Surgical Gynecology

Gynecology is principally an operative specialty and the range of gynecologic procedures managed is constantly expanding due to improved instrumentation and minimally invasive techniques. Covering the entire spectrum of gynecologic surgery through a case-based, digestible format, procedures such as vaginal, transvaginal, hysteroscopic, laparoscopic, robotic, and abdominal procedures are included, as well as common surgical challenges and complications. For each case, a clinical vignette outlines the situation and the clinical context of the patient, followed by a comprehensive discussion of the evidence-based management approach and key teaching points. The decision to operate, contraindications, alternatives to surgery and preoperative counseling is discussed in detail along with the level of care needed for each case. Readers will improve their knowledge base of gynecologic surgery and gain multiple tools to overcome common surgical obstacles.

Minimally Invasive Triple Therapy of the Presurgical Neck

Minimally invasive in-office procedures are a fast growing field in plastic surgery. Patients often notice and complain about their neck at an earlier age. Modern treatments for the aging neck have continued to evolve over the past decade, with more options continuing to become available. In this article, we describe our noninvasive approach to the aging neck through the combination of submental liposuction, radiofrequency (RF) microneedling, and percutaneous RF as a safe and effective option. Through appropriate patient selection, preoperative counseling, and good surgical technique, appropriate results can be achieved with minimal downtime. Patient selection, counseling, appropriate anesthesia, procedure details, and results are discussed in this article.

Management of Recurrent and Delayed Post-Tonsillectomy and Adenoidectomy Hemorrhage in Children

Objective: To review our experience on post-tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy hemorrhage (PTAH) at a tertiary pediatric referral hospital and to evaluate the management and risk factors for recurrent postoperative hemorrhage and for delayed bleeding after day 14. Methods: A retrospective chart review was performed for all pediatric patients admitted to The Children’s Hospital at Westmead for PTAH between July 01, 2014, and June 30, 2019. Patients with recurrent hemorrhage and those with bleeding after day 14 were selected for subanalysis. Results: Of the 291 patients admitted for PTAH, 31 (11%) patients had recurrent postoperative hemorrhage, and 11 (4%) patients had delayed bleeding after day 14. Surgical intervention for cessation of hemorrhage was required in 88 (30%) patients, including 2 patients who required return to the theater more than once. Nine (3%) patients received blood transfusions. The average number of days between bleeding episodes was 4 days. Recurrent postoperative hemorrhage occurred in 8.5% of patients who were managed operatively at their first presentation compared to 11.4% of patients who were managed nonoperatively (odds ratio: 1.1; 95% confidence interval 0.43-2.8). No association was found between abnormal coagulation profile, surgical indication, and risk of delayed postoperative hemorrhage. Conclusions: Recurrent or delayed postoperative hemorrhage represents a small proportion of children with postoperative bleeding and cannot be reliably predicted. Management of first presentations with either a conservative or a surgical approach is reasonable since the risk of recurrent of PTAH may be unrelated to the choice of management at initial presentation. Careful preoperative counseling of patients and their families is important to help set expectations in the event of PTAH.

The timing and the dose of advanced care planning in patients with resectable pancreatic cancer: Who makes the call?

