A very troubling issue for health care systems today is that of life-sustaining treatment for patients who have permanently lost their cognitive capacities. These include patients in persistent vegetative state (PVS), or minimally conscious state (MCS), as well as a growing population of patients at the very end stage of dementia. These patients are totally dependent on life-sustaining treatments and are, actually, kept alive “artificially.” This phenomenon raises doubts as to the ethics of sustaining the life of patients who have lost their consciousness and cognitive capacities, and whether there is a moral obligation to do so. The problem is that the main facts concerning the experiences and well-being of such patients and their wishes are unknown. Hence the framework of the four principles—beneficence, non-maleficence, autonomy, and justice—is not applicable in these cases; therefore we examined solidarity as another moral value to which we may resort in dealing with this dilemma.
This article shows that the source of the dilemma is the social attitudes towards loss of cognitive capacities, and the perception of this state as loss of personhood. Consequently, it is suggested that the principle of solidarity—which both sets an obligation to care for the worst-off, and can be used to identify obligations that appeal to an ethos of behavior—can serve as a guiding principle for resolving the dilemma. The value of solidarity can lead society to care for these patients and not deny them basic care and life-sustaining treatment when appropriate.
Successful deceased organ donation requires a reproducible—consistent (scientific) system that eva-luates the potential for organ donation and determines objectively whether the national system is achieving its goals. The science of organ donation also pertains to the determination of death. We are a common humanity that dies similarly— a humanity whose ultimate criterion of life resides in the function of the human brain. The recent brain death law of Israel encouragingly enables a determination of death by the loss of neurologic function but it has become complicated by a practice that may perpetuate societal misperceptions. As a result opportunities for deceased organ donation --to provide for Israelis in need of organ transplants are being lost. A statured task force of society could be assembled to convey its support for deceased donation to influence society and resolve these misperceptions.
The World Health Organization is now calling for each member state to achieve a self-sufficiency in organ donation and transplantation "equitably meeting the transplantation needs of a given population using resources from within that population". Patients should not be compelled to go to foreign countries for their organs. Israel has been a leader in the development of a model program intended to address transplant tourism. Insurance companies are no longer permitted to provide resources for Israelis to undergo illegal transplants in foreign destinations. The social necessity of a scientifically and medically applied system of deceased organ donation is now evident so that a sufficient number of organs can be available for patients from within the country they reside.
This manuscript is a survey of the halachic attitudes toward organ transplant procedures from a living donor which can be defined as life-saving procedures for the recipient or at least life-prolonging proce-dures. Three fundamental problems concerning the halachic aspects of such transplantation are dis-cussed in detail: the danger to the donor, donation under coercion, and the sale of organs and tissues. The terms “halacha” and “Jewish law” are defined in the introduction.
Moritz Schiff was one of the pioneers of modern experimental physiology. His involvement in the liberal movement forced him out of Germany, and, because of his adherence to proper physiological research, he had to flee Italy, his first refuge. The number and importance of his contributions are outstanding. The aim of this paper is to raise interest in his biography and to present a yet unreported field of research that is regarded as the root of functional imaging of the brain.
Cardiovascular disease (CVD), associated with vascular atherosclerosis, is the major cause of death in Western societies. Current risk estimation tools, such as Framingham Risk Score (FRS), based on evaluation of multiple standard risk factors, are limited in assessment of individual risk. The majority (about 70%) of the general population is classified as low FRS where the individual risk for CVD is often underestimated but, on the other hand, cholesterol lowering with statin is often excessively administered. Adverse effects of statin therapy, such as muscle pain, affect a large proportion of the treated patients and have a significant influence on their quality of life.
Coronary artery calcification (CAC), as assessed by computed tomography, carotid artery intima-media thickness (CIMT), and especially presence of plaques as assessed by B-mode ultrasound are directly correlated with increased risk for cardiovascular events and provide accurate and relevant information for individual risk assessment. Absence of vascular pathology as assessed by these imaging methods has a very high negative predictive value and therefore could be used as a method to reduce significantly the number of subjects who, in our opinion, would not benefit from statins and only suffer from their side-effects.
In summary, we suggest that in very-low-risk subjects, with the exception of subjects with low FRS with a family history of coronary artery disease (CAD) at young age, if vascular imaging shows no CAC or normal CIMT without plaques, statin treatment need not be administered.
