present the development and validation of an impedance-based urine osmometer for accurate and portable measurement of urine osmolality. The urine osmolality of a urine sample can be estimated by determining the concentrations of the conductive solutes and urea, which make up approximately 94% of the urine composition. Our method utilizes impedance measurements to determine the conductive solutes and urea after hydrolysis with urease enzyme. We built an impedance model using sodium chloride (NaCl) and urea at various known concentrations. In this work, we validated the accuracy of the impedance-based urine osmometer by developing a proof-of-concept first prototype and an integrated urine dipstick second prototype, where both prototypes exhibit an average accuracy of 95.5 ± 2.4% and 89.9 ± 9.1%, respectively in comparison to a clinical freezing point osmometer in the hospital laboratory. While the integrated dipstick design exhibited a slightly lower accuracy than the first prototype, it eliminated the need for pre-mixing or manual pipetting. Impedance calibration curves for conductive and non-conductive solutes consistently yielded results for NaCl but underscored challenges in achieving uniform urease enzyme coating on the dipstick. We also investigated the impact of storing urine at room temperature for 24 hours, demonstrating negligible differences in osmolality values. Overall, our impedance-based urine osmometer presents a promising tool for point-of-care urine osmolality measurements, addressing the demand for a portable, accurate, and user-friendly device with potential applications in clinical and home settings.

"Seeing Is Believing": Additive Utility of 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT in Prostate Cancer Diagnosis.

Widespread adoption of mpMRI has led to a decrease in the number of patients requiring prostate biopsies. 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT has demonstrated added benefits in identifying csPCa. Integrating the use of these imaging techniques may hold promise for predicting the presence of csPCa without invasive biopsy. A retrospective analysis of 42 consecutive patients who underwent mpMRI, 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT, prostatic biopsy, and radical prostatectomy (RP) was carried out. A lesion-based model (n = 122) using prostatectomy histopathology as reference standard was used to analyze the accuracy of 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT, mpMRI alone, and both in combination to identify ISUP-grade group ≥ 2 lesions. 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT demonstrated greater specificity and positive predictive value (PPV), with values of 73.3% (vs. 40.0%) and 90.1% (vs. 82.2%), while the mpMRI Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System (PI-RADS) 4-5 had better sensitivity and negative predictive value (NPV): 90.2% (vs. 78.5%) and 57.1% (vs. 52.4%), respectively. When used in combination, the sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV were 74.2%, 83.3%, 93.2%, and 51.0%, respectively. Subgroup analysis of PI-RADS 3, 4, and 5 lesions was carried out. For PI-RADS 3 lesions, 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT demonstrated a NPV of 77.8%. For PI-RADS 4-5 lesions, 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT achieved PPV values of 82.1% and 100%, respectively, with an NPV of 100% in PI-RADS 5 lesions. A combination of 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT and mpMRI improved the radiological diagnosis of csPCa. This suggests that avoidance of prostate biopsy prior to RP may represent a valid option in a selected subgroup of high-risk patients with a high suspicion of csPCa on mpMRI and 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT.

Local Therapy on Clinically Lymph Node-positive Prostate Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

CONTEXT: Patients with clinically lymph node-positive (cN1) prostate cancer (PCa) are traditionally regarded to have metastatic disease, and the role of local therapy (LT) in their treatment remains unclear. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the outcomes of cN1 PCa patients treated with LT, and secondarily to compare between different modalities of LT, including radiotherapy (RT) and radical prostatectomy (RP). EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: A bibliographic search was performed using Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Library to identify studies comparing the survival outcomes of cN1 PCa patients treated with LT (RT or RP) with those who did not receive any form of LT (observation or androgen deprivation therapy alone). The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) recommendations were followed. Survival outcomes of the addition of LT were assessed using a random-effect model. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS: A total of 8522 patients across eight studies were included. LT significantly improved overall survival (OS) across all time points from 2 to 10 yr compared with patients without LT, most notably providing a durable benefit in 10-yr OS (odds ratio [OR]: 1.49, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.06-2.10). Both RT and RP were associated with benefits to both OS and recurrence-free survival, with no significant difference in OS between both modalities in medium-term follow-up (4-yr OR: 0.76, 95% CI 0.41-1.40, p = 0.19). CONCLUSIONS: Regardless of modality, the use of LT in cN1 patients improved OS. Future studies should aim to identify patients who could benefit from LT and include more comprehensive survival data including biochemical recurrence. PATIENT SUMMARY: In this study, we evaluated the outcomes of clinically lymph node-positive (cN1) prostate cancer (PCa) patients treated with local therapy (LT) and compared between different modalities of LT, including radiotherapy (RT) and radical prostatectomy (RP). We found that the addition of LT for cN1 PCa patients leads to a significant improvement in survival outcomes, most notably for overall survival, with no significant difference between RT and RP.

