A right colectomy case study: transitioning to the Hugo RAS system with a novel 3-ports technique in experienced robotic colorectal practice.

Introduction: Advancements in robotic technology have revolutionized general surgery, with new platforms and continuous improvements enhancing surgical procedures. Our unit adopted the Da Vinci Si model in 2012 and later the X model for various abdominal surgeries. In early 2023, we integrated the Hugo RAS system by Medtronic into our practice following comprehensive training.

Holmium-166 Transarterial Radioembolization for the Treatment of Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma: A Case Series.

Background: Transarterial radioembolization (TARE) is used to treat primary and secondary malignancies in the liver that are not amenable to curative resection. Accumulating evidence demonstrates the efficacy and safety of TARE with yttrium-90 (Y), which is the most widely used radionuclide for TARE, and later with holmium-166 (Ho) for various indications. However, the safety and efficacy of Ho TARE in patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) remains to be studied.

Expression of connexins and pannexins in diseased human liver.

Connexin proteins can form hexameric hemichannels and gap junctions that mediate paracrine and direct intercellular communication, respectively. Gap junction activity is crucial for the maintenance of hepatic homeostasis, while connexin hemichannels become particularly active in liver disease, such as hepatitis, fibrosis, cholestasis or even hepatocellular carcinoma. Channels consisting of connexin-like proteins named pannexins have been directly linked to liver inflammation and cell death.

Bone SPECT/CT in the Evaluation of Painful Total Ankle Replacement: Validation of Localization Scheme and Preliminary Evaluation of Diagnostic Patterns.

Purpose: Third-generation total ankle replacement (TAR) is an increasingly popular and effective treatment for end-stage osteoarthritis, yet identifying causes of failure remains challenging. We evaluated integrated bone SPECT/CT in recurrent pain after TAR by validating a standardized reporting scheme, identifying uptake patterns, and assessing diagnostic performance and impact on clinical management.

Patients And Methods: A total of 24 TARs in 16 patients with persistent or recurrent pain received integrated bone SPECT/CT using diagnostic CT settings.

Connexin and Pannexin (Hemi)Channels: Emerging Targets in the Treatment of Liver Disease.

Connexin proteins are the building blocks of hemichannels, which dock further between adjacent cells to form gap junctions. Gap junctions control the intercellular exchange of critical homeostasis regulators. By doing so, gap junctions control virtually all aspects of the hepatic life cycle.

IgG4-related disease of the hepatobiliary tract : 2 case reports and review of the literature.

IgG4-related disease is a rare inflammatory disorder that may mimic many infectious, malignant, and autoimmune conditions. The biliary tract is frequently involved, but hepatic lesions are rarely seen. Diagnosis is often delayed due to the absence of specific clinical and radiological signs, and the lack of an accurate diagnostic marker.

The interval approach: an adaptation of the liver-first approach to treat synchronous liver metastases from rectal cancer.

Background: The waiting interval after chemoradiotherapy (CRT) is an interesting therapeutic window to treat patients with synchronous liver metastases (SLM) from rectal cancer.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed of 18 consecutive patients (M/F 10/8, age (range) 60 (51-75) years) from five institutions who underwent liver resection of SLM during the waiting interval after CRT for rectal adenocarcinoma.

Results: All patients underwent interval liver surgery for a median (range) of 4 (2-14) liver metastases.

Hepatic involvement in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) or Rendu-Osler Weber syndrome.

Background And Study Aims: Hepatic involvement in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is usually asymptomatic and does not require treatment. However, when present, clinical manifestations can cause considerable morbidity and mortality. Current expertise in the variable clinical manifestations and recommendations for diagnostic approach and management of hepatic involvement in HHT are outlined.

Strategies, models and biomarkers in experimental non-alcoholic fatty liver disease research.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease encompasses a spectrum of liver diseases, including simple steatosis, steatohepatitis, liver fibrosis and cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is currently the most dominant chronic liver disease in Western countries due to the fact that hepatic steatosis is associated with insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes mellitus, obesity, metabolic syndrome and drug-induced injury. A variety of chemicals, mainly drugs, and diets is known to cause hepatic steatosis in humans and rodents.

Experimental models of liver fibrosis.

Hepatic fibrosis is a wound healing response to insults and as such affects the entire world population. In industrialized countries, the main causes of liver fibrosis include alcohol abuse, chronic hepatitis virus infection and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis. A central event in liver fibrosis is the activation of hepatic stellate cells, which is triggered by a plethora of signaling pathways.

The surgical history of the amputated limb according to the indication for revascularization: diabetic foot, acute ischaemia, aneurysmal disease, chronic arterial occlusive disease.

Background: To investigate whether the indication for the first revascularization (diabetic foot, acute ischaemia, aneurysmal disease, chronic occlusive disease) determines the surgical history and survival time in amputated limbs.

Methods: The surgical history of lower extremities amputated between 2002 and 2009 was reviewed for the number of (endo)vascular procedures, minor amputations, wound debridements, complications requiring surgery (acute ischaemia, bleeding, graft infection) and limb survival time (LST).

