Annals of African Medicine最新文献

Acinic cell carcinoma (ACC) arising in the salivary glands is a rare tumor. It is a low-grade malignant salivary gland tumor. It is predominantly seen in females and occurs in the fifth and sixth decades of life. It is mostly located in the parotid gland. ACC has a significant potential for recurrence and metastasis. Therefore, long-term follow-up is necessary after treatment. Here, a 28-year-old male presented with right preauricular swelling for 9 months. Ultrasound of the head-and-neck region and fine-needle aspiration cytology of preauricular swelling suggest the diagnosis of neoplasm in the parotid gland, most probably a benign tumor. After that, a total parotidectomy with facial nerve preservation was performed. On histopathological and immunohistochemical study was consistent with the diagnosis of ACC in the parotid gland.

Context: Adrenal incidentalomas (AIs) are relatively uncommon neoplasms in 2% of apparently healthy individuals requiring evaluation for functionality and malignancy.

Aim: We aimed to study the clinical, biochemical, and radiological profiles of patients presenting with AI and histopathological outcomes of those undergoing adrenalectomy. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study enrolled 62 AI patients attending a tertiary care center in South India between January 2016 and October 2023. Demographic details, radiological features, functionality, and histopathological data were analyzed.

Results: Out of 62 patients, total masses evaluated were 65 indicating bilaterality in 3 patients. The female: male ratio was 1.69, with a median age of 55 years (interquartile range: 44-64 years). 45.1% of individuals were >60 years. The most common indication for imaging was pain abdomen in 43 (69.4%). The median size was 3.2 cm. Fifty-five (88.7%) were assessed for functionality and 27 (49.1%) were functional. Among the 62 individuals, 14 (20.2%) had hypercortisolism, 11 (15.9%) had pheochromocytoma, 5 (7.24%) had primary hyperaldosteronism (PA), and 4 (5.7%) had hyperandrogenism including plurihormonal in 7. A mass size of 3.2 cm was of great value in distinguishing functional tumors with a sensitivity of 72% and specificity of 66% with an area under the curve of 0.682. A total of 34 (54.8%) patients underwent adrenalectomy. On histopathological examination, Adenoma (44.1%) was the most common followed pheochromocytoma (26.5%), adrenal cysts (8.8%), and Myelolipoma (5.9%). Two (5.9%) incidentalomas were adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC). Eight (53.3%) adenomas were functional with 6 having hypercortisolism (including 1 with hyperandrogenism) and 2 with PA.

Conclusion: In our experience, the incidence of pheochromocytoma was second most common after adenoma. Since most functional tumors (60%) and all ACCs were ≥4 cm, a thorough biochemical evaluation for hormonal excess and evaluation for malignancy followed by surgery should be considered for lesions, especially ≥4 cm. Thus, we report the baseline demographic and clinical characteristics of patients with AI from a single center in South India.

Background: Anatomical and developmental variations of ureters and renal pelvis have been observed frequently during routine human cadaveric dissection and surgical practice; however, their coexistence with accessory or aberrant renal arteries is exceptionally rare. Accordingly, this study was designed to evaluate the prevalence of anatomical and developmental abnormalities of ureters and renal pelvis existing with accessory renal arteries in human cadavers.

Materials and methods: This study was carried out on 50 human cadavers including dissected specimens (25 males and 25 females) the kidneys, renal pelvis, and ureters along with their arteries were exposed and the anomalous abnormalities of the renal pelvis and ureters existing with accessory renal arteries were observed. Photographs of the anomalous and developmental variations were taken for proper documentation.

Results: Among the 50 cadavers studied, unilateral double ureters were found in 5 cadavers (10%), rare bilateral "S-"shaped loop of ureter with quadruple uretic constrictors in the abdominal segment of the ureter was observed in one female cadaver (2%), accessory or aberrant renal arteries were found in 15 cadavers (30%), hydronephrosis involving the renal pelvis and ureters was observed in 9 cadavers (18%). Interestingly, this prevalence was higher among males (28%) compared to females (8%). Moreover, the occurrence of bilateral hydronephrosis of the kidneys, renal pelvis, and ureters was identified in a single male cadaver, representing 2% of the sample. Notably, the prevalence of double ureter, hydronephrosis accompanied by congenital double and triple accessory renal arteries was documented in nine cadavers, accounting for 18% of the cohort.