Urothelial carcinoma in a child with gross hematuria: a complaint not to be dismissed.

Hematuria is not uncommonly seen among children. We describe the case of a 13-year-old boy who was diagnosed with urothelial carcinoma after presenting with persistent gross hematuria for 2 weeks. We highlight the importance of adequate workup for gross hematuria as it is often associated with an underlying pathology that could lead to significant morbidity if left undiagnosed.

Comparative study of surgical orchidectomy and medical castration in treatment efficacy, adverse effects and cost based on a large prospective metastatic prostate cancer registry.

INTRODUCTION: Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) remains the mainstay of treatment for metastatic prostate cancer (mPCa) but is associated with significant morbidities. Comparisons of medical castration (MC) and surgical orchidectomy (SO) have yielded varied results. We aimed to evaluate the oncological outcomes, adverse effect (AE) profiles and costs of MC and SO in patients with mPCa. METHODS AND MATERIALS: We reviewed 523 patients who presented with de novo mPCa from a prospectively maintained prostate cancer database over 15 years (2001-2015). All patients received ADT (either MC or SO) within 3 months of diagnosis. The data were analyzed with chi-square, binary and logistics regression models. RESULTS: One hundred and fifty one (28.9%) patients received SO while 372 (71.1%) patients had MC. The median age of presentation was 73 [67 -79] years old. The median prostate-specific antigen (PSA) was 280ng/ml [82.4-958]. Three hundred and thirty one patients (66.3%) had high volume bone metastasis and 57 patients (10.9%) had visceral metastasis. Clinical demographics and clinicopathological were similar across both groups. Similar oncological outcomes were observed in both groups. The proportion of PSA response (PSA <1ng/ml) was 65.6% for SO and 67.2% for MC (P = 0.212). Both therapies achieve >95% of effective androgen suppression (testosterone <50ng/dL). Time to castrate-resistance was similar (18 vs 16 months, P = 0.097), with comparative overall survival (42 vs. 38.5 months, P = 0.058) and prostate cancer mortality (80.1 vs. 75.9%, P = 0.328). Similarly, no difference was observed for the 4 AE profiles between SO and MC respectively; change in Haemoglobin (-0.75 vs. -1.0g/dL, P = 0.302), newly diagnosed Diabetes mellitus (4.6 vs. 2.9%, P = 0.281), control measured by HbA1c (0.2 vs. 0.25%, P = 0.769), coronary artery disease events (9.9 vs. 12.9%, P = 0.376) and skeletal-related fractures (9.3 vs. 7.3%, P = 0.476). After adjusting for varying governmental subsidies and inflation rates, the median cost of SO was $5275, compared to MC of $9185.80. CONCLUSION: Both SO and MC have similar oncological outcomes and AE profiles. However, SO remains a much more cost-effective form of ADT for the long-term treatment of mPCa patients.

Clinical Course of Hemodialysis Access After Initial Endovascular Intervention for Stenosis in Asian Renal Failure Patients.

BACKGROUND: Arteriovenous fistula (AVF) and arteriovenous fistula graft (AVG) access for hemodialysis can develop stenosis, eventually leading to thrombosis and access failure. Prompt endovascular intervention can salvage the access but restenosis does occur. Clinical course, restenosis pattern, and risk factors associated with initial stenosis of AVFs/AVGs in Asian hemodialysis patients were studied. METHOD: A retrospective study was conducted (January 2009-June 2012) on consecutive patients with renal failure who developed the first-time stenosis in the vascular access and were managed with endovascular intervention. One hundred fourteen patients (54 AVFs and 60 AVGs) were studied, and all clinical outcomes were recorded until October 2013. RESULTS: The mean time from access creation to endovascular intervention for the first-time stenosis for patients with AVF and AVG was 23.5 (32.7 standard deviation [SD]) months and 12.5 (11.0) months, respectively. An average of 1.7 (range, 1-5) interventions were performed for AVFs, whereas 2.4 (range, 1-11) for AVGs ( P = .008). Upon conclusion of the study, 23 patients with AVF survived with functional index access, whereas 10 passed away with a functional original access. The remaining 21 patients with AVFs failed, requiring new access, tunneled catheter, or peritoneal dialysis. Of the 60 patients with AVG, 6 survived and 8 died with functional index access; 46 required new access or other forms of dialysis ( P = .000). Kaplan-Meier estimated that access patency and survival with functional access were significantly lower for AVGs than for AVFs after the first salvage intervention. Female patients had an increased risk of restenosis with both univariate ( P = .016) and multivariate ( P = .013) analysis. With univariate analysis ( P = .039), patients with hyperlipidemia had a higher risk of developing restenosis in the vascular access. CONCLUSION: The clinical course and prognosis of failing AVFs and AVGs are distinct. The information on access prognosis and stenosis recurrence patterns will be helpful for patient counseling and planning of follow-up intervals, after the first-time intervention for access stenosis.

