Management of huge epiphrenic esophageal diverticula.

Epiphrenic diverticula occur in association with motor disorders of the distal esophagus, including achalasia and diffuse esophageal spasm. Four patients with huge symptomatic epiphrenic diverticula are presented to emphasize the need for complete radiographic and manometric studies of the esophagus to document this motor dysfunction prior to performing combined diverticulectomy and esophagomyotomy. Each patient had achalasia with symptoms extending from 4 to 25 years.

Endoscopic biopsy can detect high-grade dysplasia or early adenocarcinoma in Barrett's esophagus without grossly recognizable neoplastic lesions.

There is uncertainty regarding the value of endoscopic biopsy surveillance in Barrett's esophagus because, in retrospective studies, some patients with high-grade dysplasia in endoscopic biopsy specimens have had unexpected advanced adenocarcinoma discovered at the time of esophageal resection. We compared the accuracy of preoperative endoscopic biopsy diagnoses with the final pathologic diagnoses in esophagectomy specimens in 4 patients who had both high-grade dysplasia and intramucosal carcinoma and 4 other patients who had only high-grade dysplasia preoperatively. The histologic lesions in all 8 patients were documented in intact mucosa with no gross evidence of neoplasia by endoscopy.

Cryolumpectomy for carcinoma of the breast.

Cryosurgery and surgical en bloc excision in preventing the local recurrence of mammary adenocarcinoma were studied in BALB/cfC3H (supplied by the Cancer Research Institute, University of California Berkeley) syngeneic mice carrying virus induced mammary adenocarcinomas transplanted into the fourth mammary fat pad. Cryosurgical procedures involving multiple freeze-thaw cycles to minus 180 degrees C. followed by tumor excision substantially reduced the local recurrence rate of carcinoma of the mammary gland in the mouse.

Risk factors for gallbladder perforation.

Perforation of the gallbladder is a potentially lethal problem due in part to a delay in diagnosis. In an effort to improve our management of these patients, we reviewed all patients seen at the UCLA affiliated hospitals between 1955 and 1983 who had perforation of the gallbladder. Fifty-one patients were reviewed and perforations categorized as either acute (type I) in 16 (31%), subacute (type II) in 20 (39%), or chronic (type III) in 15 (29%).

Altered gallbladder concentration of biliary lipids during early cholesterol gallstone formation.

Whether gallbladder absorptive function is altered during formation of cholesterol gallstones is unclear. We tested the hypothesis that alterations in biliary lipid composition present during early cholesterol gallstone formation enhance gallbladder absorption, as manifested by an increase in the ratio of gallbladder to hepatic bile lipid concentrations. Prairie dogs received either control or a 0.

Pancreatic polypeptide enhances postcontractile gallbladder filling in the prairie dog.

The hypothesis that pancreatic polypeptide promotes postcontractile gallbladder filling was tested in the prairie dog model. Fifteen animals underwent laparotomy with catheter placement into the gallbladder, distal common bile duct (vent), and femoral vein. The gallbladder was perfused with [14C]polyethylene glycol labeled lactated Ringer's solution at 0.

In vivo gallbladder absorption: a new dual-isotope technique.

Available methods for measuring in vivo gallbladder absorption preclude the use of animals in which hepatic bile enters the gallbladder via accessory or aberrant channels. However, accessory bile ducts are present in many of the animal models currently used in gallstone research. The aim of this study, therefore, was to evaluate a new dual-isotope technique that corrects for accessory bile flow and to compare data on electrolyte and water absorption with those derived from the standard, single-isotope technique.

Carbohydrate diet-induced calcium bilirubinate sludge and pigment gallstones in the prairie dog.

Epidemiologic studies suggest that consumption of diets rich in carbohydrates may, in part, be responsible for the increasing incidence of pigment gallstone disease. The mechanism by which these dietary components lead to pigment stone formation remains obscure. Furthermore, investigative efforts in this area have been hampered by the lack of a suitable animal model.

Primary leiomyosarcoma of gallbladder seen on computed tomography and ultrasound.

Neoplasms of the gallbladder are relatively rare and their preoperative diagnosis that much rarer; leiomyosarcoma of the gallbladder is one of the most infrequent types. The authors had the opportunity to diagnose such a neoplasm preoperatively (although the histological diagnosis was not made). The ultrasound and computed tomographic appearance has not been published before.

Gallbladder absorption increases during early cholesterol gallstone formation.

The hypothesis that the presence of cholelithogenic bile during the early stages of cholesterol gallstone formation promotes gallbladder absorption of water and electrolytes was tested in a prairie dog gallstone model. An increase in gallbladder transport of water and sodium was observed in cholesterol-fed prairie dogs at a time when cholesterol crystals were present, but before gallstone formation. These data suggest that in the presence of cholesterol-saturated bile, in vivo gallbladder absorption is increased during the early stages of cholesterol gallstone formation.

Decreased morbidity and mortality after pancreatoduodenectomy.

In two 5 year periods (1975 to 1979 and 1980 to 1984), 96 patients underwent pancreatoduodenal resection, which included 74 partial pancreatic resections and 22 total pancreatectomies. Thirty-seven of these patients had resections with preservation of the pylorus. Substantial reductions in perioperative mortality (2 percent versus 10 percent) and morbidity (26 percent versus 49 percent) (p less than 0.

Lactomer copolymer absorbable staples in gastrointestinal surgery.

We performed a series of experimental studies to determine the clinical feasibility of using lactomer copolymer absorbable staples in gastrointestinal surgery. The stapling properties, reliability of suture and wound healing, and degree of inflammatory response were compared to similar properties of standard metal staples and polyglactin sutures. The absorbable staples were used in partial gastric transection, Billroth II gastrojejunostomy, and to close the ileum and ascending colon as part of an ileocecal resection.