Conclusion: Anatomical and developmental variations of the ureters, renal pelvis, and renal vasculature, as well as their relationships to surrounding structures, hold clinical significance due to their impact on various surgical procedures, including kidney transplantation, abdominal aorta reconstruction, interventional radiology, and urologic operations. Therefore, identifying these potential developmental variations is essential for effective surgical management to preserve renal function and ensure optimal patient outcomes.

In our study, we evaluated the diagnostic performance of grayscale ultrasonography (USG) in risk stratification of mass-forming breast lesions. Our study included 90 cases, in which 88 were females and 2 cases were male with age ranging from 16 to 73 years. Out of 90 lesions, 51 (58%) lesions were benign and 39 (39%) lesions were malignant. High-resolution USG done in all 90 lesions revealed sensitivity (90.2%), specificity (74.36%), positive predictive value (PPV) (82.14%), negative predictive value (NPV) (85.29%), and accuracy (83.33%). Calculated weighted kappa value 0.665, indicating better level of agreement in predicting malignant lesions compared to gold standard. Our study revealed that USG is sensitive and specific test in detecting malignant lesions with high PPV and NPV; the calculated weighted kappa value was 0.665, indicating better level of agreement in predicting malignant lesions compared to gold standard.

Hardware breakage in the form of guide wire or drill bit is a devastating complication particularly if occurs around hip joint during cephalo-medullary nailing. It should be removed on urgent basis as it can migrate to the pelvic cavity and damages adjacent neuro-vascular bundle and visceral organ immediately as well joint arthritis later on. There are very few cases report available in the literature with retrieval techniques by using disc forceps, pituitary forceps, oversized reamers, arthrotomy with joint dislocation and through ilioinguinal approaches occasionally. We are presenting an interesting and rare case of broken guide wire inside hip joint protruding into the pelvic cavity which got retrieved through lower midline open laparotomy approach.

Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) is a chronic infectious multisystemic disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis and is one of the leading causes of mortality worldwide. Both common mental disorders (CMD) and TB are global public health problems that have a considerable impact on human health. Moreover, TB and CMDs share common risk factors including poverty, drug addiction, and homelessness and the coexistence of CMD and TB leads to difficult management of TB.

Materials and methods: This was a hospital-based longitudinal study, carried out between June 2021 and December 2022. In this study, 147 pulmonary TB patients were included as per inclusion and exclusion criteria, and psychiatric illness was evaluated by the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale.

Results: The mean age of study participants was 37.59 ± 15.37 years, there were 99 (67.3%) were male and 48 (32.7%) were female. Psychiatric illness was found in 77 (52.38%) pulmonary TB patients. Among psychiatric illness, anxiety was found in 33 (22.4%) participants and 21 (14.3%) participants had depression. Mixed anxiety and depression were found in 20 (13.6%) patients and 03 (2%) participants had severe psychosis. The association of psychiatric illness with age group and gender was not significant ( P = 0.734, 0.203, respectively). There were 105 (71.40%) patients who had <12 standard education and 42 (28.60%) had >12 standard education and their association with psychiatric illness was statistically significant ( P = 0.044). Adverse drug reactions were found among 80 (54.42%) patients and the association between adverse drug reactions and psychiatric illness was significant ( P = 0.031).

Conclusion: Psychiatric illness is one of the important domains to be evaluated in timely manner in TB patients and early intervention is needed for better management of the TB because the severity, social factors, and chronicity of the disease make them susceptible to develop psychiatric illness.

We report the case of a 13-year-old child presenting an unusual case of Guillian-Barre Syndrome (SGB). Its presentation is usually a progression of symmetrical muscle weakness that ascends from the lower extremities, moves toward a more proximal pathway, and is accompanied by absent or depressed tendon reflexes. Here, the patient presented with a rare presentation of Pharyngeal-Cervical-Brachial (PCB) variant of Guillain-Barré syndrome, where the symptomatology began with dysphagia and dyspnea, and the weakness was descending paralysis. The objective of this clinical case report is to highlight this extremely rare presentation of PCB variant of Guillain-Barré syndrome.