A 3D Printed Implantable Device for Voiding the Bladder Using Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) Actuators.

Underactive bladder or detrusor underactivity (DU) is defined as a reduction of contraction strength or duration of the bladder wall. Despite the serious healthcare implications of DU, there are limited solutions for affected individuals. A flexible 3D printed implantable device driven by shape memory alloys (SMA) actuators is presented here for the first time to physically contract the bladder to restore voluntary control of the bladder for individuals suffering from DU. This approach is used initially in benchtop experiments with a rubber balloon acting as a model for the rat bladder to verify its potential for voiding, and that the operating temperatures are safe for the eventual implantation of the device in a rat. The device is then implanted and tested on an anesthetized rat, and a voiding volume of more than 8% is successfully achieved for the SMA-based device without any surgical intervention or drug injection to relax the external sphincter.

Kidney transplantation in a patient with absent right common iliac artery and congenital renal abnormalities.

INTRODUCTION: Congenital atresia of the common and external iliac arteries is a rare vascular anomaly that may be associated with congenital renal or genitourinary malformations. In ESRD patients, its presence may pose potential problems during renal transplantation. CASE PRESENTATION: We report a rare case of kidney transplantation in a patient with VACTERL syndrome who was found to have absent right common and external iliac arteries during pre-operative imaging. Vascular supply to the right lower limb is derived from an anomalous branch from the left internal iliac artery which takes on a convoluted course across the pelvis. Kidney transplantation was performed successfully with implantation performed on the left side. DISCUSSION: Isolated cases of congenital iliac artery atresia have been described in association with urological abnormalities but no clear association has yet been established. However, we feel that it may be useful to perform routine angiographic evaluation for ESRD patients with congenital genitourinary abnormalities being planned for kidney transplantation. While most cases of congenital iliac artery anomalies are symptomatic with claudication, some remain asymptomatic with normal physical examination findings. There is some evidence in literature suggesting the usefulness of routine pre-operative CT in a selective group of patients. CONCLUSION: Kidney transplantation in such cases is safe and we recommend routine pre-operative imaging of patients known to have congenital genitourniary abnormalities. The kidney should be implanted heterotopically to the contralateral side of the vascular anomaly and care must be taken to preserve vascular supply to the lower limbs.

Prostate cancer detection with digital rectal examination, prostate-specific antigen, transrectal ultrasonography and biopsy in clinical urological practice.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the utility of digital rectal examination (DRE), prostate specific antigen (PSA) and transrectal ultrasonography and biopsy (TRUSB) in detecting prostate cancer in one teaching-hospital urological practice. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In all, 2800 consecutive patients had TRUSB as outpatients by one urologist, the indications for which were a raised or rising PSA level or an abnormal DRE. In addition, the indications for repeat TRUSB included previous abnormal histology, e.g. suspicious areas or atypia or high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia. All data were collected prospectively. RESULTS: Of 2800 TRUSB, 223 were known cases of prostate cancer (previously diagnosed from transurethral prostatectomy chips or after radical prostatectomy) and were excluded from the analysis. There were 2194 initial and 383 repeat TRUSB; of the former patients, 1129 were found to have prostate cancer, giving a cancer-detection rate of 52%. The positive predictive values (PPVs) for patients with a normal DRE and PSA of < 4, 4-10 and > 10 ng/mL were 9%, 31% and 48%, respectively; the corresponding PPVs for patients with an abnormal DRE and the same PSA levels were 27%, 67% and 85%, respectively. Of the 383 repeat TRUSB, the cancer-detection rate was 31% for the first repeat and 28% for the second. CONCLUSIONS: The present values are higher than those reported previously, because these patients were within a clinical urological practice, and the indications for and methods of TRUSB have changed in recent years, such that more lateral areas were biopsied. These values are useful in helping clinicians to counsel patients about the probability of detecting cancer.