Peripartum hysterectomy in a tertiary hospital in Western Sydney.

The aim of this study was to review the incidence, indication, management and complications of peripartum hysterectomy (PH) in a tertiary level hospital over a decade. A retrospective review of all cases of PH performed at Westmead Hospital, Western Sydney, 2003-2012, was undertaken. PH was defined as hysterectomy performed after 20 weeks' gestation or any time after delivery but within 6 weeks' postpartum ( Awan et al. 2011 ). There were 56 cases of peripartum hysterectomy of 46,177 births, a rate of 1.22 per 1,000 births. The most common indication for PH was morbid adherence of the placenta (58.2%) followed by uterine atony. Having a history of both caesarean section and placenta praevia is highly associated with a morbidly adherent placenta in the index pregnancy (p = 0.002). The most common complication was coagulopathy followed by febrile illness and urinary tract injury. Our data showed previous caesarean section and placenta praevia to be associated with abnormal placentation, the leading indication for PH. Since there is an association between a planned caesarean hysterectomy and reduced amount of estimated blood loss and blood transfused, the knowledge of placentation and adequate preoperative planning and consideration for elective hysterectomy could be beneficial. The morbidity associated with PH is considerable.

Aphallia associated with urethro-rectal fistula and stones in the bladder and urethra.

Aphallia is a rare urogenital anomaly. It usually coexists with other serious anomalies, which are incompatible with normal life. We present herewith a 18-month-old child who presented with aphallia and urethro-scrotal fistula along with stones in the bladder and urethra. The stones were removed and the fistula was surgically corrected.

Preliminary report of a nationwide case-control study for identifying risk factors of tuberculosis following renal transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis (TB) is an important infection encountered posttransplantation, especially among patients in developing countries, where there are high incidences of morbidity and mortality. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred and twenty subjects (1%) from 15 major kidney transplantation centers in Iran from 1984 to 2003 were compared with 440 controls who were matched for operative time, treatment center, and surgical team. RESULTS: Mean ages of research subjects and controls were 38.6 and 36.6 years (P = .04), respectively. The mean duration of pretransplantation hemodialysis was 29 months (range, 2 to 192 months) in research subjects and 20 months (range, 1 to 180 months) in controls (P = .003). Positive past history of tuberculosis was detected in 4 (3.3%) research subjects and in 7 (1.5%) controls (P = .2). Fifty-two research subjects (43.3%) and 241 controls (54.8%) had pretransplantation purified protein derivative of tuberculin less than 5 mm (P = .02). Mean dosages of initial and maintenance immunosuppressive drugs in research subjects and in controls were not significantly different. Sixty research subjects (50%) and 152 controls (34.5%) had rejection prior to diagnosis of TB (P = .03). CONCLUSION: To our knowledge, this is the first study that demonstrates an increased risk of posttransplant TB by prolonged duration of pretransplant hemodialysis and number of posttransplant rejection episodes. Further study is needed to clarify these findings specifically with respect to various immunosuppressive regimens.

Erectile function in end-stage renal disease before and after renal transplantation.

INTRODUCTION: Erectile function in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and renal transplant patients is a challenging issue. In this study we evaluated the prevalence of erectile dysfunction (ED) according to standard questionnaires and paraclinical tests including Rigiscan. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted a prospective, interventional, nonrandomized study of 15 consecutive male patients who underwent living donor renal transplants from March 2003 to June 2004. Before and after living donor transplantation we did hormone assays, blood ionogram and biochemistry, complete blood counts, u/a, international index of erection function 5 (IIEF-5), erection dysfunction intensive score (EDIS) tests as well as Rigiscan. RESULTS: The patient ages were between 21 and 50 (average 35.26) years, with an average length of ESRD of 4.31 years. Of the patients, 73.33% were smokers; 46.66% had ED; and 40%, hypertension. The most common blood groups were B-positive and O-positive (33.3% each). Mean testosterone and prolactin levels showed significant decreases after renal transplantation (P = .001 and P = .005, respectively). Mean blood glucose also decreased significantly (P = .035), despite previous reports that immunosuppressive drugs cause pseudodiabetes mellitus, mean cholesterol and triglyceride levels decreased after renal transplantation (P = .013, P = .0668, respectively). Urinalysis did not differ significantly after renal transplantation. Mean urea and creatinine levels were decreased significantly by renal transplantation (P = .000 and P = .003, respectively), but neither the mean values of uric acid nor the blood cell count were significantly different (P = .374). Mean hemoglobin and hematocrit levels were increased by renal transplantation, but it was not significant (P = .297 and P = .187, respectively). Mean potassium and phosphorus level were significantly decreased (P = .049 and P = .047, respectively), but mean sodium and calcium levels were not significantly altered (P = .773 and P = .536, respectively). Mean total and direct bilirubin and liver enzymes and alkaline phosphatase and LDH also did not change significantly. IIEF-5 was improved in 11 cases, unchanged in two cases, and worsened in another two cases. Nocturnal penile tumescence (Rigiscan test) was also improved in 11 cases, unchanged in three cases, and worsened in one case. The prevalence of erectile function was increased according to the EDIS question. CONCLUSION: Erectile function was improved after successful live donor renal transplant.