397 Background:The timing and the extent of Advanced Care Planning (ACP) in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) undergoing curative-intent resection are generally dictated by the surgeon performing the operation. The aim of this study is to evaluate surgeons’ insights, perceptions, and biases regarding preoperative ACP. We hypothesize that many surgeons harbor significant reservations about extensive preoperative ACP. Methods:A qualitative investigation using 1:1 interviews with 40 open-ended questions were conducted with convenience sample. Data accrual continued until theme saturation was achieved. Grounded theory approach was used for data coding and analysis. Results:A total of 10 interviews were conducted with expert pancreatic surgeons from 6 medical centers—6 males and 4 females. The median number of years in practice was 15 (IQR 13-30) and the median number of pancreatic cancer cases performed per year was 52 (IQR 39-75). During preoperative counseling all surgeons discuss the possibility of recurrence and postoperative complications but attempt to motivate patients by emphasizing hope, optimism, and fact that surgery offers the only opportunity for cure. 90% of surgeons report no formal training in ACP. All surgeons report comfort with end of life conversations when death is imminent, but most lack experience with in-depth preoperative ACP. All surgeons emphasized that ACP should be led by a physician that both knows the patient well and understands the complexity of PDAC management. All surgeons recognized potential benefits of ACP, including delivery of goal-concordant care (60%), increased prognostic awareness (40%), and better life planning (40%). 50% report discussing in-depth ACP related to perioperative complications, but not long-term oncologic outcome. 80% of surgeons report that they actively steer away from in-depth ACP during preoperative counseling. Barriers to in-depth ACP reported by surgeons include taking away hope (70%), lack of time (50%) and concern for sending “mixed messages” (50%). Further, 50% of surgeons perceived that extensive preoperative ACP is not appropriate for patients with PDAC undergoing curative-intent resection. Most surgeons (60%) believe that ACP should occur as a process throughout the disease and in-depth discussions were more appropriate during postoperative visits (30%) and/or recurrence (60%). Conclusions:Despite recognizing potential benefits, most pancreatic surgeons report actively avoiding in-depth ACP conversations prior to curative-intent surgery. Surgeons had difficulty articulating the best time for ACP and felt that ACP should occur as a continuum throughout the course of treatment, with the depth of the discussion echoing the disease progression and patients’ readiness for such conversation. Future studies could evaluate patients’ perspective on the timing and the dose of ACP.

The Effect of Non-Pharmacological Measures on Anxiety before Surgical operation: A Systematic Review

Background: Surgery is one of the most common methods of treating many diseases which is known as an anxious experience for patients. Treatment of anxiety is important due adverse consequences in patients undergoing surgery. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of non-pharmacological measures on patients' anxiety before surgery. Materials and Methods: In this study, systematic review of information from databases, PubMed, Science Direct, Google Scholar, Magiran, SID, Civilica, Iranmedex, with keywords anxiety, music therapy, massage therapy, education, counseling, aromatherapy, and non-pharmacological interventions from 2000-2020. Results: Out of 338 articles, 41 articles were selected and analyzed. These studies have introduced methods including educating and informing the patient, aromatherapy, massage therapy, listening to music and performing preoperative counseling as effective methods of non-pharmacological treatments for preoperative anxiety. Conclusion: The findings show that the use of various non-pharmacological methods, especially massage, listening to music and aromatherapy to treat preoperative anxiety in patients is very effective and efficient and has a significant effect on reducing the anxiety of patients who are candidates for surgery. Also, the use of these methods reduces the use of sedatives and the side effects of their use.

Usefulness of mirror image processing software for creating images of expected appearance after blepharoptosis surgery

Purpose This study aims to evaluate the usefulness of creating images of expected appearance after blepharoptosis surgery using mirror image processing software. Methods This prospective, observational study included 60 sides from 30 patients with bilateral aponeurotic blepharoptosis who underwent levator resection or aponeurotic repair on both sides. Before surgery, facial photographs were taken after the eyelid on one side was lifted with a curved hook. The mirror images were created from these photographs and were merged with the original photographs for making the whole facial images, which were shown to each patient at the preoperative counseling. At 1 month postoperatively, we asked patients about the usefulness of the mirror images to predict the postoperative appearance at the preoperative counseling and the similarity between the expected and the resultant postoperative appearance using questionnaires. Margin reflex distance-1, eyebrow height, and pretarsal skin height measured on predictive images were compared with those measured at 1 month postoperatively. Results Twenty-nine patients (96.7%) favorably responded to the usefulness of the mirror images to predict the postoperative appearance, and twenty-five patients (83.3%) accepted the similarity between the expected appearance and the actual postoperative appearance. The predictive images showed significantly lower margin reflex distance-1, higher eyebrow height, and higher pretarsal skin height than the postoperative results (P < 0.001). Conclusion The creation of expected postoperative images was a useful simulation procedure before blepharoptosis surgery for patients to predict the probable postoperative appearance.