1/9. Sigmoid colon perforation due to geophagia.Geophagia can be a problem in mentally handicapped patients. This case report presents a 71-year-old mentally handicapped women who had to be operated in emergency for colonic perforation due to geophagia.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = hand (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/9. Laparoscopically assisted treatment of acute abdomen in systemic lupus erythematosus.The incidence of abdominal pain in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is very high. Most patients do not require surgical treatment (serositis). Some cases such as appendicitis, perforated ulcer, cholecystitis or, rarely, intestinal infarction are surgical. Differential diagnosis is difficult, partly because noninvasive examinations do not provide enough evidence to rule out a diagnosis. On the other hand, in patients with SLE who have acute abdomen, it is dangerous to delay surgery by attempting conservative therapy. In fact, a better survival rate has been associated with early laparotomy. We report a case of acute abdomen in a patient affected by SLE, in which the diagnostic problem was solved by means of laparoscopy and the treatment was laparoscopically assisted. A 45-year-old woman with a 25-year history of SLE was admitted with abdominal pain and fever. Her physical examination revealed a painful right iliac fossa with rebound tenderness. Her WBC count was normal. Abdominal x-ray, ultrasonography, paracentesis, and peritoneal lavage did not provide a diagnosis. A diagnostic laparoscopy was performed, showing segmentary small bowel necrosis. The incision of the umbilical port site was enlarged to allow a small laparatomy, and a small bowel resection was performed. The histopathologic finding was "leucocytoclasic vasculitis, with infarction of the intestinal wall." The patient recovered uneventfully. In conclusion, this case report shows that emergency diagnostic laparoscopy is feasible and useful for acute abdomen in SLE. Currently, this diagnostic possibility could be considered the technique of choice in these cases, partly because, when necessary, it also can allow for mini-invasive treatment therapy.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = hand (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/9. Laparoscopic management of colonoscopic perforations.Colonic perforation is a dangerous complication of colonoscopy, both diagnostic and therapeutic, and its management has become controversial. The question of conservative vs operative treatment is still under debate. Despite the recent expansion and wide acceptance of laparoscopy by surgeons, the feasibility of this technique as a means of treating abdominal emergencies has also been questioned. Of 575 patients admitted to our institution for abdominal emergencies between 1993 and 1998, 365 were treated via a laparoscopic approach. Two of these patients were treated for colonoscopic perforations, one after a diagnostic procedure and one after an operative procedure. Our technique employs an open umbilical approach with two other trocars introduced in the right iliac fossa and left flank. In the first case, a diverticular perforation of the subperitoneal rectum was suspected. The abdomen was copiously irrigated with saline solution and a drain was left in the pelvis. In the second patient, localized peritonitis was found in the left iliac fossa due to a microperforation of the sigmoid colon. It was repaired with a single absorbable suture. The postoperative course was unremarkable in both cases. In patients with an emergency abdomen due to a postcolonoscopy perforation, we consider the laparoscopic approach feasible and safe in experienced hands. It allowed us to avoid an unnecessary laparotomy and other time-consuming and expensive diagnostic investigations. This approach represents an excellent means of managing this type of emergency abdominal situation.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = hand (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/9. shigella flexneri bacteremia in a child.We report an unusual and lethal case of shigella flexneri septicemia in an 8-year-old Saudi handicapped child from a social home presenting with severe toxic megacolon and acute abdomen secondary to fulminant necrotizing enterocolitis.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = hand (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/9. Wilms' tumor with acute abdominal pain.Acute abdominal pain is the presenting manifestation in approximately 30% of all patients with Willms' tumor. In a small proportion of these patients this pain is significant enough to engender a diagnosis of an acute surgical abdomen. Six of 38 patients with Wilms' tumors treated between the years 1965 and 1975 at the Shands teaching Hospital of the University of florida Medical Center have had significant pain. Our experience with these patients emphasizes the importance of thoroughly palpating the abdomen of any child with a suspected acute surgical condition, following induction of anesthesia and prior to initiating the operation. In the absence of any evidence of an acute surgical problem at the time of the exploratory laparotomy, it is also imperative that a careful intra-abdominal examination be performed to exclude the presence of conditions, such as wilms tumor of the kidney, that may occasionally present in this manner.