Krzysztof Gałczyński

An Open Multicenter Study of Clinical Efficacy and Safety of Urolastic, an Injectable Implant for the Treatment of Stress Urinary Incontinence: One-Year Observation

The prevalence of stress urinary incontinence rises and affects up to 30% of women after 50 years of age. Midurethral slings are currently the mainstay of surgical anti-incontinence therapy. Some patients experience recurrent SUI (RSUI) which is defined as a failure of anti-incontinence surgery after a period of time or persistence of SUI after the procedure aimed at correcting it. The urethral bulking agent application decreases invasiveness of treatment and meets patients requirements. The objective of this study was to assess the safety and clinical efficacy of Urolastic injection. One hundred and five patients with SUI (including 91 patients with RSUI) were treated with Urolastic in three tertiary gynecological clinics. The efficacy of the procedure was assessed objectively at each follow-up visit by means of cough test and a standard 1-hour pad test. Objective success rate after 12 months after primary procedure in RSUI patients was found in 59.3% of patients. In 14 patients with primary SUI improvement after 1 year was found in 71.4% of patients. Although cure rates after MUS are up to 90% there is still place for less invasive treatment option like periurethral injection of bulking agents, especially in patients with previous SUI surgical management.

Laparoscopic pelvic lymphadenectomy in 10 steps – let's make it easier!

Article history: Received 5 December 2016 Received in revised form 27 January 2017 Accepted 3 February 2017 Available online xxxx In this video, laparoscopic transperitoneal pelvic lymphadenectomy was divided into 10 steps andpresented as a simple algorithmwhich respects the anatomy of the iliac fossa and ergonomics of laparoscopic surgery. In described steps, lymph nodes are removed by the en-bloc technique.

Laparoscopic extraperitoneal lumboaortic lymphadenectomy in 10 steps – Let's make it easier!

OBJECTIVE Laparoscopic extraperitoneal lymphadenectomy has both advantages of minimally invasive approach and retroperitoneal access. Although procedure is described for more than two decades there is a lack of diffusion of the technique. Standardization and simple description of the technique is main objective of this video. We described this procedure in 10 logical steps which could help to understand and perform this procedure. METHODS This video presents systematic approach to extraperitoneal lumboaortic lymphadenectomy which was clearly divided in ten steps ordered in a counter-clockwise direction. RESULTS CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic extraperitoneal access to lumboaortic lymph nodes is an effective method of lymphadenectomy which may bring benefits to a patient and physician. Presented ten steps help to perform each part of surgery in logical sequence making procedure ergonomic, easier to adopt and learn. Prior development of operative area in the extraperitoneal space followed by identification of anatomical landmarks is an important step which should precede lymph node dissection. Standardization of laparoscopic techniques could help to reduce learning curve.

Fas-Related Apoptosis of Peritoneal Fluid Macrophages in Endometriosis Patients: Understanding the Disease

Recent studies of the peritoneal cavity environment in endometriosis demonstrate quantitative and qualitative changes in the cells responsible for cell-mediated immunity. Such changes may have led to disturbances in the surveillance, recognition, and destruction of misplaced endometrial cells and might have, in fact, brought about the disease. The aim of the study was to assess CD95 (Fas) expression on (activated) peritoneal fluid (PF) macrophages, as well as to ascertain soluble Fas (sFas) concentration in the PF of endometriosis patients, as compared to the nonendometriotic group. The concentration of leukocytes in the PF, the percentage of cells expressing CD45+/CD14+, and the percentage of PF macrophages expressing the HLA-DR antigen were significantly higher in patients with stages I and II endometriosis. The percentage of Fas- (CD95+-) expressing macrophages was significantly higher in all stages of the disease, in comparison with controls. Moreover, the concentration of sFas in the PF of patients with moderate and severe endometriosis was significantly higher, as compared to the reference group. The high number of immune cells in PF in early stage endometriosis and their increased susceptibility to apoptosis confirm the role of the impaired peritoneal environment and immune defects in the development and progression of the disease.

