Examining post-mortem tissue from the brains of people with Alzheimer
TAU researcher brings ground-breaking fibre-optic laser system to the world of corneal transplants
Some 30,000 years ago, prehistoric man wielded animal bones as needles to suture otherwise lethal wounds. This tactic has been used, and improved upon, over time and remains the basis of surgical procedures conducted today. Even with radical new surgical techniques, which rely on metallic and polymeric staples or chemical adhesives to seal incisions, infection and permanent scarring remain major concerns. The success of any wound closure is entirely dependent on the physician’s skill set alone.
Prof. Abraham Katzir, Head of the Applied Physics Group at Tel Aviv University’s School of Physics and Astronomy, has spent much of his career honing a technique he devised called ‘laser welding,’ by which incision edges are heated in a precisely controlled manner for optimal wound closure. Now a study explores a radical new application of this technique
When retrievable inferior vena cava (IVC) filters were approved for use in the United States in 2003 to prevent pulmonary embolism among patients unable to receive the standard blood thinner treatment, many experts anticipated most of them would be removed when no longer needed and IVC filter complications would decrease. Instead, the number of IVC filters placed has more than doubled in the last 10 years, and by some estimates, less than half of these retrievable devices are actually removed each year. Leaving the devices in place risks filter fracture or symptoms from penetration of filter components outside of the vein into adjacent structures, increased risk of new blood clots in the legs, and other complications.
Now, a Penn Medicine study confirms that an endobronchial forceps technique the research group developed is a safe and highly effective option for many patients seeking IVC filter removal.
The Penn Medicine team studied 114 adult patients, 77 women and 37 men, who visited the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania for removal of a tip-embedded retrievable inferior vena cava (IVC) filter between January 2005 and April 2014. All patients who underwent retrieval of an IVC filter were evaluated by an interventional radiology attending physician and underwent computed tomographic venography of the abdomen and pelvis.
The researchers say the endobronchial forceps technique helps fill a void where standard procedures fail. The most common reason for a failed IVC filter retrieval is tilting of the filter, with the tip of the filter becoming embedded in the wall of the IVC. When this occurs, a snare or cone device cannot be placed over the tip of the IVC filter, and standard techniques for IVC filter removal fail. The newer technique allows these filters to be removed.
Providers of mental-health services still rely on intervention techniques such as physical restraint and confinement to control some psychiatric hospital patients, a practice which can cause harm to both patients and care facilities, according to a new study from the University of Waterloo.
The study, which appears in a special mental health issue of Healthcare Management Forum, found that almost one in four psychiatric patients in Ontario hospitals are restrained using control interventions, such as chairs that prevent rising, wrist restraints, seclusion rooms or acute control medications.
A technique called auditory brainstem implantation can restore hearing for patients who can’t benefit from cochlear implants. A team of US and Japanese experts has mapped out the surgical anatomy and approaches for auditory brainstem implantation.
Dr. Albert L. Rhoton, Jr., and colleagues of University of Florida, Gainesville, and Fukuoka University, Japan, performed a series of meticulous dissections to demonstrate and illustrate surgical approaches to auditory brainstem implant placement. Their article shares exquisitely detailed anatomic colour photographs, along with step-by-step descriptions of two alternative routes for neurosurgeons performing these demanding implant procedures.
Auditory brainstem implants can restore varying degrees of hearing to patients with ‘retrocochlear’ hearing loss. These patients have deafness caused by damage to the cochlear nerves — sometimes called the acoustic or auditory nerves — which transmit sound information from the inner ear to the brain. The cochlear nerve damage most commonly results from brain tumours associated with a genetic condition called neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2).
Auditory brainstem implants are similar in principle to the more commonly placed cochlear implant, used in patients with damage to the cochlea — part of the inner ear. Because of the need to place the implant and electrodes in the brainstem, rather than the inner ear, the surgery required for auditory brainstem implantation is much more complex.
In a series of ten cadaver brainstem dissections, the researchers explored the anatomy of the region that the neurosurgeon must navigate to perform auditory brainstem implantation. They also mapped out the best neurosurgical approaches, both for surgery to remove the tumours and for auditory brainstem implant placement.
Based on their findings, Dr. Rhoton and colleagues detail two surgical approaches: a ‘translabyrinthine’ and a ‘retrosigmoid’ approach. They outline a step-by-step route for both approaches, designed to provide safe access to the area while minimizing trauma to the brainstem and surrounding structures. The authors highlight the value of using endoscopes to help in visualizing and accessing the target area for implant placement.
More than 1,000 auditory brainstem implant procedures have been performed worldwide so far. The procedure was previously approved only for patients with NF2 aged 12 years or older. Recently, clinical trials were approved for children with congenital malformations or other causes of retrocochlear deafness.
Minimizing damage to the brainstem and associated blood vessels appears to be a critical factor in achieving good speech recognition after auditory brainstem implantation. The hearing results are also better in patients with a shorter duration of deafness.
Dr. Rhoton and colleagues hope that their descriptions and illustrations will help to increase understanding of the anatomy and surgical approaches to auditory brainstem implantation, contributing useful hearing to adults and children with NF2 and other causes of retrocochlear deafness. EurekAlert
When a patient receives a new hip, it is usually adjusted only approximately to leg length. Greater accuracy requires a more precise measuring process as well as adjustable implants. Now, a new type of measurement method coupled with a modular implant should allow orthopaedic surgeons to precisely calibrate leg length after the operation so it matches its original length.
A painful hip that feels unstable and no longer has the same range of motion: For many patients, this means they need a prosthetic hip
The results of a study indicate that Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Diffusion-Tensor Imaging (DTI) could be used for the prognosis and treatment of sports injuries in athletes. The researchers obtained DTI Three-dimensional (3-D) measurements of the upper leg from the hip to the knee, including the hamstring and other susceptible muscles, in a single imaging session. The technique revealed changes that qualitative T2-weighted MR imaging with fat suppression was not able to show, and could be used to help clinicians detect long-term changes in the upper leg from sports-related muscle injuries.
The researchers evaluated five male amateur long-distance runners using a 3-T MR examination of both upper legs at three points in time. The exams took place one week before, two days after, and three weeks aft er the runners took part in a marathon. A musculoskeletal radiologist used three grades to evaluate the level of muscle injury using T2-weighted images with fat suppression. The radiologist noted the specific muscle and its location, the craniocaudal, and axial length of the hemorrhage and/or edema, and manually segmented six muscles in both upper legs based on T1- and T2-weighted images.
Lead author of the study, Martijn Froeling, PhD, at the University Medical Centre Utrecht (Utrecht, Netherlands), said,
In the future, TAVIs can only be carried out in German hospitals with cardiac surgery departments and cardiac wards, as decided by the German Government
Results from an interim analysis of the Guinea Phase III efficacy vaccine trial show that VSV-EBOV (Merck, Sharp & Dohme) is highly effective against Ebola. The independent body of international experts – the Data and Safety Monitoring Board
Scientists from Nanyang Technological University (NTU Singapore) have successfully used dead bacteria to kill colorectal cancer cells.
Harvesting the Clostridium sporogenes bacteria found commonly in soil, the NTU team was able to harness the bacteria in its dead form, and its secretions, to destroy colon tumours cells effectively.
Colorectal cancer is the number one cancer in Singapore and the foremost cancer amongst males as stated by Singapore
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