Top videos
Dr. Horacio Asbun, Mayo Clinic in Florida, explains the Whipple procedure using this animated graphic of a pancreas. Cancer of the pancreas affects 45,000 people every year in the U.S., and it is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related deaths. The five-year overall survival rate if a tumor is detected early and surgically removed is 22 percent, versus 6 percent without early detection and surgery. To learn more, visit http://mayocl.in/2zk7FDi.
This video in Spanish/español: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_zWboNMKWk
During your menstrual period, your uterus contracts to help expel its lining. Hormonelike substances (prostaglandins) involved in pain and inflammation trigger the uterine muscle contractions. Higher levels of prostaglandins are associated with more-severe menstrual cramps.
To record the sequence, Stephan Gordts and Ivo Brosens of the Leuven Institute for Fertility & Embryology in Belgium performed transvaginal laparoscopy, which involves making a small cut in the vaginal wall and observing the ovary with an endoscope.
"This allows us direct access to and observation of the tubo-ovarian structures without manipulation using forceps," says Gordts.
For the photos of ovulation, which only accidentally captured the critical moment, Jacques Donnez at the Catholic University of Louvain (UCL) in Brussels, Belgium, used gas to distend the organs for photography. However, Gordts and Brosens planned the procedure to coincide with ovulation and used saline solution to "float" the structures.
Perfect timing
Observation was timed for the day of the peak of the patient's luteal hormone cycle. Ovulation was predicted to occur on the evening of the day of the LH peak, and the endoscope introduced at 6 pm.
A small amount of saline was used to float the opening of the fallopian tube, its fimbriae (the "fingers" that sweep the egg into the tube) and the ovary itself. This gives a more natural appearance than gas, says Gordts.
In the video, the fimbriae can be seen sweeping in time with the patient's heartbeat. A mucus plug can be seen protruding from the ovary – this contains the egg.
"The ovum is not captured 'naked'," says Gordts. "There is no eruption like a volcano."
Gordts says that in clinical practice it is not easy to organise the observation of ovulation. "We were probably lucky to be successful at our first attempt," he says.
Dr. Debbie Song at Gillette Children's describes in detail selective rhizotomy surgery.
A selective dorsal rhizotomy is an operation performed to treat spasticity. It is thought that high tone and spasticity arise from abnormal signals that are transmitted through sensory or dorsal nerve roots to the spinal cord. In a selective dorsal rhizotomy we identify and cut portions of the dorsal nerve roots that carry abnormal signals thereby disrupting the mechanisms that lead to spasticity. Potential patients go through a rigorous assessment that includes an in-depth gait and motion analysis as well as a physical therapy evaluation.
They are evaluated by a multidisciplinary team that includes a pediatric rehabilitation doctor, a neurosurgeon, and an orthopedist, Appropriate patient selection is vital. Ideal candidates for selective dorsal rhizotomy are children who are between four and ten years of age, have a history of being born prematurely, and have a diagnosis of diplegia cerebral palsy. These patients usually walk independently or with the assistance of crutches or a walker. They typically function at a level one, two, or three in the gross motor function classification system or gmfcs. A selective dorsal rhizotomy involves the coordinated efforts of the neurosurgery, physiatry, anesthesia and nursing teams. The operation entails making an incision in the lower back that is approximately six to eight inches long. We perform what we call a laminoplasty in which we remove the back part of the spinal elements from the lumbar one or l1 to l5 levels. At the end of the procedure the bone is put back on. We identify and open up the Dural sac that contain the spinal fluid spinal cord and nerve roots. Once the Dural sac is opened ,we expose the lumbar and upper sacral nerve roots that transmit information to and from the muscles of the lower extremities.
At each level we isolate the dorsal nerve root, which in turn is separated into as many as 30 smaller thread light fruitlets.
Each rootlet is then electrically stimulated. Specialized members of the physiatry team look for abnormal responses in the muscles of the legs as each rootless is being stimulated. If an abnormal response is observed then the rootlet is cut.
If a normal response is observed, then the rootlet is not cut. We usually end up cutting approximately 20 to 40 percent of the rootlets. The Dural sac is sutured closed and the l1 through l5 spinal elements are put back into anatomic position, thus restoring normal spinal alignment. The overlying tissues and skin are then closed and the patient is awoken from surgery. The entire operation takes between four and five hours. A crucial component to the success of our rhizotomy program is the extensive rehabilitation course following surgery. With their tone significantly reduced after a rhizotomy, patients relearn how to use their muscles to walk more efficiently through stretching, strengthening, and gait training. Approximately one to two years after a rhizotomy patients undergo repeat gait and motion analysis. The orthopedic surgeons assess the need for interventions to correct bone deformities, muscle contractures, poor motor control, impaired balance, or other problems related to cerebral palsy.