Introduction: Radical prostatectomy is appropriate for any patient whose cancer appears clinically localised to prostate. However because of potential perioperative morbidity, radical prostatectomy is generally reserved for patients whose life expectancy is more than ten years. Moderate hypofractionation for localized prostate cancer is safe and effective. There is a growing body of evidence in support of extreme hypofractionation for localized prostate cancer. Hypofractionation for prostate cancer was originally carried out in the pursuit of efficiency and convenience, but has now attracted greatly renewed interest based upon a hypothesis that prostate cancers have a higher sensitivity to fraction size, reflected in a low α/β ratio, then do late responding organs at risk such as the rectum or bladder.

Material and methods: From January 2017 to December 2020 we treated 112 patients of localised Prostate Cancer with Image Guided Radiotherapy (IGRT). They were in range of 75-85 years. They were of stage T1-T3, N0 or N1. There were significant comborbidities. ECOG performance status was 0-1. They were given 3 months of Androgen Deprivation Therapy (ADT) before starting IGRT. Patients were immobilised with casts and subject to CT simulation. CBCT was taken daily. Dose was 70 Gy @ 250 cGy per fraction at a frequency of 5 fractions per week. Complete blood counts were done weekly for assessment of haematological toxicity. Androgen Deprivation Therapy was continued post IGRT.

Results: All the patients were able to complete the treatment. Evaluation was done at one month, three month and six months post treatment. 104 out of 112 patients achieved complete response. Other 8 had near complete response. There were no acute grade 3-4 toxicities. Grade 1-2 toxicities like skin desquamation, diarrhoea, burning micturition were managed conservatively. Late toxicity was rectal bleeding seen after one year of completion of treatment and was managed with steroid enemas. 23 patients required argon plasma laser therapy.

Conclusion: Image guided radiotherapy is well tolerated, easy to implement and an effective alternative to radical prostatectomy in elderly patients with comorbidities and low life expectancy.

Introduction: Gliptins are a relatively recent class of oral antidiabetic agents used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. The aim of this study is to identify the adverse effects of gliptins in patients with type 2 diabetes, compare the tolerability of these drugs with data from the literature, and determine patients' behavior in the face of these adverse effects with a view to optimizing their management.

Methods: Our study is cross-sectional, descriptive, and analytical, involving 100 patients aged over 20 years, followed at the Endocrinology Department of the Military Hospital Mohammed V.

Results: The average age of the patients was 63 years, with a sex ratio F/H of 1.13. The median age of diabetes in the patients was 13 years, with an average blood glucose level of 1.64 and an average hemoglobin A1c of 8.26. The comorbidities were 30% cardiovascular disease, 25% hypertension, and 14% dyslipidemia, and 30% of patients had no comorbidities. Forth-six percent of patients reported adverse events and 54% did not report any adverse event. Twenty-eight percent of the adverse events were gastrointestinal, 18% skin disorders, 14% urinary tract infections, 12% hypoglycemia, 12% nervous system disorders, 8% airway infections, and 8% general disorders.

Conclusion: This study shows that gliptins remain a safe option as the side effects seem fairly well tolerated by patients. Adverse events may impact patient compliance and pose a problem of adherence to treatment. Thus, it would be advantageous to develop therapeutic education for diabetic patients to detect and manage adverse effects.

Context: Patient handovers without any structured checklist may omit essential information that might have undesirable consequences for patients.

Aim: We sought to determine the effectiveness of a structured postanesthesia care handover (PACH) checklist in the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) to reduce adverse clinical outcomes.

Setting and design: A single-center, prospective, pre-postimplementation study was conducted.

Materials and methods: Moreover, post-PACH checklist implementation data were collected from 130 participants ( n = 65 in each group) by an independent observer. Data analysis was performed using the SPSS (25.0) version (IBM SPSS statistics). The Chi-square test was used to compare the dichotomous response.

Results: A statistically significant reduction in hypoxemia (21.5% vs. 0; P < 0.001) was observed in the postimplementation group. There were significant improvements in patient information ( P < 0.01), reduction in variations in hemodynamic parameters ( P < 0.01), and improvement in the quality of information transferred concerning surgical procedures ( P < 0.01). The number of phone calls to consultants was significantly lower in the PACH group.

Conclusion: Implementation of the PACH checklist was associated with no hypoxemic events in PACU by improving the quality of communication. The implementation of a structured checklist in PACU should be mandatory in the postoperative intensive care unit.