The Cox maze procedure developed originally in 1987 by Dr James Cox has evolved from a “cut and sew” surgical procedure, where the maze was applied using multiple surgical cuts, to an extensive use of surgical ablation technology where ablation lesions are placed with alternative energy sources (radiofrequency, cryothermy, microwave, and high-frequency ultrasound). Furthermore, the procedure has changed from a median sternotomy approach only to one that can be performed minimally invasively and robotically. The purpose of this paper is to review the current available technology for the ablation of atrial fibrillation as well as the different procedural approaches for the surgical ablation of atrial fibrillation.
The Cox maze III and Cox maze IV procedures are surgical solutions for the treatment of symptomatic stand-alone atrial fibrillation. Despite their proven efficacy, these procedures have not gained widespread acceptance because of the invasiveness, complexity, and technical difficulty. Endocardial pulmonary vein isolation is the cornerstone of percutaneous catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation. It is currently accepted as an invasive therapy, if rhythm control has failed using antiarrhythmic drugs or electrical cardioversions. Pulmonary vein isolation is reported to be effective in 60%–85% of patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and in 30%–50% of patients with persistent atrial fibrillation. A second or third ablation is often necessary to achieve these results, and complications may occur in up to 6% of patients.
Surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation has seen important improvements in the last decade. New technologies have simplified creation of transmural lesions on the beating heart through a less-invasive, thoracoscopic procedure. This allows for pulmonary vein isolation, isolation of the posterior wall, and left atrial appendage exclusion—usually combined with ganglionic plexi evaluation and destruction. Nonethe¬less, it is still uncertain whether these procedures are effective in restoring permanent sinus rhythm since transmurality of a lesion set cannot be guaranteed with current ablation catheters on the beating heart.
In an attempt to limit the shortcomings of an endo- or an epicardial technique, a hybrid approach has recently been introduced. This approach is based on a close collaboration between the surgeon and the electrophysiologist, employing a patient-tailored procedure which is adapted to the origin of the patient’s atrial fibrillation and takes into consideration triggers and substrate. Using a mono- or bilateral energy source, a thoracoscopic epicardial approach is combined with a percutaneous endocardial ablation in a single-step or in a sequential-step procedure.
This article provides our experience and an overview of the current knowledge in the hybrid treatment of stand-alone atrial fibrillation.
Coronary artery disease remains the leading cause of death in developed countries. Major recent studies such as SYNTAX and FREEDOM have confirmed that coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) remains the gold standard treatment in terms of survival and freedom from myocardial infarction and the need for repeat revascularization. The current review explores the use of new technologies and future directions in coronary artery surgery, through 1) stressing the importance of multiple arterial conduits and especially the use of bilateral mammary artery; 2) discussing the advantages and disadvantages of off-pump coronary artery bypass; 3) presenting additional techniques, e.g. minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass grafting, hybrid, and robotic-assisted CABG; and, finally, 4) debating a novel external stenting technique for saphenous vein grafts
The current review addresses contemporary technological answers toadvances in cardiac surgery performed on octogenarian patients, namely off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), proximal anastomosis device, routine use of intraoperative epiaortic ultrasound, proximal anastomosis without clamping, transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI), and brain protection during cardiac surgery.
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) is one of the most common hematologic malignancies worldwide. The incidence of NHL has been rising for several decades; however, in the last 20 years, it reached a plateau. NHL incidence among males is significantly higher than in females. In addition to gender itself, gravidity has a protective role against NHL occurrence. Gender also matters in terms of NHL clinical characteristics. For example, female predominance was found in three extra-nodal sites (the breast, thyroid, and the respiratory system) occasionally involved in NHL. The diagnosis of NHL during pregnancy is associated with a unique clinical behavior. It is usually diagnosed in the second or third trimester and in advanced stage. Furthermore, the histological subtype is highly aggressive, and reproductive organ involvement is common. The reduced rate of NHL among females may be explained by direct effects of estrogens on lymphoma cell proliferation or by its effect on anti-tumor immune response. Gender has an important role in responsiveness to standard B cell NHL treatment. Among older adults, women benefited more from the addition of the anti-CD20 antibody rituximab to standard chemotherapy regimens. This phenomenon can be explained by the difference in clearance rate of rituximab that was found to be significantly lower among older females than older males. In mantle cell lymphoma, women receiving lenalidomide have higher rates of response. An understanding of the mechanisms responsible for gender-associated NHL differences will ultimately improve the clinical approach, allowing for a more accurate assessment of prognosis and patient-tailored treatment.