At Gillette we work closely with patients and families to ensure that our selective dorsal rhizotomy program meets their goals for enhancing their function and improving their quality of life.
VISIT https://www.gillettechildrens.org/ to learn more
0:00 Why choose selective dorsal rhizotomy?
0:56 Who is a good candidate for selective dorsal rhizotomy?
1:31 What does a selective dorsal rhizotomy entail?
3:26 What is recovery from selective dorsal rhizotomy like?
Leopold's Maneuvers are difficult to perform on obese women and women who have hydramnios. The palpation can sometimes be uncomfortable for the woman if care is not taken to ensure she is relaxed and adequately positioned. To aid in this, the health care provider should first ensure that the woman has recently emptied her bladder. If she has not, she may need to have a straight urinary catheter inserted to empy it if she is unable to micturate herself. The woman should lie on her back with her shoulders raised slightly on a pillow and her knees drawn up a little. Her abdomen should be uncovered, and most women appreciate it if the individual performing the maneuver warms their hands prior to palpation. First maneuver: Fundal Grip While facing the woman, palpate the woman's upper abdomen with both hands. A professional can often determine the size, consistency, shape, and mobility of the form that is felt. The fetal head is hard, firm, round, and moves independently of the trunk while the buttocks feel softer, are symmetric, and the shoulders and limbs have small bony processes; unlike the head, they move with the trunk. Second maneuver After the upper abdomen has been palpated and the form that is found is identified, the individual performing the maneuver attempts to determine the location of the fetal back. Still facing the woman, the health care provider palpates the abdomen with gentle but also deep pressure using the palm of the hands. First the right hand remains steady on one side of the abdomen while the left hand explores the right side of the woman's uterus. This is then repeated using the opposite side and hands. The fetal back will feel firm and smooth while fetal extremities (arms, legs, etc.) should feel like small irregularities and protrusions. The fetal back, once determined, should connect with the form found in the upper abdomen and also a mass in the maternal inlet, lower abdomen. Third maneuver: Pawlick's Grip In the third maneuver the health care provider attempts to determine what fetal part is lying above the inlet, or lower abdomen.[2] The individual performing the maneuver first grasps the lower portion of the abdomen just above the symphysis pubis with the thumb and fingers of the right hand. This maneuver should yield the opposite information and validate the findings of the first maneuver. If the woman enters labor, this is the part which will most likely come first in a vaginal birth. If it is the head and is not actively engaged in the birthing process, it may be gently pushed back and forth. The Pawlick's Grip, although still used by some obstetricians, is not recommended as it is more uncomfortable for the woman. Instead, a two-handed approach is favored by placing the fingers of both hands laterally on either side of the presenting part. Fourth maneuver The last maneuver requires that the health care provider face the woman's feet, as he or she will attempt to locate the fetus' brow. The fingers of both hands are moved gently down the sides of the uterus toward the pubis. The side where there is resistance to the descent of the fingers toward the pubis is greatest is where the brow is located. If the head of the fetus is well-flexed, it should be on the opposite side from the fetal back. If the fetal head is extended though, the occiput is instead felt and is located on the same side as the back. Cautions Leopold's maneuvers are intended to be performed by health care professionals, as they have received the training and instruction in how to perform them. That said, as long as care taken not to roughly or excessively disturb the fetus, there is no real reason it cannot be performed at home as an informational exercise. It is important to note that all findings are not truly diagnostic, and as such ultrasound is required to conclusively determine the fetal position.
