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Postoperative pain is the unpleasant sensory and emotional experience after surgery, its origin being both the inflammatory reaction induced by the surgical trauma on the abdominal wall and the splanchnic pain induced by the activation of nociceptors of the viscera, which are highly sensitive to distension, ischemia, and inflammation. Nowadays, it is well recognized that there is a close relationship between the gut microbiome and pain perception, and that microbiome is highly affected by both anesthesia and surgical manipulation. Thus, efforts to restore the disturbed microbiome via supplementation with beneficial bacteria, namely probiotics, seem to be effective. In this article, the knowledge gained mainly from experimental research on this topic is analyzed, the concluding message being that each probiotic strain works in its own way towards pain relief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Anastomotic leakage, which is defined as a defect in the integrity of a surgical join between two hollow viscera leading to communication between the intraluminal and extraluminal compartments, continues to be of high incidence and one of the most feared complications following gastrointestinal surgery, with a significant potential for a fatal outcome. Surgical options for management are limited and carry a high risk of morbidity and mortality; thus, surgeons are urged to look for alternative options which are minimally invasive, repeatable, non-operative, and do not require general anesthesia. Methods: A narrative review of the international literature took place, including PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar, utilizing specific search terms such as "Digestive Surgery AND Anastomotic Leakage OR leak OR dehiscence". Results: In the present review, we try to describe and analyze the pros and cons of the various endoscopic techniques: from the very first (and still available), fibrin gluing, to endoclip and over-the-scope clip positioning, stent insertion, and the latest suturing and endoluminal vacuum devices. Finally, alongside efforts to improve the existing techniques, we consider stem cell application as well as non-endoscopic, and even endoscopic, attempts at intraluminal microbiome modification, which should ultimately intervene pre-emptively, rather than therapeutically, to prevent leaks. Conclusions: In the last three decades, this search for an ideal device for closure, which must be safe, easy to deploy, inexpensive, robust, effect rapid and stable closure of even large defects, and have a low complication rate, has led to the proposal and application of a number of different endoscopic devices and techniques. However, to date, there is no consensus as to the best. The literature contains reports of only small studies and no randomized trials, failing to take into account both the heterogeneity of leaks and their different anatomical sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wound healing is a multi-factorial response to tissue injury, aiming to restore tissue continuity. Numerous recent experimental and clinical studies clearly indicate that probiotics are applied topically to promote the wound-healing process. However, the precise mechanism by which they contribute to healing is not yet clear. Each strain appears to exert a distinctive, even multi-factorial action on different phases of the healing process. Given that a multi-probiotic formula exerts better results than a single strain, the pharmaceutical industry has embarked on a race for the production of a formulation containing a combination of probiotics capable of playing a role in all the phases of the healing process. Hence, the object of this review is to describe what is known to date of the distinctive mechanisms of each of the most studied probiotic strains in order to further facilitate research toward the development of combinations of strains and doses, covering the whole spectrum of healing. Eleven probiotic species have been analyzed, the only criterion of inclusion being a minimum of two published research articles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The probiotics Lactiplantibacillus plantarum UBLP-40, Lactobacillus rhamnosus UBLR-58 and Bifidobacterium longum UBBL-64 seem to promote wound healing when applied topically. Our aim was to investigate their effect on the mRNA expression of pro-inflammatory, healing and angiogenetic factors during the healing process of a standardized excisional wound model in rats. Rats subjected to six dorsal skin wounds were allocated to Control; L. plantarum; combined formula of L. rhamnosus plus B. longum; L. rhamnosus; and B. longum treatments, applied every two days, along with tissue collection. The pro-inflammatory, wound-healing, and angiogenetic factors of mRNA expression were assessed by qRT-PCR. We found that L. plantarum exerts a strong anti-inflammatory effect in relation to L. rhamnosus–B. longum, given alone or in combination; the combined regime of L. rhamnosus–B. longum, works better, greatly promoting the expression of healing and angiogenic factors than L. plantarum. When separately tested, L. rhamnosus was found to work better than B. longum in promoting the expression of healing factors, while B. longum seems stronger than L. rhamnosus in the expression of angiogenic factors. We, therefore, suggest that an ideal probiotic treatment should definitively contain more than one probiotic strain to speed up all three healing phases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Weight loss by means of an intragastric balloon is an advantageous procedure, as usage of such a balloon is minimally invasive and of minimal operational risk. Nevertheless, despite the encouraging results referred in to large population studies, its success rate as a treatment option is still questionable. The aim of this study was to classify and analyze all parameters recorded in a database of a treatment protocol concerning obese individuals handled by an intragastric balloon, in an attempt to delineate the comparable profile of those who succeeded to lose weight and those who failed. Subjects and Methods: Retrospective data collection, including demographic and anthropometric data, social and psychological factors, educational status, and attendance at sessions and the exercise program, was conducted. Using as a criterion for grouping the percentage of excess weight loss (%EWL), the successful (%EWL ≥50%) and the poor (%EWL ≤20%) responders were identified. Results: In total, 583 patients were assessed. Initial and ideal body weight (BW), initial body mass index (BMI), and excess weight were significantly lower in the %EWL ≥50% group ( P<.001). Upon balloon removal, both groups exhibited a significant difference regarding BW, BW lost, BMI, and %EWL ( P<.001). Advanced age (odds ratio [OR]=1.06; P<.001), female gender (OR=3.31; P<.001), basic educational level (OR=3.12; P<.001), and single or divorced marital status (OR=6.00; P<.001) were identified as the most powerful determinants of %EWL ≥50%. Moreover, attendance at more than four monthly interviews and strict exercise program commitment contributed significantly to a favorable outcome. Conclusions: Our findings could serve as an initial step for further research into factors possibly contributing to the early identification of those individuals who will notably benefit from usage of an intragastric balloon regarding BW loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of the intragastic balloon as a safe, noninvasive, alternative method to weight reduction raises all the ethical questions routinely faced by practitioners of other forms of cosmetic surgery. In the case of the morbidly, severely or merely obese, the surgeon is faced with a medical decision in a situation defined by medical parameters. The case of the overweight or normal may, however, create an ethical dilemma in which the doctor is forced to make decisions of a nonmedical nature, for which his training has not prepared him, and relating essentially to his personal attitudes and moral beliefs, culture and the recognition that ‘if I don’t, somebody else – possibly less competent – will’. Copyright © 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]