Cryolumpectomy for breast cancer: an experimental study.

The effects of cryosurgical procedures and surgical excision in preventing the local recurrence of mammary adenocarcinoma were studied in BALB/cfC3H mice carrying syngeneic, virus-induced mammary adenocarcinomas transplanted into the fourth mammary fat pad. In this report we present evidence demonstrating that cryosurgical procedures involving multiple freeze-thaw cycles followed by tumor excision markedly reduce the local recurrence rate of mouse mammary cancer. Surgical resection without cryotreatment resulted in an 80% local recurrence rate; in contrast, cryotreatment consisting of three freeze-thaw cycles before excision prevented local tumor recurrence in 70% of the animals.

The Kock pouch as a urinary reservoir. Pitfalls and perspectives.

The Kock continent urinary reservoir is a feasible alternative to traditional methods of urinary diversion in properly motivated patients who are anxious to exchange a convenient external appliance for frequent reservoir catheterization. The major shortcomings are increased operative time, loss of a long segment of small bowel, and an approximate 10 percent incidence of major reoperation. Long-term results are unknown.

Effect of pancreatic polypeptide on gallbladder filling.

Recent studies suggest that pancreatic polypeptide (PP) alters gallbladder pressure and reduces delivery of bile to the duodenum. Whether this peptide influences gallbladder emptying and/or filling is not clear. Using the prairie dog model, we tested the hypothesis that exogenous PP induces gallbladder filling.

Chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction. Management with total parenteral nutrition and a venting enterostomy.

A variety of remedies have been suggested for patients with chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction. However, none of these treatments have been particularly effective, and many of these patients have died of malnutrition. Therefore, in an effort to maintain nutrition and avoid repetitive nasogastric intubation, 22 patients (12 adults and ten children) with chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction were managed with long-term total parenteral nutrition (TPN), and 20 also received a "venting" enterostomy.

Cholecystokinin prophylaxis of parenteral nutrition-induced gallbladder disease.

Recent studies indicate that long-term total parenteral nutrition (TPN) induces gallstone formation and acalculous cholecystitis in humans. Cholecystectomy is hazardous for these patients because they frequently have multiple medical problems and have undergone numerous abdominal operations. The present study was designed to develop a method to prevent TPN-induced gallbladder disease.

Ileal resection-induced gallstones: altered bilirubin or cholesterol metabolism?

Ileal resection has been shown to increase the risk of cholelithiasis. Earlier studies in humans suggested that ileal resection increases the cholesterol saturation index. Recent data from patients on long-term parenteral nutrition and from animals, however, have suggested that ileal resection predisposes to pigment gallstone formation.

Parenteral nutrition-induced gallbladder disease: a reason for early cholecystectomy.

Patients who receive long-term parenteral nutrition have an increased incidence of both calculous and acalculous cholecystitis. In an attempt to establish guidelines for the clinical management of patients with TPN-induced gallbladder disease, we have reviewed the records of 35 patients who have undergone cholecystectomy for this problem since 1976 at the UCLA Medical Center. The mean age of the 23 adult and 12 children who had cholecystectomy was 29.

The effect of intravenous fat and total parenteral nutrition on biliary physiology.

Patients on long-term total parenteral nutrition (TPN) have an increased incidence of gallstones. To determine the pathophysiologic mechanisms responsible for gallstone formation in these patients, we fed three groups of prairie dogs intravenously for 10 days with continuous infusions of isocaloric, isovolemic, and isonitrogenous solutions with either 0, 25, or 50% of nonprotein calories provided as Intralipid. A fourth group of prairie dogs was hyperalimented with the 25% solution for 28 days.

Increased intragallbladder pressure response to cholecystokinin-octapeptide following vagotomy and pyloroplasty.

One of the late effects of truncal vagotomy is gallbladder dilatation. However, the early physiologic mechanisms responsible for this phenomenon have not been clearly elucidated. Therefore, the hypothesis that truncal vagotomy alters the gallbladder's or cystic duct's response to hormonal stimulation was tested.

Impaired gallbladder emptying before gallstone formation in the prairie dog.

Several human and experimental observations suggest that gallbladder stasis is an important link between the hepatic secretion of cholesterol saturated bile and the formation of cholesterol gallstones. In the cholesterol-fed prairie dog model, gallbladder stasis occurs before gallstone formation. In this study we sought to determine the specific defects in extrahepatic biliary physiology responsible for gallbladder stasis in this model.

Increased risk of gallstones in children receiving total parenteral nutrition.

Twenty-one children receiving long-term total parenteral nutrition were prospectively evaluated for the presence of gallstones. Using ultrasonography, nine children (43%) were found to have cholelithiasis, and five have since undergone cholecystectomy. Only children with ileal disorders or previous resection developed stones.

Role of gallbladder mucus in the pathogenesis of cholesterol gallstones.

Recent observations indicate that the hepatic secretion of lithogenic bile, gallbladder mucus hypersection, and gallbladder stasis are all critical factors in the pathogenesis of cholesterol gallstones. Using the prairie dog gallstone model, we investigated the interaction of these factors and the sequence in which they develop. The results of this study indicated that (1) gallbladder bile mucus concentration is elevated before cholesterol precipitation and increases progressively with the formation of cholesterol crystals, (2) cystic duct resistance increases in the presence of cholesterol crystals, but not fine, sonicated crystals increase cystic duct resistance.