Publications by authors named "Jason Sciarretta"

Introduction: The utility of pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) for high-grade traumatic injuries remains unclear and data surrounding its use are limited. We hypothesized that PD does not result in improved outcomes when compared with non-PD surgical management of grade IV-V pancreaticoduodenal injuries.

Methods: This is a retrospective, multicenter analysis from 35 level 1 trauma centers from January 2010 to December 2020.

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Background: Pediatric lower extremity vascular injury (PLEVI) is uncommon and the availability of granular data is sparse. This study evaluated the surgical management of PLEVIs between a Level I adult (ATC) vs pediatric (PTC) trauma center.

Methods: We performed a retrospective review of PLEVIs (< 18 years) managed surgically between 01/2009-12/2022.

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  • One third of organ donors experience catastrophic brain injury (CBI), but there’s no standardized management for traumatic CBI among trauma centers, leading to variability in practices.
  • A multicenter trial involving 33 trauma centers analyzed 790 CBI patients to investigate whether institutions with CBI guidelines had higher organ donation rates.
  • While centers with CBI guidelines showed greater use of certain treatments, the presence of guidelines did not significantly increase organ donation rates; however, hormone therapies were linked to a higher likelihood of donation.
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  • A study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of a modified Pain, Inspiratory effort, Cough (PIC) scoring system for triaging patients with chest wall injuries in a trauma center.
  • Using data from two groups of patients admitted before and after the implementation of the modified-PIC system, researchers compared outcomes such as hospital length of stay, ICU admissions, and mortality rates.
  • Results indicated that the modified-PIC system may reduce ICU days, lower rates of ARDS (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome), and improve resource allocation in the hospital without significantly impacting mortality or overall recovery time.
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Introduction: High-grade pancreaticoduodenal injuries are highly morbid and may require complex surgical management. Pancreaticoduodenectomy (Whipple procedure) is sometimes utilized in the management of these injuries, but guidelines on its use are lacking. This paper aims to present our 14-year experience in management of high-grade pancreaticoduodenal injuries at our busy, urban trauma center.

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Background: Popliteal artery injuries (PAIs) may have amputation rates as high as 20%. This study focuses on identifying risk factors associated with major amputations following PAIs in a large single-center cohort. Additionally, we assess the impact of repairing or ligating concomitant popliteal vein injuries.

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  • * Thyrotoxicosis is a rare condition that can cause vague symptoms, leading to delayed diagnoses, which can worsen patient outcomes.
  • * In a unique case, a patient showing signs of peritonitis and portal venous gas had no abdominal issues found during surgery and was eventually diagnosed with thyrotoxicosis as the cause of the symptoms.
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Background: Blunt traumatic abdominal wall hernias (TAWHs) are rare but require a variety of operative techniques to repair including bone anchor fixation (BAF) when tissue tears off bony structures. This study aimed to provide a descriptive analysis of BAF technique for blunt TAWH repair. Bone anchor fixation and no BAF repairs were compared, hypothesizing increased hernia recurrence with BAF repair.

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  • Patients with duodenal leaks (DL) who received enteral nutrition (EN) experienced shorter time to leak closure, fewer infectious complications, and reduced hospital stays compared to those receiving parenteral nutrition (PN) or a combination of both.
  • The study analyzed data from 113 patients across 35 trauma centers, highlighting that EN patients had significantly fewer days without oral intake and less severe complications.
  • The findings suggest that EN is a preferable nutritional strategy for DL patients, as it promotes quicker recovery and fewer hospital-related issues.
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Compartment syndrome (CS) is a well-known surgical emergency with high morbidity including potential long-term disability and limb loss. The most important factor determining the degree of morbidity with CS is time to treatment; therefore, early diagnosis and surgery are vital. We present a patient who fell off his bicycle and sustained cervical spine fractures causing near complete quadriplegia.

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Introduction: Pediatric lower extremity vascular injuries (LEVI) are rare but can result in significant morbidity. We aimed to describe our experience with these injuries, including associated injury patterns, diagnostic and therapeutic challenges, and outcomes.

Methods: This was a retrospective review at a single level 1 trauma center from January 2000 to December 2019.

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Background: Pediatric lower extremity vascular injury (PLEVI) is uncommon. Though epidemiologic studies exist, the availability of granular data is sparse. Additionally, few studies compare the management between adult (ATC) and pediatric (PTC) trauma centers.

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Background: Traumatic pneumopericardium (PPC) is a rare clinical entity associated with chest trauma, resulting from a pleuropericardial connection in the presence of a pneumothorax, interstitial air tracking along the pulmonary perivascular sheaths from ruptured alveoli to the pericardium, or direct trachea-bronchial-pericardial communication.  Our objectives were to describe the modern management approach to PPC and to identify variables that could improve survival with severe thoracic injury.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of the trauma registry between 2015 and 2022 at a Level I verified adult trauma center for all patients with PPC.

