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Biomedical subjects

A Uccheddu

Publications and source records attributed to A Uccheddu.

59 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

[Stomach cancer in the elderly patient].

Gastric cancer is a typical disease of old age, in fact about one half of the patients affect by it are aged over 65. Elderly patients imply a problematical choice of surgical treatment due to the general and specific risk and to life expectancy. In order to evaluate the specific features of gastric cancer in aged people and to share their experience in choosing the surgical treatment, a series of 50 patients with gastric cancer selected on the age > or = 75 years and observed from 1970 to 1993, was reviewed by the authors. Some features have been settled such as sex ratio approaching the unity, a prevalence of tumors located in the distal third of the stomach, the higher incidence of intestinal type and a wide incidence of intestinal type and a wide incidence of patients in III or IV stage. No surgical procedure was undertaken in eleven patients. The remaining 39 patients (78%) underwent a surgical procedure. In 22 patients (56.4) a resection was performed: 17 (77.3%) underwent a subtotal gastric resection, 11 curative and 6 palliative, and 5 (22.7%) a total gastrectomy out of necessity for tumor localization. In 17 patients (43.6%) a bypass procedure was carried out, while in 7 (17.9%) the surgical procedure was a simple laparatomy. Postoperative morbidity incidence was 17.9%, mortality rate 10.2%. Actuarial 5 years survival rate for curative resection was 41.5%. Median survival time was 13 months for patients who underwent a palliative resection and 6 months after bypass procedures. The data suggest that subtotal gastrectomy, also as palliative procedure, fits better to geriatric patients' requirements and is able to offer a satisfactory quality of life, to prevent cancer complications and to determine a longer survival.

Age Factors↗

[The choice of the intervention in the surgical treatment of nontoxic diffuse multinodular goiter].

The choice between sub-total (STT) and total (TT) thyroidectomy in surgical management of multinodular goitre should be based on the disease pathophysiology and the critical review of short and long-term results of these treatments. In order to make a comparative evaluation the authors carried out a retrospective analysis on a series of patients operated from 1970 to 1993 and on the results of a 16.3 years mean follow-up. Of 551 patients operated on the thyroid gland, 389 (70.6%) affected by multinodular goitre were considered. 340 were female and 49 male (39 years medium age). 341 (87.6%) underwent STT and 48 (12.4%) TT. Post-operative opotherapy was adjusted according to hormonal assays. Post-operative vocal cord motility and calcemia were assessed. A routine endocrinological follow-up protocol has been carried out on all patients since 1980. Transitory vocal cord palsy and hypocalcemia were significantly more frequent in TT, while permanent damage was not. Of 40 TT (complete 5 years mean follow-up, 97.5% of the patients reached euthyroidism with replacement therapy. Of 189 STT (complete 16.3 years mean follow-up), 61.4% of the patients received opotherapy. A recurrent goitre was ascertained in 39.1% of the total (73.3% in the patients not receiving opotherapy) and operated in 16.2% of the cases. According to the authors their results support the choice of TT as it matches the rationale of surgical treatment of multinodular non-toxic goitre based on the pathophysiology of the disease. Moreover it allows easy achievement of euthyroidism avoiding goitre relapse and subsequently re-operation, with an incidence of permanent recurrent nerve palsy and hypoparathyroidism not significantly different from that after STT.

Adolescent↗

[Human fibrin glue in the treatment of residual parenchymal surface after total pericystectomy for hepatic echinococcus].

The aim of this study was to evaluate the presumed efficacy of fibrin sealant in limiting bleeding and biliary leakage from liver residual surface after total pericystectomy for hydatid disease. Forty-five patients (group A) who underwent total pericystectomy in our Institution from 1986 to 1995 and liver residual surface treated with conventional techniques and fibrin sealant for control of haemorrhage and bile leakage were selected. A control group (B) was carefully selected, matching the main characteristics of patients in group A: it consisted of 44 patients, who underwent total pericystectomy from 1981 to 1993 and in which fibrin sealant was not used. Postoperative hospital stay, morbidity, mortality, abdominal drainage discharge, perioperative variations of hemoglobin and hematocrit readings and the need for postoperative blood transfusion were evaluated in the two groups. A statistical analysis was performed. We found no statistical significance for the considered parameters in the two groups. Markedly no significative difference was found in morbidity, abdominal drainage discharge and need for postoperative blood transfusion. Our results do not allow a definite assessment of the actual role of fibrin sealant in rising efficacy on control of bleeding and biliary leakage from residual liver surface to total pericystectomy obtained with conventional haemostatic techniques. We believe that a previously planned controlled prospective trial could give the needed further elements to precisely evaluate the role of fibrin sealant in the surgical treatment of hydatid disease of the liver.

Adult↗