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = hand (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/9. death, after swallowing and aspiration of a high number of foreign bodies, in a schizophrenic woman.A 46-year-old woman who had had a long-term schizoid psychosis collapsed on the street. Upon admission to the hospital, she was determined to have an acute abdomen. The chest radiograph showed metallic foreign bodies in both main bronchi; foreign bodies in the stomach were not observed clinically. The woman died from repeated cardiac arrest shortly after hospital admission. At the autopsy a screw and a nail were found in both main bronchi. The abdominal cavity contained 2 L of greenish purulent fluid and a massive fibrinoid peritonitis was observed. Two perforations of the stomach, each 1 cm in diameter, were detected. The stomach was completely filled with a mass of metallic foreign bodies, greenish fluid, and a bezoar of a total weight of 1,400 g; 422 distinguishable and mostly metallic foreign bodies were counted. death was attributed to cardiac arrest in delayed shock after massive purulent peritonitis caused by two gastric perforations combined with obstruction of the airways by aspirated foreign bodies. Cases of massive swallowing of foreign bodies are mainly restricted to mentally handicapped persons, especially schizophrenics, whereas acute impaction of the larynx by large food particles occurs nearly exclusively in heavily intoxicated adults.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = hand (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/9. The symptoms of an amebic abscess of the liver simulating an acute surgical abdomen.Amebic abscess of the liver has protean manifestations that often resemble causes of an acute surgical abdomen. patients presenting at University of california, los angeles Hospital with acute abdominal injuries who underwent exploratory laparotomy and subsequently were found to have an amebic hepatic abscess were studied. There are various clinical symptoms of amebic hepatic abscess as well as problems of differentiating this pathologic entity from an acute surgical abdomen. Most patients with amebic hepatic abscess that mimics an acute abdomen present as acute cholecystitis or acute appendicitis. All patients recovered uneventfully once the diagnosis was made and appropriate therapy instituted. The salient features of the history, physical examination and laboratory data that can identify the amebic abscess were analyzed. The key to correct diagnosis is cognizance of the condition.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 44.908966049928keywords = alien (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/9. A case presentation and review of neutropenic enterocolitis.Neutropenic enterocolitis (NE) is an unusual complication of neutropenia. Its presentation is dramatic, treatment is controversial, and the outcome may be devastating. The available literature about this entity is mainly case reports and autopsy studies. We have recently performed a celiotomy on a patient who developed sepsis and an acute surgical abdomen three days following chemotherapy and radiotherapy for a metastatic adenocarcinoma with no known primary tumor. At surgery he was found to have a boggy right and recto-sigmoid colon with a grossly normal transverse colon. Intraoperative colonoscopy revealed mucosal ulceration and necrosis extending from the dentate line to the cecum. A total abdominal colectomy, closure of the rectal stump, and an ileostomy was performed. Postoperatively, the patient recovered from the abdominal septic process only to succumb to multiple system organ failure secondary to pulmonary sepsis. Upon review of the literature, we found 65 cases of NE that were suspected or diagnosed in the antemortem state and confirmed at surgery or autopsy. In this review, we intend to analyze these case reports, summarize the salient features of the disease and outline the optimal therapeutic approach.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 44.908966049928keywords = alien (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/9. Tuberculous peritonitis. A case report and review.A 32-year old Dominican woman with signs and symptoms of an acute abdomen, was found to have tuberculous peritonitis. Our experience with this patient is presented along with a review of the literature. population shifts may bring about an increased number of cases in this country. awareness of this entity will avoid unnecessary diagnostic errors and laparotomy. The surgeon should also be versed in the total management and be prepared to handle the surgical complications of the disease.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = hand (Clic here for more details about this article) |