Background. In our clinical practice, conventional radial access has been employed routinely for coronary procedures. The distal radial artery (DRA) access site has recently emerged as a novel technique in cardiac procedures. Objectives. This study compares distal radial access to standard forearm radial access (FRA) in terms of feasibility, outcomes, and complications. Method. This prospective, randomized trial was conducted at a single center. The patients were chosen from An-Najah National University Hospital’s catheterization laboratory between December 2019 and November 2020. A total of 209 patients were randomized into two groups: DRA group (n = 104) and FRA group (n = 105). Results. Access was successful in 98% of patients in both the groups. The DRA group had a longer puncture duration and a higher number of attempts (duration: 56.6 ± 61.1 s DRA vs. 20.0 ± 18.4 s FRA, p < 0.001 , attempts: 1.9 ± 1.3 DRA vs. 1.2 ± 0.60 FRA, p < 0.001 ). Puncture-associated pain was greater in the DRA group (4 ± 2.2 DRA vs. 3 ± 2.1 FRA, p = 0.001 ). There were two radial artery occlusions in the FRA group and none in the DRA group ( p = 0.139 ). Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) was performed in 26% of the DRA group and 37.1% of the FRA group. The DRA group had significantly shorter procedure times ( p = 0.006 ), fluoroscopy times ( p = 0.002 ), and hemostasis times ( p = 0.002 ). Over time, the learning curve demonstrated improved puncture duration and a decrease in the number of puncture attempts. Conclusions. DRA is a safe and practical alternative to FRA for coronary angiography and intervention. The overtime learning curve is expected to improve puncture-related outcomes.

Purpose Acute ureteric colic (AUC) is generally one of the most common reasons for emergency department attendance. Expectant management is recommended in non-complicated ureteral calculi. However, data regarding the optimal duration of observation or indications of early intervention (EI) are not well understood. This article describes the clinical and radiological factors that promote EI in AUC. Patients and Methods This was an observational and retrospective cohort study. Patients with AUC diagnosed based on non-contrast computerized tomography (NCCT) between 2019 and 2020 were enrolled in the study. These patients were classified into two main categories: spontaneous passage of stone (SSP) and EI. In addition, a comparative analysis was performed to identify clinical and radiological variables that promote EI. Results One-hundred and sixty-one patients were included. High WBCs are associated with a significant increase in EI. Forty-three percent (n=37) of patients with serum WBCs higher than 10 had an EI, while 23% had SSP (n=17; p <0.001). High CRP level is also significantly associated with EI (n=36; 86%; p <0.001). Upper and middle ureteral calculi are statistically associated with EI (n=54; 62%) in comparison to the SSP cohort (n=22; 30%; p <0.001). EI is also linked to the maximal length of ureteric calculi (MCL) of 9 mm (6–13mm), and HU density of stone of 700 (430–990) H.U ( p <0.001). Ureteric stone volume of 0.2 (0.06–0.3) cm 3 is significantly associated with EI ( p <0.001). Ureteral wall thickness of 3 (2–3 mm), the presence of extrarenal pelvis (n=20; 23%), and AP diameter of renal pelvis 18 (13–28 mm) are all significantly associated with a higher rate of EI ( p <0.001). Multiple binary logistic regression analysis showed that MCL is the strongest predictor of EI. Conclusion MCL is an independent and robust predictor of EI in AUC. Biochemical variables and radiological characteristics can also act as an adjunct to promote EI.

Background Nephron-sparing surgery (NSS) for small renal masses (SRMs) is currently the standard of care to treat renal cell carcinoma (RCC). The concept of partial resection of RCC has mainly been developed to preserve kidney function. Therefore, we have performed this study to explore the research activity that has been undertaken since the early twenty-first century to investigate the advantages of NSS on preserving kidney function and preventing chronic kidney disease (CKD). Methods Based on the Scopus database, this bibliometric study was used to reveal publication patterns in the kidney function and NSS research field. The data were analysed with VOSviewer version 1.6.16 software, which was used to create a network visualisation map that included research hotspots in this area. Results A total of 449 scientific publications focused on renal function in NSS between 2001 and 2020. One hundred and seventy (38%) of the total published articles originated from the USA. Journal of Urology , European Urology , and Journal of Endourology were the top publications detailing research in this field. Half (50%) of the top 10 cited articles were published in the Journal of Urology , with an average citation of around 200 per article. The three most encountered research themes were comparative studies between partial and radical nephrectomy in terms of kidney function and development of CKD, the impact of type and duration of ischemia during resection on glomerular filtration rate (GFR) decline, and the effect of different surgical approaches on intermediate and long-term kidney function. Conclusion NSS for SRMs and RCC and its impact on kidney function is a hot topic in the literature, and the amount of published data has consistently been rising since 2000. However, even though hundreds of documents have studied this topic from various perspectives, there is a compelling need to answer several questions such as the overall survival (OS) benefit of performing NSS in localised RCC and head-to-head comparison of robotic-assisted versus laparoscopic NSS in terms of warm ischemia time and long-term decline in GFR.

Background: The objective of this study is to assess the frequency of anatomic variations of the biliary system in the Palestinian population in patients undergoing MRCPs.Methods: For a period of 3 years, from March 2016 to January 2019, a total of 401 MRCPS were performed in different Palestinian Medical Centers for different indications. 346 Images were included in the study. Images were evaluated independently by two expert radiologists for the presence of variations in the anatomy of gallbladder, cystic duct, common bile duct, pancreatic duct, pancreas and intrahepatic ducts.Results: About 78% of the images had normal anatomy of Intra-hepatic ducts. Right posterior duct joining the right anterior duct by its lateral side was observed in 12.6% of images and triple confluence in 8.5% of images. About 12% of the gallbladder images have anatomical variation; multi-septate in 4.1% of images and ectopic in 3.7% images. For the cystic duct, it was abnormally low in 9.6% of images and high in 5.3% of images. The cystic duct was found parallel in 2.3% of images. Variations of the pancreatic duct were evident in 3.9% of the images.Conclusions: anatomical variations of the pancreatico-biliary system are common and they are worth the attention to prevent major complications during hepatobiliary surgeries.