*Absorbable Implants ; Biocompatible Materials/*pharmacology ; Bone Regeneration/*drug effects ; Bone Regeneration/physiology ; Bone Substitutes/*pharmacology ; Calcium Phosphates/*pharmacology ; Structure-Activity Relationship

OBJECTIVE: There is no published local data available on falls and fall-related injuries among hospitalized patients. This study aims to determine the incidence of falls, fall-related injuries and related risk factors at the surgical and medical wards of a tertiary government hospital in the Philippines.

METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study using consecutive sampling of patients admitted to the medical and surgical wards of a tertiary government hospital from May 2014 to April 2015. Data collection included the patients' demographic data, diagnosis, medications, details on the fall, consequence of the fall, and risk factors for the fall.

RESULTS: During the one-year period, 25,849 patients were admitted to the medical and surgical wards and only six patients, representing 0.02%, were reported to have sustained a fall. No major injury occurred. The patients had varied neurologic and/or musculoskeletal disorders. Two patients fell from a wheelchair, while one fell from a bedside chair. One patient fell from the bed and one slipped on the floor. All patients had watchers/witnesses at the time of the fall.

CONCLUSION: The incidence of falls and fall-related injuries is low in a local tertiary government hospital. No serious injury resulted from the falls. Prevailing practices, local cultural expectations and under reporting may have affected the relatively low incidence rates of patient falls reported in this study.

Human ; Male ; Female ; Accidental Falls ; Risk Factors ; Wheelchairs ; Hospitalization ; Data Collection ; Tertiary Care Centers ; Musculoskeletal Diseases

AIM: To report the demographic characteristics of a sample of population affected by exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in the region of Castilla-Leon (North-Central Spain), and to compare them with a group of population of the same age and from the same geographic area.METHODS: In this observational, prospective study, AMD patients attending a regional reference clinic for photodynamic therapy were interviewed. The patients reported their medical history for high blood pressure, hyperlipemia and smoking habit. Iris color was examined and classified as fight (green, blue and grey) or dark (hazel, brown, black).RESULTS: A total of 343 patients were interviewed. Mean age at onset was 74.9 years (range 55 to 93), Among whom 64.5% were female and 35.5% male. Iris color was rated as light in 45.1% of the patients. Arterial hypertension (AH) was present in 50% of the cases and 15.3% were on treatment for hypercholesterolemia, and 30.2% of the patients were smokers or had quit smoking (80.9% of males).CONCLUSION: The frequency of light colored iris is higher among patients with exudative AMD. In our series, other risk factors for exudative AMD were smoking habit in males, not being on treatment for hypercholesterolemia and being female.

Marfan syndrome is a connective tissue disorder associated with aortic dissection, aneurysmal degeneration and rupture. These cardiovascular complications represent the main cause of mortality, therefore repair is indicated. We present a 35-year-old woman who experienced acute onset of chest pain. Her imaging revealed a chronic DeBakey type I dissection with aortic root dilation and descending thoracic aneurysmal degeneration. She underwent a Bentall procedure and endovascular exclusion of the descending thoracic aortic aneurysm. She was closely followed and 2 years later a computed tomography angiography (CTA) revealed the aneurysmal degeneration of the thoracoabominal aorta and bilateral iliac arteries. The patient underwent a composite reconstruction using multi-visceral branched and bifurcated Dacron grafts. At 5 years from her last surgery, a CTA revealed no new dissection or further aneurysmal degenerations. Aortic disease in Marfan patients is a complex clinical problem that may lead to secondary or tertiary aortic reconstructions; close follow-up is mandatory.
Adult ; Aneurysm* ; Angiography ; Aorta* ; Aortic Aneurysm, Thoracic ; Aortic Diseases ; Chest Pain ; Connective Tissue ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Iliac Artery* ; Marfan Syndrome ; Mortality ; Polyethylene Terephthalates ; Rupture ; Transplants

The aortic bifurcation and iliac vessels are common sites of atherosclerotic occlusive disease causing the clinical expression known as "Leriche's syndrome". An aortobifemoral bypass grafting in the setting of a septic groin remains a significant challenge to vascular surgeons. We present a 65-year-old male with complete occlusion of the distal aorta and iliac arteries; he had undergone a left axillo-femoral and femoral-femoral artery bypass 2 years prior to our evaluation. Owing to a complex graft infection in the right groin and worsening lower extremity ischemia, we performed an aortobifemoral reconstruction through the right obturator membrane. This report highlights the safety and efficacy of the obturator bypass for avoiding infected groins while preserving vascular continuity and durability with 78 months of secondary patency rate.
Aged ; Aorta ; Arteries ; Groin* ; Humans ; Iliac Artery ; Ischemia ; Lower Extremity ; Male ; Membranes ; Surgeons ; Transplants

