Evaluation of the results of treatment of morbid obesity by the endoscopic intragastric balloon implantation method.

INTRODUCTION: Overweight and obesity are ranked in the fifth place among the risk factors responsible for the greatest number of deaths in the world. AIM: To assess the effects of treatment of patients with morbid obesity using endoscopic intragastric balloon (IGB) implantation. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Two hundred and seventy-two patients with obesity were treated using endoscopic intragastric balloon implantation. Upon analysis of the inclusion and exclusion criteria, the study covered a group of 63 patients with morbid obesity. The patients were implanted with the LexBal balloon. Reduction of excess body mass, changes to BMI values and ailments and complications divided into mild and severe were assessed. RESULTS: Before intragastric balloon treatment, the average body mass index (BMI) value was 58.3 ±10.5 kg/m2, whereas after 6 months of treatment it decreased to 49.5 ±8.7 kg/m2. The patients with postoperative BMI equal to or greater than 50.0 kg/m2 reported nausea (69.7%), vomiting (51.5%), flatulence (45.5%), upper abdominal pain (36.4%) and general discomfort (424%) more frequently. Dehydration (9.1%) was also more frequent in this group, whereas frequency of occurrence of such ailments and complications as heartburn (23.3%) and oesophageal candidiasis (10.0%) was higher in the patients with postoperative BMI below 50.0 kg/m2. CONCLUSIONS: Endoscopic intragastric balloon implantation is an effective and safe method of excess body mass reduction in patients with morbid obesity before a planned bariatric surgical procedure. Pre-operative excess body mass and BMI value and post-operative excess weight loss in patients with morbid obesity have no impact on frequency of occurrence of ailments and complications in IGB treatment.

Fast track in large intestine surgery - review of randomized clinical trials.

Fast track surgery is a specific perioperative procedure. Its aim is to reduce the number of complications, to improve the comfort and satisfaction of treated patients and to shorten the time of their hospital stay. In this paper we present randomized clinical trials relating to fast track surgery including patients after colorectal resection.

Mortality and anastomotic leakage after anterior resection for rectal cancer.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The aim of the study was to analyze the mortality and symptomatic anastomotic leak following stapled anastomosis after anterior resection for rectal cancer. METHODOLOGY: We analyzed retrospectively 161 patients subjected to elective anterior resection of the rectum. There were 102 (63.3%) men and 59 (37.7%) women. The patients were divided into two groups according to tumor location: group I - 129 (80.1%) patients with tumor located >6 cm from the anal verge and group II - 32 (19.9%) patients with tumor located =6 cm. RESULTS: Anastomotic leak was found in 5 (3.1%) patients, three (2.3%) from group I and two (6.2%) from group II (p<0.26). Anastomotic leak was found more often in patients with renal failure (p<0.0023) and in those who had undergone RBC concentrate transfusion (p<0.0045). Seven (4.3%) patients died in the postoperative period. Deaths occurred more frequently in patients with valvular heart disease (p<0.00002), renal failure (p<0.0047) and in those given concentrates of RBC (p<0.045). CONCLUSIONS: Incidence of postoperative surgical complications after resection for rectal cancer is not high and is acceptable; however, there is an increased risk of leakage after low anterior resection. Renal failure as well as RBC concentrate transfusion have an influence on mortality and anastomotic leak.

The role of laparoscopy in abdominal trauma - review of the literature.

The necessity of urgent explorative laparotomy as a standard procedure in the treatment of abdominal penetrating wounds is controversial. Mandatory surgical intervention for penetrating abdominal trauma yields a high rate of negative laparotomies in the absence of visceral injuries. Laparoscopy is an alternative diagnostic procedure inspecting the peritoneum for signs of perforation and excluding significant intra-abdominal injuries. Following current guidelines, diagnostic laparoscopy should be used with caution only in selected cases due to the limited amount of reliable data confirming the effectiveness of such treatment. We present a review of the literature analysing the role of diagnostic laparoscopy in abdominal trauma.

Sex-dependent differences in rheological properties and the relation of blood viscosity to erythrocyte aggregation indices among morbidly obese patients.