Glycoprotein IIb/IIIa receptor antagonists and risk of bleeding: a single-center experience in 1020 patients.

The safety of glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa inhibitors has been well documented in clinical trials. Although these trials have included a broad patient population, the strict enrollment criteria may have resulted in exclusion of patients at a higher risk of bleeding complications. The authors conducted a retrospective chart review of 1020 consecutive patients who received GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors and underwent percutaneous coronary intervention in a large community hospital. They used Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) criteria to define major or minor bleeding complications. Bleeding complications developed in 214 (21%) patients, with major bleeding in 89 (9%). Univariate predictors of bleeding were older age, lower body weight, elevated serum creatinine, higher activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) level, history of diabetes mellitus (DM), peripheral vascular disease (PVD), congestive heart failure (CHF), and emergency procedure for acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Multivariate predictors of major bleeding were PVD (20% in bleeding group vs 11% in nonbleeders, odds ratio [OR] = 1.8, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.2-2.6, P < .004), age (68 +/- 2 years, 95% CI = 66-70 in bleeding group vs 63 +/- 13 years, 95% CI = 61.2-63 in nonbleeders, P < .001), and higher aPTT level (66 +/- 27 seconds, 95% CI = 63-70 in bleeding group vs 53 +/- 28 seconds, 95% CI = 51-56 in nonbleeders, P < .001). The risk of bleeding in the large community hospital setting may be higher than in randomized clinical trials. This increased risk is associated with higher hospitalization costs. Recognition of predictors of bleeding should further enhance the safety of these antiplatelet agents.

Early results and complications of 210 living donor nephrectomies.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the early complications seen after donor nephrectomy in living donor renal transplantation. Between November 1989 and June 1998, 270 living donor nephrectomies were performed at the Ghaem Hospital, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran. Sixty donor records which were incomplete were discarded from this study. A questionnaire with relevant queries was prepared and sent to all the donors. The information sought included age, gender, marital status, drug addiction and smoking, blood pressure, blood group, serological tests, blood tests for hematology and biochemistry, coagulation profile, urine reports, nephrectomy site, duration of anesthesia, intra-operative and early post-nephrectomy complications, hypertension, respiratory and genitourinary complications, water and electrolyte imbalance, hemorrhage, and wound infection. Statistical analysis was done using Fox Pro and SPSS software. It was noted that females donated more kidneys to there relatives (p < 0.05) and had a higher prevalance of anemia (p < 0.01). More males were addicted to smoking and/or opium than females (p < 0.01), and fewer addicts donated their kidneys (p < 0.05). The site of nephrectomy was similar between men and women. Complications were significantly greater in addicted donors (p < 0.05). Hemorrhage occurred more commonly in association with right nephrectomy (p < 0.05), while wound infection occurred more commonly in men (p < 0.05). There were no deaths. Our results suggest that living donor nephrectomy is safe and is assosiated with minor complications causing little morbidity and no mortality.

Paired tumour infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) and tumour cell line from bladder cancer: a new approach to study tumour immunology in vitro.

This paper reports the first example of tumour infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and a tumour cell line from the same individual and analyses their characteristics. The tumour cell line (CAT), derived from a patient with well-differentiated (G3pTa) TCC, has been in culture for 24 months and subcultured more than 100 times. Epithelial origin was established by electronmicroscopy and use of a range of monoclonal antibodies (Mabs) against cytokeratins. The TILs isolated from the same tumour expressed all the phenotypic characteristics of normal activated T cells and demonstrated low levels of cytotoxicity against the autologous tumour line (CAT). Comparison of cell surface molecules of these cells revealed the loss of HLA-B7, B44 and Bw6 from the CAT cells whilst maintaining HLA-A2, A3 and Bw4. Karyotypic analysis demonstrated three rearranged chromosomes (between chromosomes 4 and 11, 10 and 13, 11 and 17) on CAT cells. The potential that study of paired autologous tumour cells and TILs in culture offers for studying the role of MHC antigens in tumour rejection and the impact of different approaches to correcting the defect are reviewed.

Glomerular diseases in children. "The Iranian experience".

A total of 411 children, aged from 0.3 to 18 years, suffering from glomerular diseases, were studied by renal biopsy between 1976 and 1985. The clinical presentation included nephrotic syndrome (79% of cases), renal failure (43%), and arterial hypertension (38%). In all, 177 cases presented with primary nephrotic syndrome; all had complicated courses and most were either corticosteroid-dependent or -resistant. Only 26.6% had minimal change disease on renal biopsy; 56.5% had focal-segmental sclerosis; and immunofluorescent deposits were observed in half of the group. Acute poststreptococcal (36 cases), mesangiocapillary (80 cases), and lupus (34 cases) glomerulonephritis occurred frequently; IgA glomerulopathy (10 cases) and haemolytic uraemic syndrome (6 cases) were uncommon. Glomerular crescents were observed in 71 cases. These observations illustrate the types of glomerular diseases seen in Iranian children.