Management, outcomes and predictors of mortality of Cryptococcus infection in patients without HIV: a multicentre study in 46 hospitals from Australia and New Zealand.

Background: Limited data exist regarding outcomes of cryptococcosis in patients without HIV with few studies having compared outcomes of Cryptococcus gattii, versus C. neoformans, infection.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study in 46 Australian and New Zealand hospitals to determine the outcomes of cryptococcosis in patients without HIV diagnosed between 2015 and 2019, and compared outcomes of C.

Peritoneal Tumor DNA as a Prognostic Biomarker in Gastric Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Purpose: Gastric cancers commonly spread to the peritoneum. Its presence significantly alters patient prognosis and treatment-intent; however, current methods of peritoneal staging are inaccurate. Peritoneal tumor DNA (ptDNA) is tumor-derived DNA detectable in peritoneal lavage fluid.

The prognostic impact of peritoneal tumour DNA in gastrointestinal and gynaecological malignancies: a systematic review.

Peritoneal metastases from various abdominal cancer types are common and carry poor prognosis. The presence of peritoneal disease upstages cancer diagnosis and alters disease trajectory and treatment pathway in many cancer types. Therefore, accurate and timely detection of peritoneal disease is crucial.

Bariatric surgery in a public hospital: a 10-year experience.

Introduction: Obesity is common and adversely impacts quality-of-life and healthcare cost. In Australia, less than 10% of bariatric surgeries are performed in the public sector. This study reports our 10-year experience from a high volume public bariatric service which delivers multi-disciplinary care for primary and revisional procedures with mid- to long-term follow-up.

Reduction in post-operative pancreatic fistula with polyethylene glycol and recombinant human albumin sealant following stapled distal pancreatectomy.

Background: Postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF) remains a significant cause of morbidity in patients undergoing distal pancreatectomy (DP). The use of polyethylene glycol (PEG) and recombinant human albumin sealant gel applied to the transected pancreatic margin in DP may reduce POPF rates and was assessed.

Methods: A retrospective single centre cohort study of patient undergoing DP at an Australian high volume tertiary institution between January 2015 and January 2021.

The effect of animated consent material on participants' willingness to enrol in a placebo-controlled surgical trial: a protocol for a randomised feasibility study.

Background: Placebo-controlled surgical trials are recognised as the gold standard way to test the efficacy of a surgical procedure. Despite a rise in arthroscopic subacromial decompression (ASD) surgeries for the treatment of shoulder pain, only two placebo-controlled surgical trials have been conducted. These trials encountered significant recruitment challenges, threatening the external validity of findings.

'No zone' approach to the management of stable penetrating neck injuries: a systematic review.

Background: Aim: to review outcomes of the 'no zone' approach to penetrating neck injuries (PNIs) with the advent of high-fidelity computed tomography-angiography (CT-A) in order to determine the most appropriate management for stable PNIs.

Design: Systematic review.

Population: Retrospective and prospective cohort studies of patients who sustained penetrating neck trauma, as defined by an injury which penetrates the platysma, and whose initial management involved CT-A evaluation.

Toward a Better Understanding of Electrocochleography: Analysis of Real-Time Recordings.

Objectives: Real-time electrocochleography (ECochG) has been used as a monitoring tool during cochlear implantation (CI), whereby, amplitude drops have been correlated with postoperative acoustic hearing results. However, no consensus has been reached as to how a single event of an amplitude drop should be characterized. The aim of this study was to identify ECochG events that predict loss of hearing 1 month after surgery.

Multicenter Clinical Investigation of a New Active Osseointegrated Steady-State Implant System.

Objective: A new active transcutaneous bone conduction hearing implant system that uses piezoelectric technology has been developed: an active osseointegrated steady-state implant system (OSI). This was the first clinical investigation undertaken to demonstrate clinical performance, safety, and benefit of the new implant system.

Study Design And Setting: A multicenter prospective within-subject clinical investigation was conducted.

Clinical, radiological and pathological outcomes following treatment of primary giant cell tumour of bone with Denosumab.

Background: Giant cell tumour of bone (GCTOB) is a relatively uncommon, benign, but locally aggressive neoplasm. Denosumab is a fully human monoclonal antibody with inhibitory effects on receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-B ligand that has shown early promise as a possible treatment adjuvant for GCTB. However, much is still unknown about its current indications, long-term effects, the potential risk for rapid relapse and its involvement in sarcomatous transformation.

Early surgical complications of total hip arthroplasty related to surgical approach.

