Assuming an upright posture soon after burr-hole surgery was associated with a significantly increased incidence of CSDH recurrence but not with a significant change in other position-related postsurgical complications. According to this result, it is not recommended that elderly patients assume an upright posture soon after burr-hole surgery to prevent postoperative atelectasis and dementia, as these might significantly increase the risk of CSDH recurrence.

The object of this study was to determine the relationship between outcome (assessed by Glasgow Outcome Scale) and recurrence in chronic subdural haematoma (CSDH). Eighty-two consecutive patients who underwent surgery for CSDH were included in this study. The relationship between the following variables and CSDH recurrence was studied: sex; age; history of trauma; Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) at the time of admission (stage 1: GCS>12, stage 2: GCS: 8 - 12, stage 3: GCS<8); interval between head injury (when a history of trauma was present) and surgery; presence of a midline shift on CT scans; presence of intracranial air 7 days after surgery; haematoma density; haematoma width; presence of brain atrophy; and Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS, both quantitative and non-quantitative) at the time of discharge. Throughout the analysis, p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. The results showed lower GCS (p<0.001), higher GOS (p<0.001), presence of intracranial air 7 days after surgery (p=0.002), and a high density haematoma (p<0.001) were significantly associated with recurrence of CSDH. It was concluded that GOS is related with recurrence in CSDH.

No abstract

H. pylori is an independent risk factor for laryngo-hypopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background Laparoscopic techniques for placement of peritoneal dialysis catheters are becoming increasingly popular. In this paper, we report the results of one-port laparoscopic placement of Tenckhoff catheters in 79 patients in our center. Method Videoscopic monitoring was performed via a port inserted in the left upper quadrant and the catheter was placed via a pull-apart sheath through an incision near the umbilicus. The tip and the deep cuff of the catheter were placed into the true pelvis (on the urinary bladder) and into the rectus sheath respectively. A subcutaneous tunnel was created and a point midway on the umbilico-crestal line was selected as the exit site of the catheter. Catheters were capped for 2 weeks before initiation of peritoneal dialysis. Mean duration of the operation was 25 minutes. Results Four patients died during the follow-up period, all due to other medical problems, and 4 patients underwent renal transplantation. During a 48-month follow-up, catheter-related complications were catheter migration (1.3%; month 1), dialysate leakage (1.3%; month 1), port-site hernia (3.8%; after 6 months), exit-site infection (2.5%; months 1 and 9), and bacterial peritonitis (2.5%; after 6 months). Catheter survival was 97.2% in our series. Conclusion We obtained a low complication rate and a high catheter survival rate with this one-port laparoscopic technique.