A Prospective Program to Reduce the Clinical Incidence of Clostridium difficile Colitis Infection after Cystectomy.

PURPOSE: The development of Clostridium difficile infection after cystectomy is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. We implemented a prospective screening program to identify asymptomatic carriers of C. difficile and assessed its impact on clinical C. difficile infection rates compared to historical matched controls. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Prospective C. difficile screening prior to cystectomy began in March 2015. The 380 consecutive patients who underwent cystectomy before the initiation of screening (control cohort) were matched based on 5 clinical factors with the 386 patients who underwent cystectomy from March 2015 to December 2017 (trial cohort). Patients who screened positive were placed in contact isolation and treated prophylactically with metronidazole. Multivariable models were built on an intent to screen basis and an effectiveness of screening basis to determine whether screening reduced the rate of symptomatic C. difficile infection postoperatively. RESULTS: With the implementation of the screening protocol the C. difficile infection rate declined from 9.4% to 5.5% (OR 0.52, p = 0.0268) in patients on the intent to screen protocol and from 9.2% to 4.9% in those on the effectiveness of screening protocol (OR 0.46, p = 0.0174). CONCLUSIONS: C. difficile screening prior to cystectomy is associated with a significant decrease in the rate of clinically symptomatic infection postoperatively. These results should be confirmed in a randomized controlled trial.

Urologic Surgery and COVID-19: How the Pandemic Is Changing the Way We Operate.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a global impact on all aspects of health care, including surgical procedures. For urologists, it has affected and will continue to influence how we approach the care of patients preoperatively, intraoperatively, and postoperatively. A risk-benefit assessment of each patient undergoing surgery should be performed during the COVID-19 pandemic based on the urgency of the surgery and the risk of viral illness and transmission. Patients with advanced age and comorbidities have a higher incidence of mortality. Routine preoperative testing and symptom screening is recommended to identify those with COVID-19. Adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) for the surgical team is essential to protect health care workers and ensure an adequate workforce. For COVID-19 positive or suspected patients, the use of N95 respirators is recommended if available. The anesthesia method chosen should attempt to minimize aerosolization of the virus. Negative pressure rooms are strongly preferred for intubation/extubation and other aerosolizing procedures for COVID-19 positive patients or when COVID status is unknown. Although transmission has not yet been shown during laparoscopic and robotic procedures, efforts should be made to minimize the risk of aerosolization. Ultra-low particulate air filters are recommended for use during minimally invasive procedures to decrease the risk of viral transmission. Thorough cleaning and sterilization should be performed postoperatively with adequate time allowed for the operating room air to be cycled after procedures. COVID-19 patients should be separated from noninfected patients at all levels of care, including recovery, to decrease the risk of infection. Future directions will be guided by outcomes and infection rates as social distancing guidelines are relaxed and more surgical procedures are reintroduced. Recommendations should be adapted to the local environment and will continue to evolve as more data become available, the shortage of testing and PPE is resolved, and a vaccine and therapeutics for COVID-19 are developed.

Treatment Trends and Long-Term Survival Associated with Cryotherapy and Partial Nephrectomy for Small Renal Masses in the National Cancer Database Using Propensity Score Matching.

Objective: Trends in the utilization of ablative therapy are unknown for the treatment of small renal masses. Our goal is to utilize the National Cancer Database (NCDB) to both assess the utilization of ablative therapies and long-term survival. Materials and Methods: The NCDB captures 70% of all cancer cases in the United States and was queried between 1998 and 2012 for renal cell carcinomas that were treated with ablative therapy, partial nephrectomy (PN), or radical nephrectomy. The analysis was limited to clinical stage T1a. Propensity score matching was used in 1:1 fashion. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and a Cox proportional hazards model were used to compare overall survival (OS) for cryotherapy and PN. Results: A total of 119,240 cases of clinical stage T1a renal masses were treated between 1998 and 2012. Cryotherapy peaked at 927 (9.1%) cases in 2010 and had 913 (8.4%) in 2012. PN accounted for 18% of the cases in 1998, but surpassed the utilization of nephrectomy in 2008. By 2012, PN accounted for 6766 (62%) of renal mass cases. After matching, Kaplan-Meier OS was lower for cryotherapy compared with PN at 24 (94.5% vs 96.5%), 48 (86.8% vs 90.9%), and 96 months (66.0% vs 74.9%). Cryotherapy also had a lower OS (hazard ratio 1.46; p < 0.001) on adjusted analysis. Conclusion: Cryotherapy for small renal masses plateaued at 9% utilization in 2009. Cryotherapy had a lower OS than PN for tumors >2 cm on adjusted analysis, but this result should be used with caution until confirmed in randomized studies.

Synthesis of high contrast fluorescein-diethers for rapid bench-top sensing of palladium.

A new series of palladium sensors based on fluorescein bis(allyl ether) compounds has been designed. We utilized reduced fluoresceins as key synthetic intermediates. These probes exhibit negligible background fluorescence and rapid reaction with palladium, allowing a concentration of <100 ppt to be detected in minutes using a handheld UV lamp.