Hysterectomy trends for benign indications over a 15-year period in an academic teaching center in Poland: a retrospective cohort study

OBJECTIVES The aim of the study was to evaluate changes in the operative trends for various types of hysterectomy due to benign indications, between 2001 and 2015, at the 2nd Department of Gynecology, Medical University of Lublin, as compared to the National Health Service (NHS) registry in Poland. MATERIAL AND METHODS A retrospective cohort study was conducted. Data from the Internal Hospital Discharge Registry and Pathological Results Registry have been compared to the NHS database, which has been available nationwide since 2009. RESULTS The study group included 5629 women who underwent hysterectomy due to benign indications. During the study period, the following number of procedures were performed: total abdominal hysterectomy - 344 (6.11%), total abdominal hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy - 1760 (31.27%), total vaginal hysterectomy - 563 (10.00%), subtotal abdominal hysterectomy - 2536 (45.05%), and laparoscopically-assisted subtotal hysterectomy (LASH) - 426 (7.57%). The abdominal route, with the preference for subtotal abdominal hysterectomy, was the main approach to hysterectomy. Symptomatic fibroids were the most common indication for the procedure. Comparison of data collected over the last five years revealed a significant difference in the approach to hysterectomy in favor of subtotal abdominal hysterectomy (SAH) and LASH. CONCLUSIONS Less invasive techniques of hysterectomy (LASH, SAH), which are the preferred choice at the 2nd Department of Gynecology (Lublin), are safe and effective options of treating benign conditions. We are of the opinion that these ap-proaches should be offered to patients instead of more radical techniques. Proper training of physicians may influence the decision-making process in favor of minimally invasive techniques.

Use of free uroflowmetry vs pressure-flow studies in the diagnosis of overactive bladder syndrome in females

OBJECTIVES To determine if pressure-flow study (PFS) parameters, including flow index (FI) calculated by dividing average urethral flow by maximal urethral flow, increase the accuracy of urodynamic studies in the diagnosis of overactive bladder (OAB). STUDY DESIGN Retrospective study to evaluate the medical history and urodynamic examination results of female patients diagnosed with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) between January 2014 and December 2015. Patients were stratified into four groups depending on the type of LUTS: OAB; stress urinary incontinence (SUI); mixed urinary incontinence with predominant SUI symptoms (MUI-SUI); and mixed urinary incontinence with predominant OAB symptoms (MUI-OAB). RESULTS OAB was diagnosed in 26 (15%) patients, SUI was diagnosed in 93 (52%) patients, MUI-OAB was diagnosed in 43 (24%) patients, and MUI-SUI was diagnosed in 17 (9%) patients. FI calculated using free uroflowmetry (FI-free) was significantly lower in the OAB group compared with the other groups (p<0.01). Analysis revealed no difference in FI-free between the SUI, MUI-SUI and MUI-OAB groups. Significant differences were found between the study groups for most free uroflowmetric parameters, including maximal urethral flow, average urethral flow and micturition volume (p<0.05). Similar differences were not found in PFS parameters. CONCLUSIONS The decrease in the urethral lumen due to the presence of a transurethral catheter in patients with OAB, in contrast to women with SUI and MUI, was not found to influence FI calculated using free uroflowmetry or PFS. FI may serve as an important objective diagnostic tool for OAB, but only when calculated from free uroflowmetry parameters when assessing patients with LUTS.

Influence of the dissolution medium on the release of dehydroepiandrosterone from lipophilic suppositories

Abstract Suppositories with cocoa butter containing dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) without and with the addition of Span 80 and Tween 80 as surfactants with low and high HLB values were prepared. The physical properties and the drug content of all prepared suppositories were in accordance with the pharmacopoeial requirements. The release study tests in three dissolution media such as water, lactic acid solution at pH 4.2 and phosphate buffer at pH 7.4 were carried out. In acidic and alkalic media only about 10% and 27% of DHEA were released, respectively. The addition of Span 80 to the suppository mass did not improve the release process, but the addition of Tween 80 caused the increase in the amount of DHEA released in the acidic medium to about 35%. The data showed that rectal administration of suppositories with DHEA based on cocoa butter caused about 30% availability and after vaginal administration, only topical activity can be expected. By the addition of Tween 80 to the suppository mass availability of DHEA of about 35% from vaginal suppositories can be achieved.

