A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis on Perioperative Cerebral and Hemodynamic Monitoring Methods during Carotid Endarterectomy.

Background: To compare outcomes between different strategies of perioperative cerebral and hemodynamic monitoring during carotid endarterectomy.

Data Sources: MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and Cochrane CENTRAL databases were searched.

Methods: This review was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines and prospectively registered in the international prospective register of systematic reviews (CRD42021241891).

The Use of the Oxygenated AirdriveTM Machine Perfusion System in Kidney Graft Preservation: A Clinical Pilot Study.

Background: The shortage of donor kidneys has led to the use of marginal donors, e.g., those whose kidneys are donated after circulatory death.

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis on the Management of Open Abdominal Aortic Graft Infections.

Objective: Aortic graft infection (AGI) is a disastrous complication with an incidence of 0.2-6% in operated patients. With little or no high quality evidence, the best treatment option remains unclear.

Spontaneous aortoenteric fistula involving the sigmoid: A case report and review of literature.

Introduction: Primary aortoenteric fistula (PAEF) is a pathological communication between the aorta and any portion of the gastrointestinal tract. The pathology is very rare and easily overlooked during the diagnostic process.

Presentation Of Case: We report the exceptional case of an 86-year-old man with episodes of abdominal pain and rectal bleeding of unknown cause over a period of 1,5 months due to a PAEF to the sigmoid.

The complicated Allen-Masters syndrome: small bowel herniation through a broad ligament defect.

Small bowel obstruction through a broad ligament defect is a very rare condition. We present 2 cases, one without any associated abdominal trauma. Rapid diagnosis and treatment of this rare condition is of paramount importance.

Endothelial cell preservation at hypothermic to normothermic conditions using clinical and experimental organ preservation solutions.

Introduction: Endothelial barrier function is pivotal for the outcome of organ transplantation. Since hypothermic preservation (gold standard) is associated with cold-induced endothelial damage, endothelial barrier function may benefit from organ preservation at warmer temperatures. We therefore assessed endothelial barrier integrity and viability as function of preservation temperature and perfusion solution, and hypothesized that endothelial cell preservation at subnormothermic conditions using metabolism-supporting solutions constitute optimal preservation conditions.

Efficacy of liver graft washout as a function of the perfusate, pressure, and temperature.

Donor graft washout can be impaired by colloids in organ preservation solutions that increase the viscosity and agglutinative propensity of red blood cells (RBCs) and potentially decrease organ function. The colloid-induced agglutinative effects on RBCs and RBC retention after liver washout with Ringer's lactate (RL), histidine tryptophan ketoglutarate solution, University of Wisconsin solution, and Polysol were determined as a function of the washout pressure (15 or 100 mm Hg) and temperature (4 or 37°C) in a rat liver washout model with (99m) Tc-pertechnetate-labeled RBCs. Colloids (polyethylene glycol in Polysol and hydroxyethyl starch in University of Wisconsin) induced RBC agglutination, regardless of the solution's composition.

A novel oxygenated machine perfusion system for preservation of the liver.

Machine perfusion (MP) is a potential method to increase the donor pool for organ transplantation. However, MP systems for liver grafts remain difficult to use because of organ-specific demands. Our aim was to test a novel, portable MP system for hypothermic preservation of the liver.

Antibiotic prophylaxis in (sub)normothermic organ preservation: in vitro efficacy and toxicity of cephalosporins.

Background: Bacterial contamination during cold organ preservation occurs without major complications. However, with organ preservation steering toward (sub)normothermic temperatures, bacterial contamination may be detrimental with limited evidence to support the choice of antibiotic.

Methods: This study aimed to determine the effective antibiotic prophylaxis for (sub)normothermic preservation by investigating whether Staphylococcus epidermidis was capable of growing in a subnormothermia-compatible preservation solution Polysol (PS) and in solutions designed for cold preservation (University of Wisconsin solution, histidine-tryptophan-ketoglutarate solution, and Belzer-machine perfusion solution).

Laser speckle contrast imaging for assessment of liver microcirculation.

Objective: Laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI) is a novel technique for microcirculation imaging not previously used in the liver. The aim of the present experimental study was to evaluate the use of LSCI for assessing liver microcirculation.

Materials And Methods: In six male Wistar rats, the median liver lobe was exposed through a midline laparotomy.

Characterization and quantification of porcine circulating endothelial cells.

Background: Endothelial damage is a critical step in the development of (xeno) transplantation-related and cardiovascular pathology. In humans, the amount of circulating endothelial cells (CEC) correlates to disease intensity and functions as a valuable damage marker. While (xeno) transplantation and cardiovascular research is regularly performed in porcine models, the paucity of antibodies against porcine endothelium epitopes hinders the use of CEC as damage marker.

Optimal flow and pressure management in machine perfusion systems for organ preservation.

Intra-organ flow is the most critical parameter in machine-perfused organ preservation systems (MPS). Ultrasonic flow sensors (UFS) are commonly employed in MPS. However, UFS are sensitive to changes in fluid composition and temperature and require recalibration.

Appraisal of the porcine kidney autotransplantation model.

Animal models are extensively used for transplantation related research, especially kidney transplantation. Porcine autotransplantation models are considered to be favorable regarding translatability to the human setting. The key determinants for translatability of the model are discussed, comprising animal age, development, anatomy, anesthesia and surgical protocols, and perioperative care.

Real-time assessment of renal cortical microvascular perfusion heterogeneities using near-infrared laser speckle imaging.

Laser speckle imaging (LSI) is able to provide full-field perfusion maps of the renal cortex and allows quantification of the average LSI perfusion within an arbitrarily set region of interest and the recovery of LSI perfusion histograms within this region. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the use of LSI for mapping renal cortical microvascular perfusion and to demonstrate the capability of LSI to assess renal perfusion heterogeneities. The main findings were that: 1) full-field LSI measurements of renal microvascular perfusion were highly correlated to single-point LDV measurements; 2) LSI is able to detect differences in reperfusion dynamics following different durations of ischemia; and 3) renal microvascular perfusion heterogeneities can be quantitatively assessed by recovering LSI perfusion histograms.

[A 73-year-old man with a Merkel cell carcinoma].

A 73-year-old man had a firm node on his right upper arm, which was caused by a Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC). The diagnosis was made on the basis of characteristic histopathological findings and a surgical excision with wide margins followed. Twenty months later a considerable swelling manifested in the right armpit due to a metastasis.