C1q and mobility score in predicting sarcopenia in an Australian cohort of cancer surgery patients.

BACKGROUND: Sarcopenia has been shown to have significant adverse health outcomes in a range of patient populations. Particularly, sarcopenic patients having cancer surgery are a unique group who demonstrate poorer post-operative outcomes. Currently, the gold standard in diagnosing sarcopenia is through the use of computed tomography. However, the widespread use of imaging to diagnose patients with sarcopenia is neither cost-effective nor practical. Identifying a serum biomarker or a simple mobility scoring system as an alternative diagnostic tool may aid in identifying more patients at risk of sarcopenia. C1q, a novel biomarker, has previously been shown to correlate with sarcopenia. Similarly, we sought to explore whether mobility scores may provide a useful surrogate marker for sarcopenia. METHODS: This was a prospective cohort study of patients who presented for colorectal cancer surgery between the dates of 6/10/2016 and 4/10/2017 at John Hunter Hospital. Computed tomography was utilized to calculate the psoas area at the L3 spinal level. Pre-operative blood samples were obtained for C1q analysis and de Morton Mobility Index (DEMMI) was also performed. RESULTS: A total of 51 patients were included in the study. The median age of the patients were 69 years old. We did not demonstrate a correlation between serum C1q and DEMMI scores with psoas area. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that neither C1q nor DEMMI scores are correlated with psoas area in a colorectal cancer population.

WSES guidelines on blunt and penetrating bowel injury: diagnosis, investigations, and treatment.

The aim of this paper was to review the recent literature to create recommendations for the day-to-day diagnosis and surgical management of small bowel and colon injuries. Where knowledge gaps were identified, expert consensus was pursued during the 8th International Congress of the World Society of Emergency Surgery Annual (September 2021, Edinburgh). This process also aimed to guide future research.

Endovascular treatment of refractory iatrogenic femoral artery pseudoaneurysm using Amplatzer vascular plugs following unsuccessful retrograde Angio-Seal deployment.

Iatrogenic common femoral artery pseudoaneurysm is a well-known vascular access complication of angiography and transfemoral intervention. Thrombin injection is a well-accepted technique in treating these pseudoaneurysms but possess a significant risk of distal lower extremity thrombosis leading to severe consequences. Several case reports described the novel approach to closing these pseudoaneurysms via a retrograde deployment of an Angio-Seal vascular closure device. We describe a case of a successful treatment of refractory iatrogenic femoral artery pseudoaneurysm using Amplatzer vascular plugs following unsuccessful retrograde deployment of an Angio-Seal vascular closure device.

Histomorphology and Immunohistochemistry of Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors in a Malaysian Population.

PURPOSE: To study histomorphological and immunohistochemical patterns of gastro-intestinal stromal tumours (GISTs) in Malaysia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 29 GIST cases from Hospital Tuanku Ja'afar, Seremban ,were studied retrospectively over a period of 10 years from January 2002 to December 2011. Patient demographic data like age, sex and etnicity were collected. Tumour characteristics like site, maximum dimension and specimen type were analysed. Evaluation was according to established criteria into very low, low, intermediate and high-risk categories. Immunohistochemical characteristics were also analysed. RESULTS: The mean age of patients was 59.7 years. Males (59%) were found to be more commonly affected than females (41%). The Chinese (45%) were commonly affected than Malays (41%), and Indians (10%). The most common symptom was pain in the abdomen (13.8%). More than half of the cases were seen in stomach (53%). The tumour size ranged from 1.5 cm to 17 cm with a mean of 6.94cm. Microscopic findings revealed that the spindle cell type was the most common (76%). It was observed that the majority of the cases (48%) were categorised in the intermediate risk group. Immunohistochemical staining showed positivity for CD117 (78.6%), CD34 (71.4%), vimentin (86.2%), S-100 (27.6%), SMA (35.7%), PKC THETA (46.4%) and PDGRFA (67.9%).