Transgastric instrumentation and bacterial contamination of the peritoneal cavity.

Introduction: Natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) is a rapidly evolving technique providing access to the peritoneum utilizing an endoscope via a natural orifice. One of the most significant requirements of this technique is the need to minimize the risk of clinically significant peritoneal contamination. We report the bacterial load and contamination of the peritoneal cavity in patients requiring a gastrotomy Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LSRYGB).

Natural-orifice transgastric endoscopic peritoneoscopy in humans: Initial clinical trial.

Background: Natural-orifice translumenal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) is a possible advancement for surgical interventions. We initiated a pilot study in humans to investigate feasibility and develop the techniques and technology necessary for NOTES. Reported herein is the first human clinical trial of NOTES, performing transoral transgastric diagnostic peritoneoscopy.

Impact of [18F]-2-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography on previously untreated head and neck cancer patients.

Objectives: The role of fused modality [F]-2-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) in diagnosing and accurately staging patients with primary, metastatic, and recurrent head and neck (HN) cancer is evolving, and the clinical implications need to be further defined. A few retrospective studies have been performed, but adequate sample sizes are lacking because the number of HN cancer patients is relatively small. This study evaluates the positive predictive value (PPV), sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of PET/CT in previously untreated HN cancer patients at a single tertiary care institution.