Results: 100 limbs were included in the study.

Pirandello's analogy: a source for a better understanding of the social impact of stroke.

Background: Suffering a stroke has major implications for the patient. To understand human suffering, one should understand society. Pirandello described society as a higher entity than the individual, thereby justifying human adaptability to society.

Early arterial revascularization after hepatic artery thrombosis may avoid graft loss and improve outcomes in adult liver transplantation.

Background: Hepatic artery thrombosis (HAT) represents a devastating complication after liver transplantation (LT), occurring in 1.6%-9.2% of adult recipients.

Laparoscopic evaluation shows deficiencies in memory ring deployment during small ventral hernia repair.

Background: With the introduction of a self-expanding, memory-containing, circular hernia patch, surgeons have been enthusiastic about its use to repair ventral hernias smaller than 3 cm in diameter. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency, reliability, and safety of the device laparoscopically with respect to adequate deployment of the patch.

Methods: During 1 year all patients with small ventral hernias were treated with this memory-containing patch and were inspected by laparoscopy.

Influence of chemotherapy on the biodistribution of [99mTc]hydrazinonicotinamide annexin V in cancer patients.

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine whether administration of chemotherapy interferes with the quantitative uptake of [(99m)Tc]hydrazinonicotinamide (HYNIC) annexin V in normal human tissues at 5-7 h and 40-44 h after treatment initiation.

Methods: Eleven cancer patients were prospectively included in this study after written informed consent. Five patients underwent two scintigraphic scans with [(99m)Tc]HYNIC annexin V within 40-44 h from each other without any treatment given in between (control group or group 1).

Design of a JAIN SLEE/ESB-based platform for routing medical data in the ICU.

The importance of computer aided decision making is continuously increasing. In the ICU, medical decision support services gather and process medical data of patients and present results and suggestions to the medical staff. The medical decision support services can monitor for example blood pressure, creatinine levels or the usage of antibiotics.

[Clozapine and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors: risks of toxicity].

A 25-year-old woman, known to have schizoaffective disorder, presented with symptoms that had arisen a few weeks earlier. The symptoms indicated that she had a toxic clozapine blood level. The probable cause of the toxicity was a pharmacokinetic interaction between citalopram and clozapine at the level of the cytochrome P450 system.

Single nucleotide polymorphism analysis of corticotropin-releasing factor-binding protein gene in recurrent major depressive disorder.

Corticotropin-releasing factor-binding protein (CRF-BP) regulates the availability of free CRF and is a functional candidate gene for affective disorders. Previous research showed an association between polymorphisms in the CRF-BP gene and recurrent major depression (MDD) in a Swedish sample. The purpose of the current study was to re-evaluate the previous findings in an extended Swedish sample and in an independent Belgian sample of patients with recurrent MDD and in control samples.

[Benzodiazepines in the treatment of catatonia].

A patient who developed acute catatonia during benzodiazepine withdrawal is discussed. The case prompted us to review the literature on the role of benzodiazepines in the treatment of acute catatonia. Only retrospective and open studies were found which indicate that benzodiazepines do have a beneficial effect.

A biopsychosocial model as a guide for psychoeducation and treatment of depression.

Effective treatment of severe or chronic unipolar depression requires the combination of pharmacological and psychotherapeutic interventions, and demands a theoretical paradigm integrating biological and psychosocial aspects of depression. Supported by recent research, we propose in our article a biopsychosocial diathesis-stress model of depression. Its basic aim is psychoeducational: to provide therapists, patients, and their environment a constructive conceptual framework to understand depressive complaints, vulnerability, and stress.

Combined dexamethasone/CRF test in remitted outpatients with recurrent major depressive disorder.

Background: Hyperactivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is a prominent neurobiological finding during a major depressive episode, reflecting a state dependent factor. An issue under investigation is whether the dysfunction of the HPA axis has also a role to play as a state-independent or trait factor for major depressive disorder (MDD). In relation to this, it is important to examine HPA axis function in patients who are clinically remitted from depression.

Early prediction of endocrine therapy effect in advanced breast cancer patients using 99mTc-depreotide scintigraphy.

Unlabelled: In vitro assessment of hormone receptor status using a ligand-binding assay or immunohistochemistry in breast cancer patients predicts endocrine responsiveness with an accuracy of only 60%-70%. Assessment of an end product of estrogen receptor stimulation, such as the progesterone receptor, is assumed to provide a measure of functional receptor content and has proven to increase predictive accuracy. In analogy with the estrogen-dependent regulation of somatostatin receptor (SSTR) expression in endocrine-responsive human breast cancer cell lines, efficient antiestrogen treatment in patients may result in a downregulation of SSTR at the cell surface in breast tumors.

The use of atypical antipsychotics in the treatment of catatonia.

Purpose: Evidence indicates that classical antipsychotics may aggravate non-malignant and malignant catatonia (MC). Atypical antipsychotics are less likely to cause movement disorders than classical antipsychotics and they are being frequently prescribed in disorders that can be associated with catatonia. Therefore, the important question that arises is whether atypical antipsychotics have a role to play in the treatment of catatonia.