Background: Vaporization around the radiofrequency (RF) electrode after RF application (RFA) limits the RF ablation area. Purpose: To determine whether saturated saline injected into the area of vaporization after initial RFA extends ablation area after further RFA. Material and Methods: RFA was performed in 18 ex vivo porcine livers and four in vivo rabbit erector spinae muscles. An RF electrode was used to ablate an area with 40W of parallel current for 15 min. The ablation margin was determined using a thermocouple, and the radius of the ablated area was measured. After RF electrode removal, saturated saline was infused through a percutaneous ethanol injection needle into the site of the original RFA in 11 liver samples and two erector spinae muscles. Three minutes later, RFA was resumed for 15 min. The remaining seven control liver samples and two spinae muscles received RFA without saline injection. The radius of the final ablated area was then measured. Results: In the ex vivo study, injection of saturated saline significantly decreased tissue impedance (87.799.4 to 51.199.7V, P B0.0001), and increased the mean radius of the ablated area (15.993.0 to 25.093.6 mm, P B0.0001). These significant changes were not observed without injection of saturated saline. Similar trends were found in the in vivo study. Conclusion: Injection of saturated saline into the area of vaporization around the RF electrode, followed by additional RFA, caused concentric expansion of the final ablation area, facilitating more efficient tumor ablation.

Background: Osteopenia is defined as low bone mineral density (BMD) and has been shown to be associated with outcomes of patients with various cancers. The association between osteopenia and perihilar cholangiocarcinoma is unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate osteopenia as a prognostic factor in patients with perihilar cholangiocarcinoma. Methods: A total of 58 patients who underwent surgery for perihilar cholangiocarcinoma were retrospectively analyzed. The BMD at the 11th thoracic vertebra was measured using computed tomography scan within one month of surgery. Patients with a BMD < 160 HU were considered to have osteopenia and b BMD ≥ 160 did not have osteopenia. The log-rank test was performed for survival using the Kaplan–Meier method. After adjusting for confounding factors, overall survival was assessed by Cox′s proportional-hazards model. Results: The osteopenia group had 27 (47%) more females than the non-osteopenia group (p = 0.036). Median survival in the osteopenia group was 37 months and in the non-osteopenia group was 61 months (p = 0.034). In multivariable analysis, osteopenia was a significant independent risk factor associated with overall survival in patients with perihilar cholangiocarcinoma (hazard ratio 3.54, 95% confidence interval 1.09–11.54, p = 0.036), along with primary tumor stage. Conclusions: Osteopenia is associated with significantly shorter survival in patients with perihilar cholangiocarcinoma.

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We report a rare case of acute mastitis caused by enteric organisms passing through a cystoperitoneal shunt catheter, which had penetrated into the colon. The patient is a 56-year-old woman who underwent shunt placement for cyst formation after surgery for meningioma at the age of 29. After 26 years, she suffered from a brain abscess and an attempt was made to surgically remove the indwelling catheter. Only part of the catheter could be removed, leaving a divided and ligated catheter in situ. A year later, she described right-breast pain. CT showed that the catheter had migrated into the colon, followed by colonoscopy confirming that the catheter had indeed penetrated the colon. The breast to the abdomen segment of the catheter was exteriorized through the right-anterior chest wall without laparotomy. A patient who presents with acute mastitis and has previously undergone shunt surgery should have a careful assessment of the entire catheter.