Triplane technique for breast reconstruction after breast cancer surgery: A case series report.

RATIONALE: Implant-based breast reconstruction is an important method for post-mastectomy breast reconstruction. Currently, the most commonly used technique is the biplane technique. However, the high rate of postoperative complications, the inability of pockets to accommodate larger implants, and the expensive costs of biological mesh make the development of new surgical methods urgent. The triplane technique for breast reconstruction is an ideal candidate method. PATIENT CONCERNS: The main local symptoms were breast lump, abnormal breast skin, nipple discharge, and abnormal nipple or areola in 24 patients. DIAGNOSES: The study included 24 female patients who underwent breast reconstruction using the triplane technique after radical breast cancer surgery. INTERVENTIONS: The surgical procedure involved measuring the dimensions of the breast, designing the incision, and creating a pocket for the implant using the triplane technique, which includes the pectoralis major muscle, the pectoralis major fascia continuing to the rectus abdominis fascia, and the latissimus dorsa muscle fascia continuing to the rectus abdominis fascia. Postoperative follow-up included regular assessments of pain and evaluation of breast appearance. OUTCOMES: No cases of postoperative infection were observed in all patients. During the 1-year follow-up period after surgery, 5 patients (20.8%) who needed radiotherapy after mastectomy for cancer showed slight darkening of skin flap pigment after using the triplane technique implant. No cases of exposure or infection of the expanders were reported, and 1 patient underwent expander replacement with a permanent prosthesis. All patients expressed satisfaction with the reconstructed breast shape. The 10 patients (41.7%) experiencing postoperative swelling and pain. However, the pain gradually subsided during the postoperative recovery period. No cases of local recurrence or distant metastasis of breast cancer were observed during the 1-year-follow-up period. LESSONS: The triplane technique for breast reconstruction after breast cancer surgery provides good implant coverage, reduces the risk of complications, and is cost-effective.

Systematic review and meta-analysis of imaging differential diagnosis of benign and malignant ovarian tumors.

Background: With the increasing incidence of gynecological ovarian tumors, the differential diagnosis of benign and malignant ovarian tumors is of great significance for subsequent treatment. Currently, ovarian examinations commonly use computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). This study sought to compare the value of CT and MRI in differentiating between benign and malignant ovarian tumors. Methods: The PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Embase, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, and Weipu databases were searched for published articles using the following terms "CT" or "Computed Tomography" or "MRI" or "Magnetic Resonance imaging" and "ovarian cancer" or "ovarian tumor" or "ovarian neoplasm" or "adnexal mass" or "adnexal lesion". The articles were screened and the data were extracted based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 recommended by the Cochrane Collaboration was used to assess the methodological quality of the included studies, and the network meta-analysis was performed by Stata 15.0. Results: The results showed that the overall sensitivity and specificity of CT were 0.79 [95% confidence intervals (CI): 0.70-0.87] and 0.87 (95% CI: 0.80-0.92), respectively. The overall sensitivity and specificity of MRI were 0.94 (95% CI: 0.91-0.95) and 0.91 (95% CI: 0.90-0.93), respectively. The area under the curve of the CT and MRI summary receiver operating characteristics were 0.9016 and 0.9764, respectively. The positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, and diagnostic odds ratio of CT were 5.26 (95% CI: 2.78-9.93), 0.26 (95% CI: 0.13-0.50), and 22.19 (95% CI: 7.54-65.30), respectively. The positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, and diagnostic odds ratio of MRI were 8.69 (95% CI: 5.06-14.92), 0.07 (95% CI: 0.04-0.13), and 146.19 (95% CI: 68.88-310.24), respectively. Conclusions: Compared to CT, MRI has a stronger ability to differentiate between benign and malignant ovarian tumors. It's a promising non-radiological imaging technique and a more favorable choice for patients with ovarian tumors. However, in the future, large-sample, multi-center prospective studies need to be conducted to compare the performance of MRI and CT in distinguishing between benign and malignant ovarian tumors.

Metformin Ameliorates Gestational Diabetes Mellitus-Induced Endothelial Dysfunction via Downregulation of p65 and Upregulation of Nrf2.

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) causes oxidative stress in mothers and infants and causes vascular endothelial dysfunction, which is a key factor for maternal and fetal cardiovascular diseases in the later stage of GDM, seriously threatening the life and health of mothers and infants. Nowadays, metformin (MET) has been discovered to improve endothelial function, but studies regarding the mechanism of MET improving endothelial cell function and alleviating endothelial function under hyperglycemia are still extremely limited. We aimed to investigate whether MET exerts its protective role against hyperglycemia-induced endothelial dysfunction through p65 and Nrf2. In our studies, applying cell migration assay and tube formation assay, we observed an obvious improvement of endothelial function under MET-treated, as characterized by that MET accelerated GDM-attenuated migration and angiogenesis of HUVECs. And ELISA assay results uncovered that Nrf2 expression level was decreased in GDM placenta, HVUECs and maternal serum comparing with normal group, however activation Nrf2 largely ameliorated tube formation under hyperglycemic condition. Furthermore, MET elevated the Nrf2 expression level and the level of nuclear Nrf2 accumulation in hyperglycemic HUVECs. Besides, preliminary evidence predicted that Nrf2 expression was modulated by transcription factor p65, which was increased in GDM peripheral blood, placenta and HUVECs, and suppression of p65 could recover GDM-induced suppression of angiogenesis. In addition, we also confirmed MET restores the GDM-induced angiogenesis impairment may via downregulation of p65 and upregulation of Nrf2. Taken together, the endothelial protective effect of MET under GDM (HG) conditions could be partly attributed to its role in downregulating p65 and upregulating Nrf2.

Evaluation of ovarian function using three dimensional ultrasound in perimenopausal women.

To evaluate the feasibility and clinical value of three-dimensional ultrasound in evaluating ovarian function in perimenopausal women. In this prospective cohort study, 102 patients with clinically suspected perimenopause and 90 patients with menopause were enrolled. These patients were classified into three groups according to the level of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and estradiol (E2): menopause group, perimenopause group, and normal group. Perimenopause group: There were significant differences in volume, vascularization index (VI), flow index (FI), and vascularization-flow index (VFI) in the ovaries after treatment. Cycle 1 > cycle 0 (p < .05) and cycle 3 cycle 0 (p < .05), and in FSH: cycle 3 < cycle 0 (p < .05). Three-dimensional ultrasound in ovarian quantitative measurement can objectively reflect the change in the ovarian function, predicting the effect of drug treatment, and provided an objective information for early intervention to menopausal.