Some studies indicate that obesity is associated with rheological disturbances. Because there are usually sex differences in the type of obesity we decided to evaluate rheological differences between male and female obese patients. We studied 18 morbidly obese men, mean age 43.66 +/- 11.32 years, mean body mass index (BMI) 49.82 +/- 6.03 kg/m2 and 20 obese females, mean age 40.6 +/- 11.86 years, mean BMI 47.41 +/- 8.81 kg/m2. Blood and plasma viscosity measurements were performed using a cone-plate viscometer (Brookfield DV-II). Erythrocyte elongation and red blood cell (RBC) aggregation were measured using the Laser-assisted Optical Rotational Cell Analyser (LORCA). Whole blood viscosity and RBC deformability expressed by the elongation index were significantly higher in obese men. We did not observe differences in plasma viscosity, corrected blood viscosity and aggregation parameters among the obese population. Blood viscosity correlated with selected RBC aggregation indices. We conclude that morbidly obese patients presented sex-dependent differences in some rheological properties. This study indicates a relation between erythrocyte aggregation indices and blood viscosity in obese populations.

Neopterin--a potential factor for differentiation between pancreatic cancer and chronic pancreatitis.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Pancreatic cancer constitutes a difficult diagnostic and therapeutic problem. It remains the fourth cause of death among gastrointestinal malignancies. The present study aimed to investigate whether neopterin can be used as a significant marker in pancreatic cancer and to establish any possible relationships between serum neopterin levels and the differentiation between chronic pancreatitis, pancreatic cancer, and acute pancreatitis. METHODOLOGY: The research was done on a group of 65 patients with a diagnosed pancreatic tumor and on a group of 21 patients with a diagnosed acute pancreatitis. Serum neopterin concentration was determined in all patients on the first day of hospitalization. RESULTS: Based on intraoperative and postoperative histopathological findings, pancreatic cancer was diagnosed in 42 patients and chronic pancreatitis in 23 patients. Neopterin concentrations in pancreatic cancer patients, chronic pancreatitis patients, and acute pancreatitis patients were 13.01-29.64 nmol/L (mean 18.16), 0.95-11.81 nmol/L (mean 6.52), and 9.64-25.0 nmol/L (mean 13.61), respectively. Mean neopterin levels in pancreatic cancer and acute pancreatitis patients were higher than the accepted norm (norm<10 nmol/L). Serum neopterin concentrations in patients with chronic pancreatitis remained within the norm. CONCLUSIONS: In our opinion, neopterin might be a promising factor of differentiation between pancreatic tumors. However, the use of neopterin as a nonspecific tumor marker requires further studies.

Liver regeneration following portal blood arterialization and splenectomy in acute hepatic failure.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The purpose of the experiment was to estimate an influence of portal blood arterialization in animals with tetrachloromethane-induced acute hepatic failure. METHODOLOGY: Thirty-five pigs were divided into four groups: three groups of 10 and a control group of 5 animals. On day 1 of the experiment an intraperitoneal dose of 477 mg CCl4//kg body wt. in a suspension of corn oil was given to the trial groups to induce an acute hepatic failure. On day 3 after the intoxication all animals were operated on. Aortovenous splenic anastomosis without splenectomy, aorto-venous splenic anastomosis with splenectomy, and splenectomy procedure alone, were performed in groups I, II, and III, respectively. In the control group only laparotomy was performed. Histopathologic estimation of hematoxylin- and eosin-stained specimens and immunohistochemical analysis of regenerating hepatocytes by applying monoclonal serum for CK19, CD56, CD117 were carried out. RESULTS: Liver biopsies demonstrated no quantitative differences concerning the surface of damaged lobules between groups I, II, and III. The phenomenon of parenchyma regeneration was observed in both groups (with and without splenectomy procedure performed). Small stem cells could be observed mainly in the central part of lobules. The immunohistochemical analysis showed that part of the regenerating cells had CD56 and CD117 antigens' receptors, demonstrating no expression of antigen CK19. In the third group of animals (splenectomy without blood arterialization) neither the phenomenon of parenchyma regeneration nor the presence of cells of hepatoblast phenotype were observed. CONCLUSIONS: The arterialization of portal blood in pigs with acute hepatic failure triggered off the regeneration of damaged parenchyma through the colonization of impaired areas of lobules by small stem cells. The lack of the receptor for antigen CK19 could mean that the cells do not originate in bile duct epithelium.

Red blood cell aggregation and deformability among patients qualified for bariatric surgery.

