Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to David Williams.
Three headlines have appeared in the British press recently, all of which concern health-care issues related to technology, and which have profound implications for public confidence in medical practice. Once again, at the year's end, it is necessary to reassess our own procedures and safeguards to prevent erosion of public confidence in our industry.
PURPOSE: To present a new treatment option in patients with acute bleeding from the hepatic artery branches. METHODS: Four male patients, 23-49 years old (mean 36.3 years), were treated for acute bleeding and subsequent transient hypotension. Bleeding episodes were secondary to hepatic artery pseudoaneurysms in two patients and surgical suture insufficiency in one patient. In the remaining patient, anastomotic leakage occurred following thrombolysis for hepatic artery thrombosis. Patients were treated by endovascular placement of one or two balloon-expandable stent-grafts, ranging from 17 to 28 mm in length. RESULTS: All procedures were carried out without serious complications. All stent-grafts were deployed in the intended position with immediate cessation of bleeding and initial preservation of satisfactory blood flow. CONCLUSIONS: Bleeding from the hepatic artery can be treated by insertion of balloon-expandable stent-grafts in the acute setting.
Few studies of the prevalence of histologic lesions of the exocrine pancreas in dogs have been reported, and none of them systematically evaluate the localization of these lesions. The purpose of this study was to describe the anatomic localization of pancreatic inflammation, necrosis, and fibrosis in dogs presented for postmortem examination. Seventy-three pancreata from dogs presented for postmortem examination were evaluated and investigated for the presence of suppurative inflammation (SI), pancreatic necrosis (PN), and lymphocytic inflammation (LI). Sections that showed evidence of SI, PN, or LI also were evaluated for pancreatic fibrosis (F). The tendency for a preferred localization for SI, PN, and LI was evaluated by chi-square analysis. A total of 47 pancreata with histologic evidence of pancreatitis (SI, PN, or LI; F alone was not considered evidence of pancreatitis) were identified. Twenty-four (51.1%) had SI, 23 (48.9%) had PN, and 34 (72.3%) had LI. Of the 47 dogs with SI, PN, or LI, 28 (59.6%) had F. The distribution of SI, PN, and LI between the right and the left limb of the pancreas and among the 5 anatomic regions was random, based on a goodness-of-fit test. We conclude that pancreatic inflammation tends to occur in discrete areas within the pancreas rather than diffusely throughout the whole organ. These findings suggest that a single biopsy is insufficient to exclude subclinical pancreatitis and that there is no preferred site for pancreatic biopsy collection unless gross lesions are apparent.
Chitin is a natural biopolymer that, with its derivative chitosan, has been represented as a biomaterial with considerable potential in wide ranging medical applications. This article explains the basis for this claim and describes the nature and properties of these materials.
When tissue-engineering (TE) products started to emerge a few years ago, it seemed that the natural choice for the degradable scaffolds would be the same synthetic aliphatic polyesters that are used for absorbable medical devices. However, it is now becoming clearer that different solutions are required for the construction of these important constituents of TE products.
Polyhydroxybutyrate has been around for a couple of decades within the medical technology industry, but without making a significant impact. That may be about to change.
For most people, the threat of widespread transmission of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease in humans as a result of bovine spongiform encephalopathy has passed into the history books. But concerns about transmission of the disease during certain medical procedures still exist.
AIM: The aim of this study was to compare the newly developed Conveen Optima urinary sheath with the established Clear Advantage urinary sheath in terms of patient satisfaction and preference. METHOD: This was a randomised, prospective, open, crossover study, in which each participant tested 10 urinary sheaths. RESULTS: Conveen Optima provided a higher feeling of security, was easier to handle and apply and was more comfortable to wear than Clear Advantage. Furthermore, Conveen Optima was easier to apply with gloves. Finally, the overall product preference for the Conveen Optima sheath was 67 per cent. CONCLUSION: The new Conveen Optima urinary sheath was found to perform better than the well-established Clear Advantage sheath. Declaration of interest This study was funded by Coloplast A/S.
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