0000000001257864
AUTHOR
G Ugolini
«IL GRANDE PAN (NON) È MORTO». LA LEGGENDA DELLA MORTE DI PAN DA PLUTARCO A D’ANNUNZIO
In Plutarch’s De defectu oraculorum a mysterious voice announces to a ship’s helmsman that «the Great Pan is dead». This enigmatic legend gave rise to two different interpretations crossing the history of European literatures. The first, concerning ritualism and folklore, connects this episode to the death of vegetations’s God (Tammuz, Adonis) or of another demonic entity. According to the second, common in Christian authors, Pan is the same crucifix Jesus or, on the contrary, the paganism defeated by his death. Gabriele D’Annunzio overturns announcement’s meaning and proclaims that «the Great Pan is not dead».
Safety of primary anastomosis following emergency left sided colorectal resection: an international, multi-centre prospective audit
Introduction: Some evidence suggests that primary anastomosis following left sided colorectal resection in the emergency setting may be safe in selected patients, and confer favourable outcomes to permanent enterostomy. The aim of this study was to compare the major postoperative complication rate in patients undergoing end stoma vs primary anastomosis following emergency left sided colorectal resection. Methods: A pre-planned analysis of the European Society of Coloproctology 2017 audit. Adult patients (> 16 years) who underwent emergency (unplanned, within 24 h of hospital admission) left sided colonic or rectal resection were included. The primary endpoint was the 30-day major complic…
Effect of COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns on planned cancer surgery for 15 tumour types in 61 countries: an international, prospective, cohort study
This international, prospective, cohort study enrolled 20 006 adult (≥18 years) patients from 466 hospitals in 61 countries with 15 cancer types, who had a decision for curative surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic and were followed up until the point of surgery or cessation of follow-up (Aug 31, 2020). Average national Oxford COVID-19 Stringency Index scores were calculated to define the government response to COVID-19 for each patient for the period they awaited surgery, and classified into light restrictions (index 60). The primary outcome was the non-operation rate (defined as the proportion of patients who did not undergo planned surgery). Cox proportional-hazards regression models wer…
PREOP: an international study of elderly surgical oncology patients to optimize preoperative assessment
Purpose of the study: To test the predictive value of the Groningen Frailty Indicator (GFI), Vulnerable Elders Survey 13 (VES-13), timed “get up and go” and Preoperative Assessment of Cancer in Elderly (PACE) for postoperative mortality and morbidity. Method(s): International multi-center prospective cohort study. The combination of components of PACE, timed “get up and go”, the VES-13 and the GFI are administered within two weeks prior to the surgical procedure. Study population: Patients aged 70 years undergoing elective surgery for a solid tumor under general anesthesia are included. Outcome measures: Primary endpoint is 30 day morbidity and mortality. Secondary endpoints are length of h…