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Objective: To evaluate effects of preoperative high-dose glucocorticoid on the inflammatory response and recovery after endovascular aortic aneurysm repair (EVAR)., Background: The postimplantation syndrome after EVAR may delay recovery due to the release of proinflammatory mediators. Glucocorticoids may reduce postoperative inflammatory responses and enhance recovery, but with limited information on EVAR., Methods: A single-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 153 patients undergoing elective EVAR between November 2009 and January 2013. Patients received 30 mg/kg of methylprednisolone (MP) (n = 77) or placebo (n = 76) preoperatively. Primary outcome was a modified version of the systemic inflammatory response syndrome. Secondary outcome measures were the effect on inflammatory biomarkers, morbidity, and time to meet discharge criteria., Results: Of 153 randomized patients, 150 (98%) were evaluated for the primary outcome. MP reduced systemic inflammatory response syndrome from 92% to 27% (P < 0.0001) (number needed to treat = 1.5), maximal plasma interleukin 6 from 186 pg/mL [interquartile range (IQR) = 113-261 pg/mL] to 20 pg/mL (IQR = 11-28 pg/mL) (P < 0.001) and fulfillment of discharge criteria was shorter [2 days (IQR = 2-4 days) vs 3 days (IQR = 3-4 days)] (P < 0.001). C-reactive protein, temperature, interleukin 8, and soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor were also reduced (P < 0.001) by MP. Myeloperoxidase, D-dimer, and matrix metalloproteinase 9 were not modified. No differences in 30-day medical (23% vs 36%) (P = 0.1) or surgical (20% vs 21%) morbidity were found in the active group versus the placebo group., Conclusions: Preoperative MP attenuates the inflammatory response with a faster recovery after EVAR for abdominal aortic aneurysms. Further safety and dose-response studies are required to allow recommendations for general practice., Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00989729.

Introduction: Simulation-based assessment studies have related simulator performance to clinical experience instead of actual clinical performance. This study validates a novel rating scale for coronary angiography (CA) performance and at the same time explores the association between CA performance in a simulated setting and in the catheterization laboratory., Methods: Ten cardiologists and cardiology residents with varying degrees of CA experience performed 2 CAs in the catheterization laboratory and 2 CAs in a simulated setting. The residents had prior simulator experience opposite cardiologists. Two raters assessed the operators' video-recorded performances using the novel CA rating scale (CARS)., Results: The correlation between CARS scores in the catheterization laboratory and the simulated setting was R = 0.20 (P = 0.195). Residents' scores were higher in the simulated setting than in the catheterization laboratory. The correlation between operators' previous clinical experience in CA and CARS scores was R = 0.65 (P = 0.005) in the catheterization laboratory and R = 0.11 (P = 0.353) in the simulated setting., Conclusions: The association between CA performance in a simulated setting and actual performance in the catheterization laboratory is not linear. The novel rating scale for CA (CARS) seems to be a valid proficiency assessment instrument in the catheterization laboratory. Familiarity with the simulator may overestimate proficiency, which means that simulator performance as a predictor of clinical performance should be interpreted with caution.

Objective: To assess body composition, eating pattern, and basal metabolic rate in patients undergoing obesity surgery in a randomized trial., Introduction: There is limited knowledge regarding how different bariatric surgical techniques function in terms of altering body composition, dietary intake, and basic metabolic rate., Methods: Non-superobese patients were randomized to laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LGBP, n = 37) or laparoscopic vertical banded gastroplasty (LVBG, n = 46). Anthropometry, dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA), computed tomography (CT), indirect calorimetry, and reported dietary intake were registered prior to and 1 year after surgery., Results: Follow-up rate was 97.6%. LGBP patients had significantly greater reduction of waist circumference and sagittal diameter compared with LVBG. DEXA demonstrated a larger reduction of body fat in all compartments after LGBP, especially at the trunk (P<0.001). CT demonstrated more reduction of the visceral fat (P=0.016). Patients were able to eat all types of food after LGBP, although about 30% claimed they avoided fats. LGBP patients decreased their proportion of dietary fat significantly more than those operated on with LVBG (P = 0.005), who consumed more sweet foods and avoided whole meat and vegetables. Lean tissue mass (LTM) was proportionally less reduced, especially in men, after LGBP. The decreases in BMR postoperatively reflected the lower body mass in a pattern that did not differ among the groups., Conclusion: LGBP patients demonstrated better outcomes compared with LVBG patients in terms of body composition. Energy expenditure developed as expected postoperatively. A "steering" away from fatty foods after LGBP may be an important mechanism of action in gastric bypass.

Endovascular techniques are making progress in most aspects of vascular disease. Penetrating or blunt trauma to large arteries can in many cases be managed elegantly with endovascular techniques. However when it comes to arterial trauma of the extremities things are more complicated. There are no reports hitherto in the literature on endovascular treatment of blunt injuries to the arteries of the extremities. In the present report we describe two cases of blunt trauma to the brachial artery treated with balloon angioplasty (PTA) to fixate the dissected intima to the vessel wall. The "glueing" was effective in giving a long lasting patency.We anticipate that there may be a role, though limited, for using PTA as a means of "glueing" the intima. More advanced techniques such as insertion of stents or stent-grafts in traumatized extremity arteries would rarely be indicated.