Serum paraoxonase 1 activity and protein N-homocysteinylation in primary human endometrial cancer

Paraoxonase 1 plays an important role in protection from oxidative stress and also decomposes homocysteine thiolactone, the toxic metabolite of homocysteine. A limited number of reports evaluated the role of paraoxonase 1 in women affected by female genital tract neoplasms, including endometrial cancer. This study aimed to analyze the paraoxonase activity in the group of endometrial cancer patients (n = 48) who underwent primary surgery and to compare the data available with a well-matched control group (n = 30). Due to the role of paraoxonase 1 in the metabolism of homocysteine (Hcy) thiolactone, the amount of Hcy-thiolactone as well as total serum Hcy concentrations was also measured. Serum paraoxonase 1 activity toward synthetic substrates, paraoxon and phenyl acetate, in the study group was significantly lower compared to the control one. The mean paraoxonase 1 activity toward homocysteine thiolactone tended to be lower in the endometrial cancer group but this difference was not significant. There was no relationship between endometrial cancer and Q192R polymorphism of PON1 assessed by the dual substrate method. No differences in paraoxonase 1 activity between endometrial cancer subgroups according to clinico-pathological features were detected. Total serum homocysteine and protein-bound homocysteine thiolactone did not differ between control and cancer groups. In conclusion, reduced paraoxonase 1 activity suggests diminished important antioxidant mechanisms during the development of primary endometrial cancers in humans. PON1 Q192R polymorphism is not associated with the risk of endometrial cancer. Despite lower paraoxonase 1 activity, homocysteine concentration, and protein N-homocysteinylation in endometrial cancers do not differ from matched controls.

A classification of complications in urogynecology

The frequency of female pelvic floor reconstruction surgery with synthetic materials has been systematically rising for the last 30 years. Nowadays, they are widely used in urogynecology with a high cure rate, and a statistically significant better outcome compared to classical vaginal repair procedures. This type of operation progressed in some areas from an indication for recurrent prolapse to that of using them in primary procedures. Nevertheless, implantation of synthetic material is associated with the occurrence of specific complications and side-effects. The number and type of complications varies, depending on the study, reaching as much as 10% in some centers. The International Continence Society (ICS) and International Urogynecological Association (IUGA) have introduced an interesting tool for the evaluation of complications related directly to the insertion of prostheses and grafts in the female pelvic floor. The purpose of this classification is to describe possible complications with numbers and letters which together form a code containing comprehensive information about the complication. This article presents the clinical and practical aspects of this classification and first comments about its usability. The presented classification may serve as a tool for the development of national and international registries of urogynecological procedures that would be a great source of information on the number and type of operations performed, their effectiveness and potential complications.

New perspectives of the treatment of urogenital atrophy in women: intravaginal DHEA therapy

Według jednej z nowszych teorii objawy menopauzalne nie wynikają jedynie ze spowodowanego wygaśnięciem funkcji jajników niedoboru estrogenów, ale są także związane ze stopniowym, postępującym przez kilka lat zmniejszeniem stężenia dehydroepiandrosteronu (DHEA) wydzielanego przez nadnercza. Ponad 50% kobiet po menopauzie zgłasza objawy związane z atrofią nabłonka pochwy: podrażnienie, nawracające infekcje, uczucie suchości, ból podczas współżycia. Ogólnoustrojowa terapia hormonalna z użyciem samych estrogenów lub w połączeniu z progestagenami skutecznie przeciwdziała tym objawom, jednak wiąże się z możliwością wystąpienia działań niepożądanych. Poza tym u kobiet, u których jedynymi uciążliwymi objawami są te związane z atrofią pochwy, warto pomyśleć o terapii miejscowej. Do obiecujących wyników badań należą te nad dopochwowym zastosowaniem DHEA, w których założono, że terapia fizjologicznymi dawkami DHEA przyczyni się do zwiększenia stężenia androgenów i estrogenów syntetyzowanych miejscowo w tkance poprzez mechanizmy intrakrynne przy niewielkim działaniu ogólnoustrojowym. W grupie kobiet leczonych DHEA podawanym dopochwowo wykazano zmniejszenie objawów atrofii pochwy, regresję zmian dysplastycznych na szyjce macicy oraz zwiększenie libido. Słowa kluczowe: dehydroepiandrosteron, atrofia urogenitalna, menopauza.