The endovascular recanalization of the iliocaval system has replaced venous surgical reconstructions as the primary treatment option in severe post-thrombotic syndrome (PTS). We herein present a 51-year-old female with previous deep venous thrombosis, complicated with PTS with a large and complex circumferential calf ulcer measuring 25 cm of length in the left lower extremity. Venogram revealed a complete and extensive occlusion in the left iliofemoral system. A surgical bypass from the left common femoral vein to the right common iliac vein was performed. Patient recovered well and after 12 months postoperation her large wound is healing favorably with a clean and well granulated bed. Iliofemoral venous bypass is a feasible treatment for non-healing ulcer of lower extremity.
Female ; Femoral Vein ; Humans ; Iliac Vein ; Lower Extremity ; Middle Aged ; Ulcer ; Venous Thrombosis ; Wounds and Injuries

The development of post-catheterization arterial pseudoaneurysms is one of the most common vascular access complications following angiographies and endovascular interventions. Different therapeutic options to treat these lesions have been used. We herein report the case of a 79-year-old woman who was referred to our service for evaluation with a post-catheterization superficial femoral artery pseudoaneurysm measuring 4 cm. Owing to the anatomical location of the arterial pseudoaneurysm and the patient’s refusal to undergo open surgery, we treated the lesion using an endovascular approach with a balloon tamponade. The procedure was successful, and the patient recovered well and was discharged from the hospital without complications. At 6-month follow-up she remained symptom-free and without recurrence.
Aged ; Aneurysm, False ; Angiography ; Balloon Occlusion ; Female ; Femoral Artery ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Recurrence

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to develop and validate a simple questionnaire for chronic neuropathic pain that can be administered as a screening tool by general practitioners and internists in order to help them identify patients with probable neuropathic pain.
METHODS: Following a development phase and a pilot study, the revised version of the screening tool which included eleven descriptors associated with neuropathic pain both in English and Filipino languages was validated on 120 consecutive patients with any type of pain except psychogenic pain, recruited in the out-patient clinics of six hospitals. The questionnaire was validated by assessing the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value of each item and the overall questionnaire. The internal consistency of the questionnaire items was assessed using the Kuder-Richardson formula 20.
RESULTS: Overall, the internal consistency of the SigN-PQ using the Kuder-Richardson formula 20 was 0.7837; the sensitivity was 91.89% with specificity of 80.22%, PV (+) was 65.38% and PV(-) was 96.0%. For the English version, the descriptors with the highest scores were burning (Sensitivity: 100%, Specificity: 93%) and electricity-like (Sensitivity: 100%, Specificity: 93%). For the Filipino version, mainit (burning) has the highest sensitivity of 88% with specificity of 82.6%, followed by gumagapang (tingling) with sensitivity of 86.96% and specificity of 85.42%. The sensation of saksak (stabbing) and hiwa (lancinating) have the lowest sensitivity, 60% and 54% respectively, although their specificity scores are high. Since this study is a validation of a screening tool for neuropathic pain, the investigators decided to choose descriptors with higher sensitivity. Thus, in the final version of the SignN-PQ, the descriptors saksak and hiwa were removed.
CONCLUSION: The SigN-PQ Neuropathic Pain Questionnaire has a high overall sensitivity of 91.89% and specificity of 80.22%. The pain descriptors in the questionnaire are consistent with the descriptors cited in the literature. It is a valid screening instrument for neuropathic pain that can be easily incorporated in the daily practice of general practitioners and internists.

Human ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Adult ; Young Adult ; Adolescent ; Neuralgia ; Pain ; Diagnosis ; General Practitioners ; Outpatients ; Research Personnel ; Sensitivity And Specificity ; Surveys And Questionnaires

Iodinated contrast is the most common contrast agent used during endovascular abdominal aneurysm repair (EVAR). However, its use may worsen kidney function in patients with renal insufficiency. Previous studies have demonstrated the safety and effectiveness of carbon dioxide (CO2)-EVAR. Here, we report cases of three male patients with mild renal insufficiency (mean age: 79 years) that successfully underwent CO2-EVAR using INCRAFT ultra-low profile endografts. CO2 angiography provided the necessary vascular roadmap for safe and effective percutaneous EVAR, eliminating the need for iodinated contrast media and preventing contrastinduced nephropathy.

Purpose: The epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is the main event that favors cell migration and metastasis in breast cancer. Previously, we demonstrated that 1 nM estradiol (E2 ) promotes EMT, induced by c-Src kinase, causing changes in the localization of proteins that compose the tight junction (TJ) and adherens junction (AJ). Methods: The present work highlights the central role of c-Src in the initiation of metastasis, induced by E2 , through increasing the ability of MCF-7 and T47-D cells, which express estrogen receptor alpha (ERα), to migrate and invade before they become metastatic. Results: Treatment with E2 can activate two signaling pathways, the first one by the phosphorylated c-Src (p-Src) which forms the p-Src/E-cadherin complex. This phenomenon was completely prevented by incubation with a selective inhibitor of c-Src (5 µM PP2).p-Src then promotes the downregulation of E-cadherin and occludin, which are epithelial phenotype marker proteins of the AJ and TJ, respectively. In the second pathway, E2 binds to ERα, creating a complex that translocates to the nucleus, inducing the synthesis of SNAIL1 and N-cadherin proteins, markers of the mesenchymal phenotype. Both processes increased the migratory and invasive capacities of both cell lines. Conclusion The present study demonstrate that E2 enhance EMT and migration, through c-Src activation, in human breast cancer cells that express ERα and become potential therapeutic targets.