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In recent years, isolated non-operative management of penetrating liver injuries has become the standard of care for the hemodynamically stable patient. However, when the patient becomes hemodynamically unstable, adjuncts such as resuscitative endovascular balloon occlusion of the aorta (REBOA) deployed in Zone 1 can be used to achieve complete aortic occlusion from the celiac axis down. Unfortunately, hemorrhage control through REBOA comes at the risk of deadly intra-abdominal ischemia.

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Background: Blunt traumatic abdominal wall hernias (TAWH) occur in <1 % of trauma patients. Optimal repair techniques, such as mesh reinforcement, have not been studied in detail. We hypothesize that mesh use will be associated with increased surgical site infections (SSI) and not improve hernia recurrence.

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Background: Ultramassive transfusion (UMT) is a resource-demanding intervention for trauma patients in hemorrhagic shock, and associated mortality rates remains high. Current research has been unable to identify a transfusion ceiling or point where UMT transitions from lifesaving to futility. Furthermore, little consideration has been given to how time-specific patient data points impact decisions with ongoing high-volume resuscitation.

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Background: Traumatic vascular injuries of the lower extremity in the pediatric population are uncommon but can result in significant morbidity. The objective of this study is to demonstrate our experience with these injuries by describing patterns of traumatic vascular injury, the initial management, and data regarding early outcomes.

Methods: In total, 506 patients presented with lower extremity vascular injury between January 1, 2009 and January 1, 2021 to Grady Memorial Hospital, an urban, adult Level I trauma center in Atlanta, Georgia.

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Introduction: The anterior stove-in chest (ASIC) is a rare form of flail chest involving bilateral rib or sternal fractures resulting in an unstable chest wall that caves into the thoracic cavity. Given ASIC has only been described in a handful of case reports, this study sought to review our institution's experience in the surgical management of ASIC injuries.

Methods: A retrospective review of patients with ASIC was conducted at our level I trauma center from 1//2021 to 3//2023.

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Background: No studies to date have evaluated the use of rigid plate fixation for emergent sternotomy in trauma patients. We evaluated our use of rigid plate fixation vs wire cerclage in patients requiring emergent sternotomy. We hypothesized there would be no difference in complications related to sternal closure between the two groups.

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Introduction: Angiography has been widely accepted as an adjunct in the management of blunt abdominal trauma in adults. However, the role of angiography with or without angioembolization (AE) is still being defined in pediatric solid organ injury. We sought to compare the use of angiography in solid organ injury (SOI) at pediatric trauma centers (PTCs) versus an adult trauma center (ATC) in a large metropolitan city.

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Objective: Critically ill and injured patients are routinely managed on the Trauma and Acute Care Surgery (ACS) service and receive care from numerous residents during hospital admission. The Clinical Learning Environment Review (CLER) program established by the ACGME identified variability in resident transitions of care (TC) while observing quality care and patient safety concerns. The aim of our multi-institutional study was to review surgical trainees' impressions of a specialty-specific handoff format in order to optimize patient care and enhance surgical education on the ACS service.

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Background: Traumatic abdominal wall hernias (TAWH) are relatively uncommon; however, the shearing force that results in fascial disruption could indicate an increased risk of visceral injury. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether the presence of a TAWH was associated with intra-abdominal injury requiring emergent laparotomy.

Methods: The trauma registry was queried over an 8-year period (7/2012-7/2020) for adult patients with blunt thoracoabdominal trauma diagnosed with a TAWH.

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Background: Duodenal leak is a feared complication of repair, and innovative complex repairs with adjunctive measures (CRAM) were developed to decrease both leak occurrence and severity when leaks occur. Data on the association of CRAM and duodenal leak are sparse, and its impact on duodenal leak outcomes is nonexistent. We hypothesized that primary repair alone (PRA) would be associated with decreased duodenal leak rates; however, CRAM would be associated with improved recovery and outcomes when leaks do occur.

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  • Hepatic arterioportal fistula (HAPF) is a rare complication that can arise from liver trauma, leading to symptoms like abdominal pain and portal hypertension over time.
  • This study analyzed 127 patients with severe liver injuries and identified 5 cases of acute HAPF requiring various surgical interventions, including angiography and embolization techniques.
  • Successful management of HAPF was achieved through modern endovascular methods, highlighting the importance of a multidisciplinary approach for optimal care in trauma situations.
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Abdominal evisceration after blunt trauma is uncommon and rarely survivable when coupled with a concomitant iliac vascular injury. Blunt abdominal injury is rarely a cause of abdominal evisceration but may, on occasion, present in patients affected by a unique or high-energy traumatic injury. In these instances, major vascular injury is exceedingly rare but is associated with a high mortality rate.

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