[Construct validity of the TECS questionnaire for the quality of teamwork in surgery].

Objective: To assess the construct validity and reliability of the Trabajo en Equipo en Cirugía (TECS) questionnaire.

Method: The questionnaire was administered to 401 undergraduate students who were doing surgery practices at three universities. An exploratory factor analysis was performed on the first 200 observations, and a confirmatory factor analysis on the remaining ones.

[Effectiveness of simulation in endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for successful bile duct cannulation: systematic review and meta-analysis].

Introduction: The evidence for simulation in endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography is limited.

Objective: The objective of this study is to review the effectiveness of simulation in endoscopist training in endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography with emphasis on the successful cannulation of the bile duct, as well as on the cannulation time and performance evaluation.

Materials And Methods: A systematic review was conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Web of Science, from 1970 to June 2021.

Building bridges between medicine and the humanities: The role of scaffolds and articulation in surgical learning.

Introduction: Learning about medicine from the humanities is a complex process that requires pedagogical strategies to avoid fragmentation and the paradox of transference. Instructional design in surgical education for these purposes is limited. Objective: To present the results of an educational strategy for the integration of surgery and the medical humanities based on the theoretical perspectives of the cognitive apprenticeship model and to assess its association with the students’ perceptions of learning.

Cancer-associated DDX3X mutations drive stress granule assembly and impair global translation.

DDX3X is a DEAD-box RNA helicase that has been implicated in multiple aspects of RNA metabolism including translation initiation and the assembly of stress granules (SGs). Recent genomic studies have reported recurrent DDX3X mutations in numerous tumors including medulloblastoma (MB), but the physiological impact of these mutations is poorly understood. Here we show that a consistent feature of MB-associated mutations is SG hyper-assembly and concomitant translation impairment.

Prediction of prolonged mechanical ventilation in patients in the intensive care unit A cohort study.

Introduction: There are no established guidelines for selecting patients for early tracheostomy. The aim was to determine the factors that could predict the possibility of intubation longer than 7 days in critically ill adult patients.

Methods: This is cohort study made at a general intensive care unit.

The evolution of laparoscopy in abdominal surgery: a meta-analysis of the effect on infectious outcomes.

Background: Laparoscopic surgery has been recommended as an effective strategy because of its advantages in decreasing abdominal surgical site infections (SSIs). The aim of this study was to assess the effect of laparoscopy on superficial and organ/space SSIs compared with open surgery in hollow-viscus procedures over time.

Study Design: Data on SSIs from randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating open versus laparoscopic abdominal surgeries were extracted from the Cochrane Database Reviews.

Cost-effectiveness analysis regarding postoperative administration of vitamin-D and calcium after thyroidectomy to prevent hypocalcaemia.

Objective: Hypocalcaemia is a frequently arising complication following total thyroidectomy. Routine postoperative prophylactic administration of vitamin D or metabolites and calcium reduce the incidence of symptomatic hypocalcaemia; this article reports evaluating its cost-effectiveness in Colombia.

Methods: Meta-analysis was used for comparing the administration of vitamin D or metabolites to oral calcium or no treatment at all in patients following total thyroidectomy and a cost-effectiveness analysis was designed based on a decision-tree model with local costs.

A new role for ATM: regulating mitochondrial function and mitophagy.

The various pathologies in ataxia telangiectasia (A-T) patients including T-cell lymphomagenesis have been attributed to defects in the DNA damage response pathway because ATM, the gene mutated in this disease, is a key mediator of this process. Analysis of Atm-deficient thymocytes in mice reveals that the absence of this gene results in altered mitochondrial homeostasis, a phenomenon that appears to result from abnormal mitophagy engagement. Interestingly, allelic loss of the autophagic gene Becn1 delays tumorigenesis in Atm-null mice presumably by reversing the mitochondrial abnormalities and not by improving the DNA damage response (DDR) pathway.

Mitochondrial dysfunction in ataxia-telangiectasia.

