We report a case of posterior wall intramural pregnancy in a 36-year-old primigravida at 6 weeks gestation. Sonographic examination showed a viable intramural pregnancy distorting the contour of the uterus. The pregnancy was terminated by intrafetal injection of potassium chloride followed by intra-amniotic methotrexate injection.

During a period of 8 years (1985-92), 100 fetuses were diagnosed to have non-immune hydrops on the basis of ultrasonographic findings and absence of rhesus isoimmunization. Both the mother and the fetus were thoroughly evaluated by a set protocol that included a detailed fetal abnormality scan with echocardiography and fetal blood sampling. A cause for non-immune hydrops could be identified in 81% of the fetuses. Cardiovascular abnormalities (23%) and alpha(1)-thalassemia (22%) were almost equally common etiological factors in the South-East Asian population under investigation. A chromosomal abnormality was detected in 10% of the fetuses with non-immune hydrops. Twenty-six fetuses were found to be suitable for in utero therapy. In utero therapy included one or more of the following: (1) fetal intravascular blood transfusion; (2) direct fetal drug therapy; and (3) fetal pleuroamniotic shunting. Eighteen of the 26 babies (69.2%) were alive and well at 1 month after delivery. It is concluded that in well-selected cases appropriate in utero fetal therapy can lead to significant improvement in fetal salvage.

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In our study, HCC patients demonstrated significantly less FLR growth after ALPPS-Stage 1 compared to non-HCC patients. Hepatic fibrosis was also found to negatively impact FLR growth. When considering suitability for ALPPS, patients with HCC may benefit from additional pre-operative assessment of fibrosis.

This study aims to demonstrate the safety and feasibility of laparoscopic management of complicated foreign body (FB) ingestion in a series of 5 patients. We present the merits of a minimally-invasive approach in this clinical setting from our series as well as published case reports. FB ingestion is occasionally complicated by abscess formation or perforation, requiring surgical intervention. Anecdotal reports of such cases managed by laparoscopic surgery have alluded to its merits over the conventional approach of open surgery. Over an 18-month period, 5 of 256 patients with FB ingestion at our unit were managed by laparoscopic surgery. Clinical and operative data were collected for this study. In all 5 cases, patients could not recall their FB ingestion and had normal plain radiographs. The diagnosis was made on a computed tomography (CT) scan. Laparoscopy was successfully employed to retrieve all FBs (fish bones), deroof abscesses, and primarily repair gastrointestinal perforations. The mean operative time was 69 minutes (55-85), utilizing 2 to 4 noncamera ports. There was no operative mortality and patients were discharged on average postoperative day (POD) 5 (2-8). Laparoscopic surgery is safe and feasible in small-diameter, complicated FB ingestion requiring surgical intervention and should be considered in similar patients. ed FB ingestion were successfully managed with minimally-invasive surgery (MIS). [4][5][6][7][8][9][10] The potential benefits of a laparoscopic approach in abdominal surgery are well known and include reduced postoperative ileus and pain, smaller incisions and superior cosmetic results, shorter duration of hospitalization, and earlier return to work and a decreased incidence of postoperative hernias. 4,11 This paper presents the largest case series to date of 5 consecutive patients, who were managed via laparoscopic approach for complicated FB ingestion. We aim to review and report the salient clinical features of this series of patients to demonstrate that laparoscopic management is safe, feasible, and should be considered when managing FB ingestions in a similar clinical setting. Materials and MethodsOver an 18-month period, 256 patients presented with FB ingestion to our center. Of these, 5 patients were managed surgically via laparoscopic approach. Records of relevant clinical and demographic data, presenting symptoms, investigations, operative procedures, and length of hospitalization were reviewed after obtaining Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval. Operative findings and data were collected. These included FB size, location, number of ports used, and total operative time.

Bronchopulmonary sequestration associated with non-immune hydrops fetalis is generally recognized as a uniformly fatal fetal condition without fetal surgical intervention. We describe here the first case of such a condition treated successfully with direct intrauterine fetal therapy using digoxin and frusemide.

Peritoneal metastasis (PM) frequently occurs in patients with gastric cancer (GC) and confers a dismal prognosis despite advances in systemic chemotherapy. While systemic chemotherapy has poor peritoneal penetration, intraperitoneal (IP) chemotherapy remains sequestered, resulting in high peritoneal drug concentrations with less systemic side-effects. The first application of IP treatment was hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) with cytoreductive surgery (CRS) for gastric cancer peritoneal metastasis (GCPM); but was associated with an increased morbidity and mortality rate without significantly improving overall survival (OS). While CRS confers limited benefit, the potential role of prophylactic HIPEC and laparoscopic neoadjuvant HIPEC are currently being evaluated. Combination systemic and IP chemotherapy (SIPC) gained popularity in the 1990s, since it provided the benefits of IP treatment while reducing surgical morbidity, demonstrating promising early results in multiple Phase II trials. Unfortunately, these findings were not confirmed in the recent PHOENIX-GC randomized controlled trial; therefore, the appropriate treatment for GCPM remains controversial. Small observational studies from Japan and Singapore have reported successful downstaging of PM in GC patients receiving SIPC who subsequently underwent conversion gastrectomy with a median OS of 21.6-34.6 months. Recently, the most significant development in IP-directed therapy is pressurized IP aerosol chemotherapy (PIPAC). Given that aerosol chemotherapy achieves a wider distribution and deeper penetration, the outcomes of multiple ongoing trials assessing its efficacy are eagerly awaited. Indeed, IP-directed therapy has evolved rapidly in the last 3 decades, with an encouraging trend toward improved outcomes in GCPM, and may offer some hope for an otherwise fatal disease.