Background: Total hip arthroplasty (THA) can be performed through a number of surgical approaches. The aim was to compare the incidence of early surgical complications in THA related to approach.

Methods: A retrospective review of prospectively recorded data extracted from St.

Pre-operative and intra-operative chemical thromboprophylaxis increases bleeding risk following elective cholecystectomy: a multicentre (PROTECTinG) study.

Background: Cholecystectomy is commonly performed in general surgery. Despite guidelines recommending chemical thromboprophylaxis in the perioperative period, the most appropriate time for its initiation is unknown. Here, we investigated whether timing of chemoprophylaxis affected venous thromboembolism (VTE) and bleeding rates post-cholecystectomy.

Musculoskeletal Infection in Orthopaedic Oncology: Assessment of the 2018 International Consensus Meeting on Musculoskeletal Infection.

Background: The first International Consensus Meeting (ICM) on Musculoskeletal Infection convened in 2013 in order to provide agreement on the prevention, the diagnosis, and the treatment of surgical site infection (SSI) and periprosthetic joint infection (PJI). Recognizing the added susceptibility of orthopaedic oncology patients to SSI and PJI, the second ICM in 2018 included questions and corresponding recommendations from this subspecialty of orthopaedics.

Methods: The 13 steps of the Delphi method were followed over the course of 26 months, starting in June 2016.

Differential engagement of ORAI1 and TRPC1 in the induction of vimentin expression by different stimuli.

The Ca signal is essential in both hypoxia- and epidermal growth factor (EGF)-mediated epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) in MDA-MB-468 breast cancer cells. This finding suggests that Ca-permeable ion channels participate in the induction of expression of some mesenchymal markers such as vimentin. However, the ion channels involved in vimentin expression induction have not been fully characterized.

Effectiveness of behavioural interventions on physical activity levels after hip or knee joint replacement: a systematic review.

To evaluate the effect of behavioural interventions on levels of physical activity after hip or knee joint replacement. A systematic review with meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials to determine the effectiveness of behavioural interventions to increase physical activity levels after hip or knee joint replacement. Six databases were searched.

Physical activity levels after hip and knee joint replacement surgery: an observational study.

Usual care after hip or knee joint replacement does not adequately address the problem of low physical activity levels. We aimed to determine whether exercise delivered in a group setting in the early stage of outpatient rehabilitation influenced self-reported physical activity levels after hip or knee joint replacement. A case series of 79 participants referred to a 6-week outpatient orthopaedic exercise group after total hip or knee replacement were evaluated using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) short form.

Combinatorial Targeting by MicroRNAs Co-ordinates Post-transcriptional Control of EMT.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are important post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression, functioning in part by facilitating the degradation of target mRNAs. They have an established role in controlling epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), a reversible phenotypic program underlying normal and pathological processes. Many studies demonstrate the role of individual miRNAs using overexpression at levels greatly exceeding physiological abundance.

Zinc preconditioning protects against renal ischaemia reperfusion injury in a preclinical sheep large animal model.

Ischaemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) during various surgical procedures, including partial nephrectomy for kidney cancer or renal transplantation, is a major cause of acute kidney injury and chronic kidney disease. Currently there are no drugs or methods for protecting human organs, including the kidneys, against the peril of IRI. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the reno-protective effect of Zn preconditioning in a clinically relevant large animal sheep model of IRI.

Body Mass Index Is Associated With All-cause Mortality After THA and TKA.

Background: Both obesity and underweight are associated with a higher risk of mortality in adulthood, but the association between mortality after arthroplasty and extreme ranges of body mass index (BMI) have not been evaluated beyond the first year.

Questions/purposes: The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between BMI and all-cause mortality after TKA and THA.

Methods: Data from two arthroplasty registries, the St Vincent's Melbourne Arthroplasty (SMART) Registry from Australia and the Kaiser Permanente Total Joint Replacement Registry (KPTJRR) from the United States, were used to identify patients aged ≥ 18 years undergoing elective TKAs and THAs between January 1, 2002, and December 31, 2013.

MicroRNAs in HPV associated cancers: small players with big consequences.

MicroRNAs (miRs) are short (~20 nucleotides) non-coding ribonuecleic acids (ncRNAs) known to be involved in cellular processes such as proliferation, differentiation, immune response, pathogenicity and tumourigenesis, among many others. The regulatory mechanisms exerted by miRs have been implicated in many cancers, including Human Papillomavirus (HPV)-associated cancers. Areas covered: In this review, the authors discuss the involvement of miRs (-143, -375, -21, -200, -296 etc.