BACKGROUND: The study presents red blood cell (RBC) aggregability and deformability among obese patients qualified for bariatric surgery and its correlation with plasma lipid concentration. METHODS: We studied 40 morbidly obese patients who were qualified for bariatric surgery: mean age was 43.5 +/- 11.3 years, and mean body mass index (BMI) was 48.9 +/- 7.7 kg/m2. The RBC deformability and aggregation parameters: aggregation index (AI), syllectogram amplitude (AMP) and aggregation half-time (t1/2) were measured by Laser-assisted Optical Rotational Cell Analyser - LORCA. RESULTS: Elongation index of RBC was significantly lower in obese patients than in the control group (P<0.001) in 3.16-60.03 Pa shear stresses. Correlations between elongation index and triglyceride levels ranged between 0.42 to 0.44 (P<0.05). AI was significantly higher in the obese patients (P<0.001), t1/2 and the AMP were decreased (P<0.001) compared to the control group. The RBC aggregation index correlated positively with total cholesterol level (r = 0.61, P<0.05), non-HDL cholesterol level (r = 0.54, P<0.05) and BMI (r = 0.48, P<0.05). Negative correlation presented t1/2 with total cholesterol (r = -0.64, P<0.05), non-HDL cholesterol (r = - 0.51, P<0.05) and BMI (r= -0.59, P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Obesity is associated with RBC rheological disturbances expressed by a decrease in RBC deformability, increased total aggregation extent and the alteration of kinetics of RBC aggregation. These results may suggest the necessity of introducing treatment forms to correct erythrocyte rheological properties, which may improve the blood-flow condition in the microcirculation and prevent postoperative complications after bariatric surgery.

[Diagnostic difficulties in rare causes of gastrointestinal bleeding]. / Trudnosci diagnostyczne w rzadkich przyczynach krwawienia z przewodu pokarmowego.

Peptic and duodenal ulcer and haemorrhagic gastritis are the most common causes of gastrointestinal bleeding. Pathologic changes of the small intestine are rare and difficult to diagnose. The aim of the study is to evaluate the diagnostic strategy regarding patients with gastrointestinal bleeding of obscure origin. From 1996 to 1999, 626 patients were treated for gastrointestinal bleeding. There were difficulties in finding the source of bleeding in three out of 626 patients. Endoscopy of the upper and the lower gastrointestinal tract, hydrosonography of the large intestine and gastrointestinal passage were performed in these three patients. The site of bleeding was not determined after the above mentioned medical examinations. Three patients underwent exploratory laparotomy, and two of them also intraoperative endoscopy of the small intestine. One patient had tumor of the small intestine, and pathologic examination revealed leiomyoma. One patient had Meckel's diverticulum with presence of ectopic gastric mucosa diagnosed. One patient had inflammatory infiltration in the distal ileum. The presence of chronic, non-specific inflammation was proved by histologic examination. In case of patients for whom it was difficult to determine the source of gastrointestinal bleeding the very reason for such a bleeding is often found in the small intestine. It frequently happens that laparotomy and intraoperative endoscopy of the small intestine allows making the diagnosis.

[Evaluation of the knowledge of teachers and high school students in Silesia on the principles of first aid]. / Ocena stanu wiedzy nauczycieli i uczniów szkól srednich województwa Slaskiego na temat zasad udzielania pierwszej pomocy.

Bystander CPR in first minutes after cardiac arrest appears to be a crucial component of the chain of survival. Failure of the circulation for 5-6 minutes will lead to irreversible cerebral damage and death. The aim of the study was to evaluate the level of knowledge about first aid among Polish society on the example of secondary school students and teachers. The study was conducted on students and teachers from Silesian voivodeship from November 2001 to March 2002. The study was based on a sample of 227 secondary school students (34 males and 193 females) and 79 secondary school teachers (28 males and 51 females). The anonymous survey evaluating the level of first aid knowledge was carried out. It consisted of general and particular part. 7 of surveyed students achieved an excellent result, 57 a good result and 163 represented inadequate level of knowledge. None of surveyed teachers achieved an excellent result, 11 achieved a good result and 63 represented inadequate level of knowledge. Higher level of knowledge was presented by those with a driving licence. The knowledge of secondary school students and teachers appears to be insufficient to perform basic life support. Education programs in secondary school should be initiated in terms of extending social safety.