Early cholecystectomy after ERCP, within 72 h, has better outcomes, probably due to the inflammatory processes.

AIM:To investigate the roles of the adipocytokines, ghrelin and leptin in gastric cancer cachexia. METHODS: Resistin, ghrelin, leptin, adiponectin, insulin and insulin-like growth factor (IGF-Ⅰ), were measured in 30 healthy subjects, and 60 gastric cancer patients of which 30 suffered from cancerinduced cachexia and 30 served as a control group. The relationships between hormones, body mass index (BMI) loss ratio, age, gender, and Glasgow Prognostic Score (GPS) were investigated. RESULTS: Cachexia patients had higher tumor stage and GPS when compared with non-cachexia patients (P < 0.05). Ghrelin, resistin, leptin, adiponectin and IGF-Ⅰ, showed a significant correlation with BMI loss ratio and GPS (P < 0.05). A strong correlation was seen between GPS and BMI loss (R = -0.570, P < 0.0001). Multivariate analysis indicated that BMI loss was significantly independent as a predictor of ghrelin, resistin, leptin and IGF-Ⅰ (P < 0.05). Existence of an important significant relationship between resistin and insulin resistance was also noted. CONCLUSION: These results showed that serum ghrelin, leptin, adiponectin, and IGF-Ⅰ play important roles in cachexia-related gastric cancers. No relationship was found between resistin and cancer cachexia. Also, because of the correlation between these parameters and GPS, these parameters might be used as a predictor factor.

The gastrointestinal quality of life improved significantly following lateral internal sphincterotomy, regardless of the surgical complications or postoperative disturbances of continence. Only 1.2 percent of the patients experienced deterioration in Fecal Incontinence Quality of Life Scale.

BackgroundThe aim of this study was to evaluate our experience in managing high anal fistulas with a simple modification of the cutting seton.MethodsWe performed a retrospective review of standardized patient charts and of prospectively collected scores and questionnaires. Surgical outcomes of 128 consecutive, well-documented patients with high anal fistulas, including anterior transsphincteric fistulas in females, treated using a hybrid seton, were analyzed.ResultsNo significant complications occurred. The mean postoperative pain scores on a visual analog scale were 3.23 and 0.61, on days 1 and 7, respectively. Complete healing was achieved in 67 cases (52.3 %) at 1 month and in all cases (100 %) at 3 months. Recurrent fistula was noted in 2 patients (1.5 %) at 6 and 12 months. The mean postoperative incontinence scores at 3 and 12 months did not differ significantly from the preoperative score (p = 0.061, Wilcoxon’s test). The depression, life style, and embarrassment item scores of the fecal incontinence quality of life index improved significantly after surgical treatment.ConclusionsThe results of this series suggest that the hybrid seton might be a valid alternative for the treatment of high anal fistulas, eliminating the need for postoperative adjustments. The slow and stable cutting of the sphincter seems to have a positive effect on the maintenance of continence. The successful outcome is associated with significant improvement in quality of life.

Early laparoscopic cholecystectomy can be done without hesitation in patients with subacute cholecystitis, in the light of obstacles observed in the interval group, such as dissection difficulty, lack of success in "cooling down", and additional problems such as choledocholithiasis and biliary pancreatitis.

Purpose Publications about increased number of peripheral facial paralysis in the COVID-19 pandemic emerged in the literature. However, these studies comprised of an estimate rather than a broad analysis of exact numbers. In this study, we planned to investigate whether the pandemic really resulted in an increase in facial paralysis cases admitted to the hospital by evaluating the cases who applied to our hospital due to facial paralysis in the COVID-19 pandemic year and in the previous 4 years. Materials and methods Patients who applied to our hospital due to facial paralysis between March 2016–February 2017 (Group 1), between March 2017–February 2018 (Group 2), between March 2018–February 2019 (Group 3), between March 2019–February 2020 (Group 4), and between March 2020–February 2021 (Group 5) were investigated and detailed data were noted. Results 156, 164, 149, 172 and 157 patients were admitted to the hospital due to peripheral facial paralysis in Group 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, respectively. Of these patients, 155, 164, 145, 169, and 153 were Bell's palsy, respectively. SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test was positive in only 2 of the 153 patients who were diagnosed in the year of the pandemic. Conclusions This study showed that the number of peripheral facial paralysis detected during the COVID-19 pandemic was similar to previous years. Very few number of positive SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test results may have been found incidentally in Bell's palsy patients. Theses stating that SARS-CoV-2 causes peripheral facial paralysis should be supported by laboratory studies and postmortem research.

ObjectiveThe top 100 physicians of otorhinolaryngology and head and neck surgery worldwide were investigated using the Google Scholar h-index.MethodAlthough there are various bibliometrics ranking systems that present the academic quantity and quality of scientists’ published articles, the h-index is the most popular and widely accepted. In this study, Google Scholar was used to search all the keywords involving all the subspecialties of otorhinolaryngology and head and neck surgery, with the aim of identifying as many physicians as possible. Obtaining the Google Scholar h-index and citations is not possible for scientists who do not have Google Scholar accounts. Thus, only those with Google Scholar accounts were included.ResultsThe average h-index of all 100 physicians enrolled in the study was 37.83, with a range of 25–81.ConclusionThe current study details the academic impact of otorhinolaryngology and head and neck surgery physicians worldwide based on the Google Scholar h-index.

Our study indicates that E2 impaired liver functions, accelerated both the liver damage and healing. In the conditions of bile duct obstruction, estrogen significantly changed the cytokine milieu in the liver.