Alison Heather Blatt

• University of Newcastle Australia

BACKGROUND: The CovidSurg-Cancer Consortium aimed to explore the impact of COVID-19 in surgical patients and services for solid cancers at the start of the pandemic. The CovidSurg-Gynecologic Oncology Cancer subgroup was particularly concerned about the magnitude of adverse outcomes caused by the disrupted surgical gynecologic cancer care during th...

Introduction and objectives The aim of this study is to determine early predictors for ICU admission in patients who present with obstructive pyelonephritis but without septic shock

Objective:To examine outcomes and prognostic features of patients admitted with emphysematous pyelonephritis (EPN) at a regional tertiary centre.Materials and Methods:Nineteen patients with EPN were identified between January 2007 and December 2019. Patients were grouped into two “mild” (grade I or II); and “severe” (grade III or IV) based on their...

The incidence of small renal masses is increasing with imaging availability and improvement of imaging clarity. Whilst surgical resection remains mainstay of treatment, ablation has emerged as an alternate option, particularly for patients with significant comorbidities. Ablation is possible through microwave, radiofrequency or cryoablation. These...

Obstructive urosepsis is a common urological emergency. The mainstay of treatment is empirical antibiotics combined with drainage of the urinary system. For upper tract obstruction, this requires either retrograde stent placement or percutaneous drainage, performed via nephrostomy insertion. Often after a nephrostomy is inserted, an antegrade stent...

The aim of this study is to determine early predictors for ICU admission in patients who present with obstructive pyelonephritis but without septic shock

Obstructive urosepsis is an important cause of mortality in Australia. Gram negative bacteria are considered the most common causative organisms. The most common organisms are Escherichia coli (50%), followed by Proteus (15%), Enterobacter (15%), Klebsiella (15%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (5%), and gram-positive bacteria (15%). It is common practice...

Objectives: To assess if the introduction of routine pre-operative cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) in radical cystectomy has delayed surgical intervention. Materials and methods: A prospective database of patients undergoing radical cystectomy in our local health network was maintained. A retrospective analysis of two years (2018-2020) i...

Background This study aimed to determine the impact of pulmonary complications on death after surgery both before and during the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic. Methods This was a patient-level, comparative analysis of two, international prospective cohort studies: one before the pandemic (January–October 201...

SARS-CoV-2 has been associated with an increased rate of venous thromboembolism in critically ill patients.Since surgical patients are already at higher risk of venous thromboembolism than general populations, thisstudy aimed to determine if patients with peri-operative or prior SARS-CoV-2 were at further increased risk ofvenous thromboembolism. We...

Background Surgery is the main modality of cure for solid cancers and was prioritised to continue during COVID-19 outbreaks. This study aimed to identify immediate areas for system strengthening by comparing the delivery of elective cancer surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic in periods of lockdown versus light restriction.

Background: Surgery is the main modality of cure for solid cancers and was prioritised to continue during COVID-19 outbreaks. This study aimed to identify immediate areas for system strengthening by comparing the delivery of elective cancer surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic in periods of lockdown versus light restriction. Methods: This internati...

Peri-operative SARS-CoV-2 infection increases postoperative mortality. The aim of this study was to determine the optimal duration of planned delay before surgery in patients who have had SARS-CoV-2 infection. This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study included patients undergoing elective or emergency surgery during October 2020. Su...

Background Testicular torsion is an organ-threatening surgical emergency with a limited timeframe for intervention. Objective To identify the delays to surgical exploration of patients with an acute scrotum in a tertiary hospital to prevent adverse outcomes associated with this time critical emergency. Methods A retrospective review of medical re...

Background Surgical services are preparing to scale up in areas affected by COVID-19. This study aimed to evaluate the association between preoperative SARS-CoV-2 testing and postoperative pulmonary complications in patients undergoing elective cancer surgery. Methods This international cohort study included adult patients undergoing elective surge...

Prostate cancer progression has been shown to be dependent on the development of autonomic nerves into the tumour microenvironment. Sympathetic nerves activate adrenergic neurosignalling that is necessary in early stages of tumour progression and for initiating an angiogenic switch, whereas parasympathetic nerves activate cholinergic neurosignallin...

Day-only laparoscopic cholecystectomy (DOLC) has been demonstrated to be a safe and feasible procedure. The aim of the present study was to introduce DOLC to a busy teaching hospital without a separate day-surgery facility, to identify any problems associated with early discharge, and to determine patient satisfaction. Over a 2-year period, all pat...