Elective surgery for diverticular disease in U.S. veterans: A VASQIP study of national trends and outcomes from 2004 to 2018.

Background: Treatment for diverticular disease has evolved over time. In the United States, there has been a trend towards minimally invasive surgical approaches and fewer postoperative complications, but no study has investigated this subject in the Veterans Health Administration.

Methods: This retrospective review identified patients undergoing elective surgery for diverticular disease from 2004 to 2018.

Robotic Right Colectomy for Colon Cancer: Comparison of Outcomes from a Single Institution with the ACS-NSQIP Database.

Background: Robotic surgery has increased in recent years for the treatment of colorectal cancer; however, it is not yet the standard of care. This study aims to compare the 30-day outcomes after robotic colectomy for right-sided colon cancer from our institution with those from a national dataset, the targeted colectomy American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database.

Methods: Patients undergoing elective, robotic, right colon resection for stage I, II, and III colon cancer were identified within the targeted colectomy ACS-NSQIP database from 2012 to 2014.

Laparoscopic Hiatal Hernia Repair with Falciform Ligament Buttress.

Background: Using synthetic mesh to buttress the crural repair during laparoscopic hiatal hernia repair may be associated with dysphagia and esophageal erosions, while a biologic mesh is expensive and does not decrease long-term recurrence rates. This study documents outcomes of laparoscopic paraesophageal hernia repairs using the falciform ligament to reinforce the crural repair.

Methods: This is a prospective study of laparoscopic paraesophageal hernia repairs with a falciform ligament buttress.

Resistin expression correlates with steatohepatitis in morbidly obese patients.

Background: Morbidly obese patients are at risk for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) even in the absence of risk factors for liver disease. Unfortunately, NASH is usually not clinically evident, and a definitive, noninvasive test for NASH does not exist. Resistin, a cytokine originating from adipose tissue, is involved in insulin resistance and also initiates proinflammatory signaling from hepatic stellate cells.

Laparoscopic splenectomy for metastatic squamous cell cancer of the neck.

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) spreads through direct extension, lymphatic vessels, and, rarely, hematogenous routes. The most common malignancies to metastasize to the spleen include carcinomas of the breast, lung, and melanoma. We present an unusual case of SCC of the neck with splenic metastases.