No abstract

Conversion of open VBG to RYGB is feasible and safe and can be performed with an acceptable complication rate. It gives excellent weight loss results and relief of outlet obstruction.

A rare case of symptomatic mesenteric cysts in a patient with Gorlin-Goltz syndrome, associated with various neoplasms, is presented. The patient, known with Gorlin-Goltz syndrome, consulted with increasingly severe abdominal pain and large abdominal cysts. At surgery, the cysts were excised and the postoperative course was uneventful. In conclusion, this case reminds clinicians to always maintain a wide differential diagnosis when dealing with patients known with Gorlin-Goltz syndrome.

Background: Barbed sutures have rarely been used in cardiac surgery. The reason is the absence of safety and feasibility data. This study was set up to assess the safety and efficacy using barbed sutures for right atrium cannulation-site closure both in short and longer-term follow up. Methods: Ten patients undergoing routine CABG through sternotomy with the use of ECC were included after giving written informed consent. After performing CABG, closure of the venous cannulation site at the right atrium is performed, using Stratafix® 2/0 non-resorbable, spiral polypropylene (SXPL1B400), without knotting. Results: No postoperative bleeding complications or revisions for bleeding or tamponade were noted. No complications or major adverse cardio-cerebrovascular incidents were registered during follow-up. The relevance of this lies in the difficulty in tying timely knots, even in experienced hands, during scopic or minimally invasive procedures. Being able to avoid this cumbersome procedure would largely reduce time spent on tying knots (the single most efficient time reducing step in minimally invasive cardiac surgery). Conclusion: Using knotless barbed sutures with an additional self-locking manoeuvre is feasible for the closure of the right atrium cannulation site in cardiac surgery, with no short-term or long-term complications. This opens up possibilities using knotless barbed sutures safer in minimally invasive cardiac surgery. This study confirms barbed knotless sutures perform adequately when closing a low-pressure cardiac structure, and in such, potentially saving time in minimally invasive surgery. Further investigation in closure of other cardiovascular structures is advisable and are planned by the authors.

Hyper-immunoglobulin E syndrome (HIES) is a rare immunologic disorder. This syndrome is caused by mutations in signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 gene. The described case report showed clinical HIES features such as recurrent bacterial pneumonia, lung cysts, characteristic facial features and a newborn dermatitis. We found a clinical features score of 35 and a positive family history, which, together, made a HIES diagnosis very probable. During DNA analysis, a new, formerly unknown, 1067C→G (p.P356R) mutation, with reference sequence NM_139276.2, was found in the DNA binding site of the STAT3 gene. Both the child and his mother were affected. Thus, this family is affected by the autosomal dominant, HIES. This case report reveals a formerly unknown mutation, 1067C→G (p.P356R) in this gene.