The use of mesh in umbilical hernia repair results in decreased recurrence and similar wound complications rates compared to tissue repair for primary umbilical hernias.

Secondary prevention of colorectal cancer relies on effective screening through colonoscopy and polypectomy. Resection of some polyps can present technical challenges particularly when polyps are large, flat, or behind colonic folds. Laparoscopy as an adjunct to endoscopy can aid in removing difficult colonic polyps without subjecting patients to radical segmental colectomy. Hybrid laparoendoscopic techniques are increasingly reported in literature as alternatives to segmental colectomy for the treatment of polyps that have a high likelihood of being benign. Laparoscopic-assisted colonoscopic polypectomy is the most frequently utilized technique; it harnesses the power of laparoscopy to aid endoscopic polypectomy by flattening folds, mobilizing flexures, and providing retraction. Colonoscopy-assisted laparoscopic wedge and transluminal resection are often reported in older studies and use the visualization provided by intraoperative colonoscopy to guide colonic resection that is limited to the area of the polyp. Laparoscopic-assisted endoscopic full-thickness resection (EFTR) is a relatively recent technique that provides laparoscopic monitoring of EFTR of polyp as well as endoscopic closure of the ensuing defect. Minimally invasive segmental colectomy based on oncologic principles should be utilized when none of the previous techniques are suitable or when malignancy is strongly suspected. The combined use of laparoscopy and endoscopy can expand the endoscopist's armamentarium when dealing with the most challenging polyps, while serving the patients' best interest by limiting the extent of colon resection.

Background: Today's acute care surgery (ACS) service model requires multiple handovers to incoming attending surgeons and residents. Our objectives were to investigate current handover practices in Canadian hospitals that have an ACS service and assess the quality of handover practices in place. Methods:We administered an electronic survey among ACS residents in 6 Canadian general surgery programs.Results: Resident handover of patient care occurs frequently and often not under ideal circumstances. Most residents spend less than 5 minutes preparing handovers. Clinical uncertainty owing to inadequate handover is most likely to occur during overnight and weekend coverage. Almost one-third of surveyed residents rate the overall quality of the handovers they received as poor. Conclusion:Handover skills must be taught in a systematic fashion. Improved resident communication will likely decrease loss of patient information and therefore improve ACS patient safety.

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Factors that determine whether a patient receives completion axillary lymph node dissection after a positive sentinel lymph node biopsy for breast cancer in British Columbia Background: Completion axillary lymph node dissection (CALND) is recommended in the setting of positive sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) but is associated with a higher rate of postoperative complications. In this study, the characteristics and outcomes of patients who did and did not have CALND are compared. Methods:We identified all patients with breast cancer with positive sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) who did not have concurrent CALND from 2003 to 2006 using a prospectively collected database (British Columbia Cancer Breast Outcomes database) and retrospective chart review. Patient and tumour characteristics were compared between those who received CALND and those who did not.Results: Among 185 patients with positive SLNs identified by SLNB, 90 had a CALND and 95 had no further surgical therapy. Patients who did not receive CALND had more sentinel nodes removed (p < 0.001), a lower percentage of positive SLNs (p < 0.001) and lower pathologic N stage (p = 0.044) than those who did receive CALND. The size of the breast lesion, size of the largest SLN deposit, estrogen receptor status, grade, lymphovascular invasion, histology and multifocality were not significantly different between groups. Sixty-two percent of women who did not have CALND received radiation to the axilla. Postoperative complication rates (including lymphedema) were higher in the CALND group (21%) compared with the SLNB group (7%). The rates of locoregional recurrence (1% in both groups) and systemic metastases (6% in the CALND group v. 8% in the SLNB group) were similar at 36 months' follow-up. Conclusion:Compared with women who had CALND, women who did not receive CALND had on average a lower N stage with 3 or more SLNs removed and less than 50% node positivity. Most of these women received radiation therapy to the axilla and had comparable recurrence rates to those who had CALND.Contexte : L'ablation des ganglions lymphatiques axillaires (AGLA) est recommandée lorsque la biopsie des ganglions lymphatiques sentinelles donne des résultats positifs, mais cette intervention est associée à un taux plus élevé de complications postopératoires que la seule biopsie. Cette étude a comparé les caractéristiques et les résultats chez les patientes qui ont subi une AGLA et chez celles qui n'ont pas subi cette intervention.