Ataxia-telangiectasia mutated (ATM) plays a central role in DNA damage responses, and its loss leads to development of T-cell malignancies. Here, we show that ATM loss also leads to intrinsic mitochondrial abnormalities in thymocytes, including elevated reactive oxygen species, increased aberrant mitochondria, high cellular respiratory capacity, and decreased mitophagy. A fraction of ATM protein is localized in mitochondria, and it is rapidly activated by mitochondrial dysfunction.

Prognosis of patients with thyroid cancer who do not undergo surgical treatment: a SEER database analysis.

Background: The treatment for thyroid cancer is surgical. However, some patients do not undergo operations because of comorbidities or other reasons. There is little information about the prognosis of these patients.

Routine postoperative administration of vitamin D and calcium after total thyroidectomy: a meta-analysis.

Background: Temporary hypocalcemia is a frequent complication after total thyroidectomy. Routine postoperative administration of vitamin D and calcium can reduce the incidence of symptomatic postoperative hypocalcemia. We undertook a systematic review to assess the effectiveness of this intervention.

Spontaneous tumorigenesis in mice overexpressing the p53-negative regulator Mdm4.

High levels of the critical p53 inhibitor Mdm4 is common in tumors that retain a wild-type p53 allele, suggesting that Mdm4 overexpression is an important mechanism for p53 inactivation during tumorigenesis. To test this hypothesis in vivo, we generated transgenic mice with widespread expression of Mdm4. Two independent lines of transgenic mice, Mdm4(Tg1) and Mdm4(Tg15), developed spontaneous tumors, the most prevalent of which were sarcomas.

Early laparoscopy for the evaluation of nonspecific abdominal pain: a critical appraisal of the evidence.

Background: Patients with nonspecific abdominal pain (NSAP) are frequently seen in emergency departments. Different studies have suggested that early laparoscopy (EL) could be an adequate tool to accelerate diagnosis and therapy. The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of EL in terms of diagnosis, persistence of NSAP, mortality, morbidity, cost, hospital stay, and quality of life relative to observation in NSAP.

Mdm4 loss in the intestinal epithelium leads to compartmentalized cell death but no tissue abnormalities.

Mdm4 is a critical inhibitor of the p53 tumor suppressor. Mdm4 null mice die early during embryogenesis due to increased p53 activity. In this study, we explore the role that Mdm4 plays in the intestinal epithelium by crossing mice carrying the Mdm4 floxed allele to mice with the Villin Cre transgene.

The intestinal epithelium compensates for p53-mediated cell death and guarantees organismal survival.

Mdm2 is the major inhibitor of the p53 tumor suppressor. Loss of Mdm2 in mice or in specific tissues of the mouse always yields p53-dependent lethal phenotypes. However, the role of Mdm2 in tissues with high turnover capacity is unknown.

High levels of the p53 inhibitor MDM4 in head and neck squamous carcinomas.

The p53 tumor suppressor is mutated in most human tumors. MDM2, a well-known inhibitor of p53, is overexpressed in a large number of tumors, suggesting that increased levels of MDM2 also contribute to tumorigenesis. A novel p53 inhibitor, MDM4, was more recently identified.

HDM4 (HDMX) is widely expressed in adult pre-B acute lymphoblastic leukemia and is a potential therapeutic target.

Human homolog of murine double minute 2 (HDM2) and HDM4 (or HDMX) are negative regulators of p53. HDM4 has not been assessed in precursor B (pre-B) lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). We examined bone marrow samples obtained at time of diagnosis from 55 adults with pre-B ALL.

Gain of function of a p53 hot spot mutation in a mouse model of Li-Fraumeni syndrome.

Individuals with Li-Fraumeni syndrome carry inherited mutations in the p53 tumor suppressor gene and are predisposed to tumor development. To examine the mechanistic nature of these p53 missense mutations, we generated mice harboring a G-to-A substitution at nucleotide 515 of p53 (p53+/515A) corresponding to the p53R175H hot spot mutation in human cancers. Although p53+/515A mice display a similar tumor spectrum and survival curve as p53+/- mice, tumors from p53+/515A mice metastasized with high frequency.