The hepatitis E virus, responsible for major epidemics of viral hepatitis in subtropical and tropical countries, was cloned only 7 years ago.1 Hepatitis E was found to belong to the family of Caliciviridae, which includes the Norwalk virus—a common cause of gastroenteritis in humans—and consists of a single, plus-strand RNA genome of approximately 7.2 kb without an envelope (Fig. 1). The virus contains at least three open reading frames encoding viral proteins against which antibodies are made on exposure. These antibodies, especially those against the capsid protein derived from the second open reading frame2 and a protein of unknown function derived from the third open reading frame, are detected by currently available serologic assays. Retrospective studies on stored sera of past epidemics of viral hepatitis in Mexico, Africa, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Burma, Nepal, and Borneo have revealed that all were caused by strains of hepatitis E. In addition, hepatitis E was found to be responsible for the hepatitis epidemic in the southern part of Xinjiang, China, in which 120,000 persons became infected between September 1986 and April 1988.3 Hepatitis E predominantly affects young adults (15 to 40 years old). The symptoms of hepatitis E are similar to those of hepatitis A. Frequently, a prodrome consisting of anorexia, nausea, low-grade fever, and right upper abdominal pain is present 3 to 7 days before jaundice develops. Aminotransferase levels peak (usually between 1,000 and 2,000 U/L) near the onset of symptoms; bilirubin levels (10 to 20 mg/dL) peak later. Jaundice usually resolves after 1 to 2 weeks. In about 10% of cases, the disease is fulminant—especially in pregnant women, among whom mortality rates as high as 20% due to hemorrhagic and thrombotic complications have been reported. No evidence has suggested that hepatitis E can cause chronic infection. Transmission is by the fecal-oral route, predominantly through fecally contaminated drinking water supplies. In addition, however, preliminary reports have suggested transmission of the hepatitis E virus through blood transfusions. Volunteer studies confirmed the presence of the virus in serum and feces before and during clinical disease.4 The virus is shed into feces approximately 1 week before symptoms develop. The incubation period varies from 2 to 9 weeks (mean duration, approximately 45 days). Until now, a few reports had described symptomatic hepatitis E acquired in Europe;5, 6 all patients with symptomatic hepatitis E in the United States were travelers returning from Mexico, Africa, or the Far East, in whom hepatitis E developed after their return home.7 In this issue of the Mayo Clinic Proceedings (pages 1133 to 1136), Kwo and associates describe a case of hepatitis E in a man who had not left the United States during the previous 10 years. Specific serologic tests for hepatitis E virus IgG (enzyme immunoassays and a fluorescent antibody blocking assay) and IgM8 (US strain-specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with use of synthetic polypeptides deduced from the viral genome, as shown in Figure 1), developed at Abbott Laboratories (IgG and IgM) as well as at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (IgG), were used to prove that the patient indeed had acute hepatitis E. Researchers at Abbott Laboratories have prepared a report that describes most of the viral genome in this patient (Fig. I).8 Their results are interesting because this strain from the United States differs considerably from hepatitis E strains isolated in Mexico, Burma, Pakistan, or China. Furthermore, the sequence of the US strain is highly homologous (98% and 94% homology at the amino acid level to the second and third open reading frames, respectively) to a recently isolated hepatitis E strain from American swine.9 This finding suggests that, in the United States, hepatitis E is a zoonosis with the swine population as one of its hosts. This relationship would confirm earlier studies in Asia, where swine were also found to carry variants of the hepatitis E virus.10 Why are these two recent discoveries important for medicine in the United States? First, other sporadic, locally acquired cases of acute hepatitis may be caused by hepatitis E. Second, these back-to-back discoveries strongly suggest that a common natural host for hepatitis E is present in countries with more moderate climates. Because swine do not seem to experience any symptoms associated with infection and because symptoms in humans can be minor or absent, we now may also have an explanation for the 1 to 2% of positive hepatitis E serologic results in blood donors in the United States,11 Netherlands,12 and Italy,6 countries with large swine staples. Clearly, more research needs to be done to confirm this hypothesis. Third, in countries with more moderate climates, hepatitis E may often result in a subclinical infection. Is this variation in manifestation due to less virulent strains, and do sequence variations determine virulence? Fourth, swine may be used as an animal model for study of the disease as well as vaccine development.
Ejaculating into a partner’s mouth is a common practice during oral sex/fellatio. In a safe situation (where there is no danger of catching an STD), the semen-receiving partner may choose to spit the semen out, or to swallow it. Before you engage in fellatio, I’d recommend that you and your partner both get tested for sexually transmitted infections (STIs). If not, please use barriers for oral sex and abstaining from making contact with ejaculate. Semen is mostly water, but also contains amino acids and protein, sugars such as fructose and glucose, minerals such as zinc and calcium, vitamin C, and a few other nutrients. Sperm cells themselves make up less than one percent of semen. Semen is edible, and if swallowed, will travel down the esophagus and into the stomach, where it will be digested in the same way that food is. You can never get pregnant by swallowing semen. Some people accept the taste of semen, but others complain that swallowing semen can give them an upset stomach. In rare cases, you may have an allergy to the proteins found in semen. What does It Taste Like? The taste of semen varies. Bitter, sweet, metallic. So, one may expect to find the taste of semen anywhere from enjoyable to tasteless to disgusting. But there is a way of controlling the taste of semen, which is through diet. Keep track of the diet, and communicate with the partner about when it tastes better or worse.