Introduction: Congenital talipes equino-varus (CTEV) is amongst one of the most common paediatric foot deformities. Ponseti’s method is the standard way of treatment, however, some patients are left with residual or partially corrected deformities. Dynamic supination is one amongst them, where the foot supinates in swing phase of the gait cycle. It is due to a strong tibialis anterior and its weak antagonist. Materials and methods: We undertook a prospective interventional study in thirty patients of CTEV with residual dynamic supination deformity and treated them with tibialis anterior tendon transfer (TATT) using a button anchor. Minimum follow-up was six months after the surgery. Functional, subjective and objective evaluation was done using foot posture index (FPI), disease specific instrument (DSI) for clubfoot, clinician satisfaction grading and videotaped functional gait analysis. Statistical analysis was done using paired ‘t’ test and calculating p values. Results: We achieved good to excellent results in 93.3% of our patients and fair in 6.66%. None of our patients had poor results. Mean FPI improved from -1.93 to +0.3, DSI values also showed a significant reduction from 18.17 +/- 1.09 to 13.37 +/- 1.54 after surgery. A total of 90% had satisfactory gait post-surgery at 6 months follow-up. Conclusion: Tibialis anterior tendon transfer using a button anchor is effective in treatment of residual dynamic supination deformity.

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of oil massage as an adjunct therapy for neonatal jaundice during phototherapy. Methods: A total of 160 neonates with unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia were enrolled and randomly allocated into two study groups using a computer-generated random number table.Group 1 (Intervention Group) consisted of 84 patients who received both phototherapy and massage therapy, while Group 2 (Control Group) consisted of 76 patients who received only phototherapy. The intervention group underwent massage therapy three times daily for 20 minutes over two consecutive days. Transcutaneous bilirubin levels were measured every eight hours. Additionally, the total duration of phototherapy and the 24-hour stool and urine output frequency were recorded in both groups. Results: There were no significant differences in the demographic characteristics between the two groups. However, stool frequency and urine output were significantly higher in the intervention group. The average duration of phototherapy was 19.4±4.17 hours in the intervention group compared to 28.4±6.58 hours in the control group (p<0.001). The rate of Transcutaneous bilirubin reduction was significantly higher in the intervention group during the first 24 hours. A rebound increase in bilirubin levels was observed at 40 and 48 hours in both groups after phototherapy was discontinued. Conclusion Phototherapy combined with massage significantly reduced total bilirubin levels in newborns with neonatal hyperbilirubinemia, making it a valuable adjunct treatment for the rapid reduction of bilirubin in neonates.

Background: This study investigates whether intramuscular electrical stimulation (IMES) with inverse electrode placement (IEP) or conventional electrode placement (CEP) more effectively modulates pain. The current study’s aim was to compare the effects of IMES using IEP and CEP, and sham-IMES on the pressure pain threshold (PPT), EMG activity, upper trapezius (UT) muscle length and pain severity among adults with UT myofascial trigger points (MTrPs). Methods: Thirty-six male adults with UT-MTrPs were allocated into three groups. IEP, CEP and sham groups were respectively treated with a single IMES session using IEP, CEP, and sham-IMES. Pain intensity, PPT, EMG activity (root mean square, RMS) and UT muscle length were measured on day one before the treatment, day one post treatment and at a day three follow-up to determine the immediate and short-term effectiveness of IMES. Results: IMES using both IEP and CEP methods produced significant higher changes in UT-PPT (median, interquartile-interval, IEP group: 3.25, 2.56–3.50 and CEP group: 2.75, 1.75–3.00, vs. sham group: 1.07, 0.89–1.71 kg/cm 2 ), RMS (IEP: 0.31, 0.26–0.35 and CEP: 0.36, 0.23–0.38, vs. sham: 0.21, 0.16–0.25 mV), and UT muscle length (IEP: 9.50, 8–12.75 and CEP: 8, 7–10, vs. 1.5. 1–2.75 degrees) and UT-pain severity (IEP: 3.00, 2.25–4 and CEP: 3, 3–3, vs. sham: 2, 2–2.75 points on VAS) compared to the score change in sham-IMES at day three follow up. Conclusions Pain modulation can be effectively achieved using IMES regardless of electrode placement method, with different electrode configurations.

