Introduction: Microsurgery is an essential element of Plastic Surgery practice. There is a paucity of studies assessing the impact of stress and cognitive distraction on technical microsurgical performance. The ability to complete cognitive and technical skills in parallel has not been assessed in a microsurgical setting. Aim: To test the hypothesis that cognitive distraction and external stressors negatively affect microsurgical performance in a high fidelity simulation setting. Materials/Methods: Fourteen surgeons across all levels of training undertook 2 microsurgical skills sessions, 1 month apart. Session one established baseline microsurgical skill. In session two, skills were assessed with the introduction of realistic operative room cognitive distractions (ORDIs). Outcome measures were efficiency and accuracy, measured by Time to Completion (TTC) and Anastomosis Lapse Index (ALI), respectively. Key Results: Fourteen participants (6 novices, 5 plastic surgery specialist trainees and 3 consultants) completed both microsurgical skills sessions. In total, 28-microvascular anastomosis were analyzed. Mean baseline TTC for the group was 20.36 min. With cognitive distraction and external stress mean TTC decreased to 17.87 min. Mean baseline ALI score for the group was 3.32 errors per anastomosis. The introduction of cognitive distraction and external stress increased the mean to 4.86 errors per anastomosis. Total errors per anastomosis increased from 91 errors at baseline to 137 errors with cognitive distraction and external stress. Under stress, participants were more efficient but had reduced anastomotic accuracy. Conclusion: Under stress, surgeons were more efficient, this translated into faster completion of a microsurgical anastomosis. Efficiency, however, came at the expense of accuracy.

Background: Resorbable plates are commonly used in cranial vault reconstruction surgery. There are few published papers examining their safety profile. The authors examined the prevalence of wound complications associated with the use of resorbable plates (Inion CPS Fixation System) in pediatric patients undergoing cranial vault reconstruction. Methods: A retrospective review of patients (n ¼ 182) who underwent cranial vault reconstruction using resorbable plate fixation was undertaken. All procedures were performed by a single Craniofacial Surgeon at the National Pediatric Craniofacial Center from 2008 to 2016. Wound complications were identified from a prospectively maintained database and medical note review. Several key patient characteristics and surgical variables were also recorded and tested for associations with wound complications. Results: A total of 58.8% (107 of 182) of patients were male with a median age at surgery of 16.2 months. Overall, 12.1% (22 of 182) experienced a postoperative wound complication requiring hospital admission. A total of 2.73% (5 of 182) of the patients that returned to theatre had remnants of plates removed. The authors had a mean time from primary operation to secondary reoperation of 103 days. In univariate statistical analysis, females were more likely to develop a wound complication. However, in stratified analyses excluding patients with an underlying genetic syndrome, increasing age, and lower weight but not gender were associated with wound complications. Conclusions: A 12.1% (22 of 182) wound complication rate with the use of the Inion CPS Fixation System was observed. Inion plates appear to have an equivalent safety profile to other fixation devices. Increasing age and lower weight were associated with an increased risk of wound complications in nonsyndromic patients.

Introduction. Gallstone ileus (GSI) of the colon is an extremely rare entity with potentially serious complications including perforation. Case Presentation. An 88-year-old man presented to the emergency department with abdominal pain and distension. Clinical exam revealed signs of peritonism. Computed tomography (CT) revealed GSI of the transverse colon with a closed-loop large bowel obstruction (LBO) and caecal perforation. The patient underwent emergency laparotomy. A right hemicolectomy was performed, the gallstone was removed, and a primary bowel anastomosis was undertaken. A Foley catheter was sutured into the residual gallbladder bed to create a controlled biliary fistula. The patient recovered well postoperatively with no complications. He was discharged home with the Foley catheter in situ. Discussion. Gallstone ileus is a difficult diagnosis both clinically and radiologically with only 50% of cases being diagnosed preoperatively. Most commonly it is associated with impaction at the ileocaecal valve and small bowel obstruction. Gallstone ileus should also be considered as a rare but potential cause of LBO. This is the first reported case of caecal perforation secondary to gallstone ileus of the transverse colon. Successful operative management consisted of a one-stage procedure with right hemicolectomy and formation of a controlled biliary fistula.

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Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic recurrent debilitating condition. It is characterized by abscesses, and can be complicated by rupture, scarring sinuses. The management of HS is multidisciplinary, involving general lifestyle modification, medical treatment, and surgery. A wide range of surgical interventions have been described for HS disease control and management. However, surgical management strategies are highly variable. We present a case of a 33-year-old female with extensive HS in both axillae resulting in extreme pain, restriction of shoulders movement with severe impact on quality of life. After failure of non-operative management, she underwent a wide excision of all pathological axillary disease. One week later, she had a single-stage reconstruction with Matriderm®. and a meshed split thickness skin graft. Acellular dermal skin substitutes may be an alternative to conventional means of hidradenitis suppurativa reconstruction, producing subtle, pliable, and durable skin.

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic recurrent debilitating condition that affects the skin near to the follicular glands. The disease manifests with the formation of abscesses that can be complicated by rupture, sinus tracts, and scarring leading to pain, chronic discharge, malodor, and scar contractures. The management of HS is multidisciplinary, involving general lifestyle modification, medical treatment, and surgery. A wide range of surgical interventions has been described for HS disease control and management. However, surgical management strategies are highly variable. We describe the case of a 33-year-old female with refractory HS which was reconstructed with Matriderm® and an immediate split-thickness skin graft. Acellular dermal skin substitutes may be an alternative to conventional means of HS reconstruction, producing subtle, pliable, and durable skin.

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Summary The most common deletion syndrome is 22q11.2 and it effects an estimated 1 in 3000 live births. Major features of this multisystem condition include congenital abnormalities, developmental delay, learning difficulties, immunodeficiency, endocrine anomalies and an array of psychiatric disorders. However, variability in phenotype and severity may cause the diagnosis to be overlooked. Early clinical recognition and treatment of DiGeorge syndrome has been shown to increase early life survival, decrease complications and enhance overall quality of life. Skeletal anomalies are infrequently described in 22q11.2 but a subset of patients exhibit upper and lower limb deformities. We present the case of a 5 year-old girl with bilateral fifth digit camptodactyly caused by a fibrous band, and the surgical management of this condition. The current report adds to the body of evidence that camptodactyly is a rare clinical feature of 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, and may serve as a diagnostic aid in these patients.