No abstract

Currently, there is no widespread use of percutaneous renal artery embolisation (PRAE) as a pre-operative treatment in the management of renal cell carcinoma (RCC). There is also a scarcity of studies concerning the potential benefits of this procedure. All patients with RCC who underwent pre-operative PRAE before nephrectomy (n = 227) and all patients solely undergoing surgery (n = 607) at our institution from 1992 to 2006 were included. Information on techniques used, perioperative transfusion requirements, pathological and clinical variables, acute toxicity and complications were obtained from a retrospective review of medical records. Propensity modelling techniques were used to compare cancer-specific survival (CSS) and overall survival (OS) in both groups. Propensity scores were calculated from a logistic matching model including age, gender, clinical tumour size, grading, pN stage, cM stage, pT stage, histology and microvascular invasion. This resulted in 189 matches. The mean follow-up of the entire group of matched patients was 81 months. The 5-year actuarial CSS and OS for the total group of matched patients was 80.8% and 73.9%, respectively. CSS and OS did not show any significant differences between the matched treatment groups. There were no statistical differences in surgical complications between all patients treated with pre-operative PRAE (n = 227) and all patients without PRAE (n = 607), except for blood transfusion (61% vs 24%; p<0.01). Symptoms of post-embolization syndrome, including lumbar pain, fever, nausea, hypertension and macroscopic haematuria, were reported by 202 patients (89%), in most cases being mild and self-limited. There is no conclusive evidence that pre-operative PRAE provides survival benefits in the management of surgically resected RCC.

Zusammenfassung. Zur Erfassung der wahrgenommenen emotionalen sozialen Unterstützung bei kardialen Patienten wird das ESSI-D (ENRICHD Social Support Inventory – Deutsch), eine deutsche Adaptation des englischen ESSI, vorgestellt. Mit einer Stichprobe von N = 1597 Patienten (22.7% Frauen), die sich einer Bypass-Operation unterzogen, wurden die psychometrischen Eigenschaften des ESSI-D überprüft. Cronbachs Alpha der Gesamtskala lag bei α = .89. Eine konfirmatorische Faktorenanalyse bestätigte die einfaktorielle Struktur der Skala. Korrelationen mit unterschiedlichen Kriteriumsvariablen wie Partnerstatus, soziale Funktionsfähigkeit, körperliche Funktion und Depressivität lieferten Hinweise für eine zufriedenstellende Konstruktvalidität. Das ESSI-D erweist sich für diese Patientengruppe als ein ökonomisches Instrument zur Erfassung der emotionalen sozialen Unterstützung mit guten psychometrischen Eigenschaften.

BackgroundAwareness represents a major modulator for the uptake of preventive measures and healthy life-style choices. Women underestimate the role of cardiovascular diseases as causes of mortality, yet little information is available about their subjective risk awareness.MethodsThe Berlin Female Risk Evaluation (BEFRI) study included a randomized urban female sample aged 25–74 years, in which 1,066 women completed standardized questionnaires and attended an extensive clinical examination. Subjective estimation was measured by a 3-point Likert scale question asking about subjective perception of absolute cardiovascular risk with a 10 year outlook to be matched to the cardiovascular risk estimate according to the Framingham score for women.ResultsAn expected linear increase with age was observed for hypertension, hyperlipidemia, obesity, and vascular compliance measured by pulse pressure. Knowledge about optimal values of selected cardiovascular risk factor indicators increased with age, but not the perception of the importance of age itself. Only 41.35% of all the participants correctly classified their own cardiovascular risk, while 48.65% underestimated it, and age resulted as the most significant predictor for this subjective underestimation (OR = 3.5 for age >50 years compared to <50, 95% CI = 2.6–4.8, P <0.0001). Therefore, although socioeconomic factors such as joblessness (OR = 1.9, 95% CI = 1.4–2.6, P <0.0001) and combinations of other social risk factors (low income, limited education, simple job, living alone, having children, statutory health coverage only; OR = 1.5, 95% CI = 1.1–2.1, P = 0.009) also significantly influenced self-awareness, age appeared as the strongest predictor of risk underestimation and at the same time the least perceived cardiovascular risk factor.ConclusionsLess than half of the women in our study population correctly estimated their cardiovascular risk. The study identifies age as the strongest predictor of risk underestimation in urban women and at the same time as the least subjectively perceived cardiovascular risk factor. Although age itself cannot be modified, our data highlights the need for more explicit risk counseling and information campaigns about the cardiovascular relevance of aging while focusing on measures to control coexisting modifiable risk factors.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12916-015-0304-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

About 30% of renal cell carcinomas (RCC) will develop recurrence after surgery. Despite evidence for a significantly improved survival by autologous tumour cell vaccination therapy, the procedure has not become standard. Between August 1993 and December 1996, 1,267 RCC patients undergoing radical nephrectomy in 84 German hospitals were subsequently treated by autologous tumour cell vaccination therapy. The study group comprised 692 patients with complete follow-up (stages pT2-3, pNx-2, M0 based on the TNM classification, 4th edition). Subsequent propensity-score matching according to 7 defined criteria with 861 control patients undergoing nephrectomy alone without adjuvant treatment at the Carl-Thiem-Hospital Cottbus, resulted in 495 matched pairs. Overall and stage-specific survival rates were analysed after a median follow-up of 131 months. The 5- and 10-year overall survival (OS) rates were 80.6 and 68.9% in the vaccine group and 79.2 and 62.1% in the control group (p = 0.066). Patients with pT3 stage RCC revealed 5- and 10-year OS rates of 71.3 and 53.6% in the study group and 65.4 and 36.2% in the control group (p = 0.022). In multivariable analysis, patients in the vaccine group showed a significantly improved survival both in the whole study group (HR = 1.28, p = 0.030) and in the subgroup presenting with pT3 stage tumours (HR = 1.67, p = 0.011). Adjuvant treatment with autologous vaccination therapy resulted in a significantly improved overall survival in pT3 stage RCC patients, suggesting benefit especially in this subgroup. However, controlled clinical trials integrating the recent TNM classification and further risk constellations are required to define additional patient groups that may derive benefit from this treatment.

Age, physical function and postoperative complications are key mediators of the overmortality of women after aortocoronary bypass surgery. Self-assessed physical functioning should be more seriously considered in preoperative risk assessment particularly in women.

For optimal EIPC, it is necessary to improve structural conditions such as more structured information about resources and procedures. Subjective theories of illness need to be continuously considered by practitioners in order to recognize the individual need for support.

No cutoff value could be determined to predict positive urine culture with sufficient sensitivity and specificity. Based on the results of the current study it seems premature to recommend a cutoff value leading to therapeutic consequences.