Purpose: In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we investigated assisted reproductive technology (ART) success in infertile men with clinical varicocele and abnormal semen parameters who underwent varicocele repair (VR) before the ART procedure as compared to those who did not. Materials and Methods: A comprehensive search of the Scopus, PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases was conducted using a specific query string to identify studies examining the impact of VR on ART outcomes, including fertilization rate, clinical pregnancy, pregnancy loss, and live-birth rate, until October 2023. Outcomes were analyzed based on the type of ART. Studies on VR in infertile men with non-obstructive azoospermia and those who underwent ART only due to female factor infertility were excluded from the study. Results: Out of 1,554 articles reviewed, only 9 met the inclusion criteria for the study. All the included articles were observational studies. The variability in study quality in the included literature resulted in a moderate overall risk of bias. Data analysis showed that for intrauterine insemination, there was no difference in the clinical pregnancy rate (odds ratio [OR] 1.01, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.42, 2.45; p=0.97). However, for intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), men with VR showed a significant improvement in fertilization rate (mean difference 10.9, 95% CI: 5.94, 15.89; p<0.01), clinical pregnancy rate (OR 1.38, 95% CI: 1.07, 1.78; p=0.01) and live-birth rate (OR 2.07, 95% CI: 1.45, 2.97; p<0.01), compared to men who did not undergo VR. Conclusions The findings of this systematic review and meta-analysis suggest that VR has a positive impact on pregnancy and live birth rates after ICSI. However, biases like small sample sizes and heterogeneous populations highlight the need for larger, well-designed prospective studies to validate these findings.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with portal vein tumor thrombosis (PVTT) is associated with a dismal prognosis. Atezolizumab plus bevacizumab (atezo-bev) is the recommended palliative treatment, and approximately 10% of the patients may experience a complete response (CR), according to the mRECIST criteria. The treatment duration is until disease progression or unacceptable side effects occur. Long-term continuation can cause potential toxicities and a substantial financial burden, making early treatment discontinuation a viable option. This report describes durable CR after discontinuing atezo-bev treatment in three patients with HCC and PVTT.

Surgery for a symptomatic epiphrenic esophageal diverticulum (EED) typically involves a diverticulectomy with myotomy and partial fundoplication. A 54-year-old male patients presented with postprandial retrosternal pain and regurgitation. A contrast-enhanced computed tomography scan revealed an 8 × 6 × 7 cm left-sided EED. We planned the EED excision using the da Vinci Xi robot (Intuitive Surgical) from an abdominal transhiatal approach.The lower esophagus was looped, followed by the mobilization of the diverticulum and division of its neck using a robotic stapler. A 7-cm long esophagogastric myotomy was performed on the right side with a Toupet fundoplication. The total operative time was 240 minutes with a blood loss of 200 mL. An oral contrast study on postoperative day 1 showed no leak, and the patient was discharged the next day on an oral soft diet. The robotic transhiatal approach to treat EED is safe and may successfully overcome the difficulties of exposure and reach encountered in conventional laparoscopic surgery.

Objective: Colony-stimulating factor 1 receptor-related leukoencephalopathy (CSF1R-L) is a rare adult-onset leukoencephalopathy. Reports of CSF1R-L patients from the Indian subcontinent remain limited. We aimed to report four patients with genetically confirmed CSF1R-L from four Asian Indian families and described their clinical, molecular, and radiological features. Methods: All patients underwent clinical examination, brain magnetic resonance imaging, and whole-exome sequencing to identify causative variants in the CSF1R gene. We also reviewed published reports of Indian patients with CSF1R-L. Results: The age at enrollment ranged from 34 to 40 years. The duration of symptoms ranged from 11 months to 2 years. The chief clinical phenotype in three patients was a rapidly evolving cognitive-behavioral syndrome combined with atypical parkinsonism, and asymmetrical spastic tetraparesis was observed in one patient. We identified four different variants (three missense variants and one in-frame deletion). Radiological findings revealed white matter involvement and diffusion restriction involving the subcortical white matter and pyramidal tracts. Conclusion We expand the literature on CSF1R-L patients from India by reporting four new cases.