Capturing what matters: updating NICE methods guidance on measuring and valuing health

Quality of Life Research - In July 2019, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) initiated a major review of its health technology evaluation methods to update its methods...     

Anatomical observations of the moderator band

Apical ventricular septal defects are rare pathologies of the ventricular septum. The moderator band, or other large trabeculations, is the major obstacle for the repair of such defects. The aim of our study was to identify and describe variations in the size and anatomy of the moderator band. We studied the right ventricular apical trabeculations in 100 adult human cadavers. Overall, we identified the moderator band in 92% of hearts. In just over two‐fifths (42%), the band was a short and thick trabeculation, whereas, in one‐eighth (12%), it was long and thick. In just under one‐quarter of the hearts (24%), the band was short and thin, whereas it was long and thin in 14% of the hearts. In the remaining eight hearts, we were unable to identify the moderator band. The mean thickness of the band was 4.5 ±1.8 mm, and its mean length was 16.23 ± 2.3 mm, ranging from 11.3 to 24.3 mm. According to these measurements, we were able to classify the band as originating less than 45% of the distance from the tricuspid valve to the apex (closer to tricuspid valve), seen in 12 hearts, between 45 and 55% of the distance from the valve to the apex, seen in 45 hearts, and greater than 55% of this distance (closer to the apex), seen in 39 specimens. We present these data that may prove useful in the setting of the surgical repair of apical ventricular septal defects through the right atrium. Clin. Anat. 23:443–450, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

The abdominal compartment syndrome: a complication with many faces

BACKGROUND: Lately renewed attention has been given to the abdominal compartment syndrome. Despite of this there still remain a lot of controversies with regard to the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying this syndrome and the therapeutic options. METHODS: Two cases of patients with this syndrome are described and the data from animal and human trials concerning the abdominal compartment syndrome are presented and discussed. RESULTS: A variety of clinical disorders may lead to the abdominal compartment syndrome. It mainly affects the cardiovascular, pulmonary and renal organ systems. Although some clinical effects are clearly described, the exact mechanisms underlying these changes in humans are incompletely understood. It is still unclear why some patients develop abdominal compartment syndrome and others do not. The intra-abdominal pressure can easily be assessed by measuring the urine bladder pressure, which correlates well with the actual intra-abdominal pressure. All authors agree that a decompression of the abdomen by means of a laparotomy is the treatment of choice for the abdominal compartment syndrome. Which parameters should determine the indication however, remains controversial, since the correlation between clinical signs and pressure is not straightforward. CONCLUSIONS: The abdominal compartment syndrome is a well-recognised disease entity related to acutely increased abdominal pressure. Urgent laparotomy can be lifesaving in some cases. However no single threshold of abdominal pressure can be applied universally. Pending further clinical trials the best therapeutic option seems to be to decompress the abdomen surgically if the intravesical pressure is 25 mmHg or higher in patients with refractory hypotension, acute renal failure or respiratory failure due to abdominal distension.     

A comparison of 99mTc-HMPAO SPET changes in dementia with Lewy bodies and Alzheimer's disease using statistical parametric mapping

Differences in regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) between subjects with Alzheimer's disease (AD), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and healthy volunteers were investigated using statistical parametric mapping (SPM99). Forty-eight AD, 23 DLB and 20 age-matched control subjects participated. Technetium-99m hexamethylpropylene amine oxime (HMPAO) brain single-photon emission tomography (SPET) scans were acquired for each subject using a single-headed rotating gamma camera (IGE CamStar XR/T). The SPET images were spatially normalised and group comparison was performed by SPM99. In addition, covariate analysis was undertaken on the standardised images taking the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores as a variable. Applying a height threshold of P < or = 0.001 uncorrected, significant perfusion deficits in the parietal and frontal regions of the brain were observed in both AD and DLB groups compared with the control subjects. In addition, significant temporoparietal perfusion deficits were identified in the AD subjects, whereas the DLB patients had deficits in the occipital region. Comparison of dementia groups (height threshold of P < or = 0.01 uncorrected) yielded hypoperfusion in both the parietal [Brodmann area (BA) 7] and occipital (BA 17, 18) regions of the brain in DLB compared with AD. Abnormalities in these areas, which included visual cortex and several areas involved in higher visual processing and visuospatial function, may be important in understanding the visual hallucinations and visuospatial deficits which are characteristic of DLB. Covariate analysis indicated group differences between AD and DLB in terms of a positive correlation between cognitive test score and temporoparietal blood flow. In conclusion, we found evidence of frontal and parietal hypoperfusion in both AD and DLB, while temporal perfusion deficits were observed exclusively in AD and parieto-occipital deficits in DLB.