[Ménétrier disease associated with a gastric adenocarcinoma. Apropos of 2 cases].

Two new cases of Menetrier's disease with gastric adenocarcinoma in two men aged 62 and 81 years, respectively, are reported. In both cases, the diagnosis was established by histologic examination of the operative specimen. Emphasis is placed on diagnostic difficulties and on the risk of malignant transformation of Menetrier's disease, which should be viewed as a precancerous gastric lesion.

Diastolic spectrum of left-ventricular hypertrophy: the impact of etiology and coronary artery disease on Doppler transmitral velocity.

Unlabelled: Diastolic filling of hypertrophied left ventricles has frequently been observed by Doppler methods. We hypothesized that filling characteristics in hypertrophy vary with etiology and concurrent ischemia. For patients with hypertrophy, the left-ventricular ejection fraction was > 0.

[False hydatic aneurysm of the thoraco-abdominal aorta].

Arterial complications of hydatic disease are rarely encountered. We report a false hydatic aneurysm of the thoracoabdominal aorta revealed by ischemic embolism of the lower limbs. Surgical treatment included aorto-aortic prosthesis and albendazol for 6 months.

[Primary leiomyosarcoma of the small intestine in a child].

Background: Leiomyosarcomas of the digestive tract are very rare in children. They must be differentiated from benign tumors (leiomyoma, schwannoma..

Prolonged intrauterine transabdominal ventricular external drainage. A method to decompress dilated fetal ventricles.

Advances in diagnostic procedures to detect intrauterine hydrocephalus have compelled neurosurgeons to intervene in order to preserve precious neural tissue. We present the first case (to the best of our knowledge) of a successful decrease in intracranial pressure and head circumference by repeated transabdominal intrauterine external drainage. The mother tolerated the procedure well.

The relationship of the buccal branch of the facial nerve to the parotid duct.

Purpose: This cadaver dissection studied the relationship of the buccal branch of the facial nerve to the parotid duct and its relevance to surgical procedures in this area.

Materials And Methods: Ten cadaveric heads (twenty sides) were dissected. The superficial tissues were removed, and the buccal branch of the facial nerve and the parotid duct were identified.

Melanin production in medullary thyroid carcinoma.

A case of melanin-producing medullary thyroid carcinoma is reported in a 51-year-old man. Histologically, the tumour had a typical pattern of medullary thyroid carcinoma with numerous scattered pigmented cells which contained large amounts of melanin pigment as confirmed by bleached Fontana-Masson stain. Immunohistochemical staining revealed positivity of almost all tumour cells for calcitonin and chromogranin, whereas S-100 protein and HMB-45 staining was positive only in the pigmented tumour cells.

Enzymatic antagonism of mivacurium-induced neuromuscular blockade by human plasma cholinesterase.

Background: Mivacurium chloride is a bis-benzylisoquinolinium nondepolarizing neuromuscular blocking agent, hydrolyzed by butyrylcholinesterase (PCHE). The dose-response relationships for PCHE after mivacurium have not been studied. Therefore, this study was designed to establish dose-response relationships for PCHE as an antagonist of mivacurium-induced neuromuscular blockade.

The relationship of the lingual nerve to the mandibular third molar region: an anatomic study.

Purpose: This study evaluated the relationship of the mandibular third molar to the lingual nerve.

Materials And Methods: An anatomic dissection of the lingual nerve in the third molar region was done on 20 cadavers (40 sides).

Results: The position of the nerve on one side bore no statistical relationship to the position of the nerve on the opposite side.

The presence of the antilingula and its relationship to the true lingula.

20 cadaver mandibles were studied for the presence of an antilingula and its relationship to the true lingula and mandibular foramen. Three independent observers evaluated the mandibles for the presence of an antilingula. It could be identified on all 40 sides.

Ammar shunt: an option to overcome shunt complications in premature and term neonates.

It has been hypothesized, and generally accepted, that the final outcome of the treatment of hydrocephalus is to a great extent related to the earliness of intervention and treatment. However, there is special concern regarding the higher risk of infection and shunt malfunctions in neonates as compared with older infants. Therefore, two new shunt systems have been designed specifically to tip the balance in favor of early shunting.

Vasotocin-sensitive adenylate cyclase in frog glomeruli.

Adenylate cyclase sensitivity to neurohypophyseal hormones was investigated in isolated glomeruli and in nephron segments microdissected from collagenase-treated kidneys of Rana ridibunda. Vasotocin treatment increased adenylate cyclase activity in glomeruli and in collecting ducts and did not modify it in proximal convoluted tubules and in early and late distal tubules. In glomeruli, the hormonal stimulation resulted mainly in a decrease in the Km value for adenylate cyclase, which means a higher affinity for substrate (ATP) to the enzyme, whereas the response to forskolin was accounted for by increases both in affinity for substrate and in maximal adenylate cyclase velocity.

[Microcystic adenoma of the pancreas].

Microcyst adenomas of the pancreas are rare tumours with characteristic cysts lining the cubic and cylindric epithelia with a clear cytoplasm rich in glycogen. Unlike, mucinous cyst adenomas, there is no tendency toward malignancy. We report a case in a 58-year-old woman and emphasize the importance of precise pre- or per-operative diagnosis in order to avoid excessive exeresis for benign tumour.

Divergent effects of chronic amiodarone administration on systolic and diastolic function in patients with heart disease.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of chronic amiodarone treatment on systolic and diastolic function in patients with cardiac disease undergoing treatment for resistant ventricular arrhythmias. Previous studies have shown that chronic amiodarone treatment either has no effect or increases left ventricular ejection fraction, but the effects on diastolic properties of the ventricle have not been defined. Twelve male patients were given loading doses of amiodarone followed by a maintenance regimen.

Intraventricular migration of VP shunt.

The proximal migration of a ventriculoperitoneal shunt into the ventricles is very rare. Only 5 cases have been previously reported [4, 8, 10, 11]. We believe that this unusual phenomenon has not been well-studied in the literature.

[Esophageal duplications: role of computed tomography. Apropos of 2 cases].

The authors present two cases of oesophageal duplication: tubular in one case and cystic in the other. This rare anomaly was identified in both cases by CT scan. A review of literature is proposed.

[Breast myoepithelioma. Report of a case].

Myoepithelial cell tumors of the breast are rare. They present diagnostic difficulties not only on frozen sections but also after fixation and paraffin embedding. These tumors can give rise to a wide range of clinical evolution.

A long-term complication of burying a shunt valve in the skull.

One of the most common causes of shunt malfunction is infection; a major contributing factor to this infection in neonates is scalp necrosis over the valve site. One of the methods recommended to avoid this requires the burying of the valve in the skull bone. We present a case of a long-term complication from this procedure: the shunt slowly disconnected, over a prolonged period, leading to the formation of the fibrous tunnel which enabled the shunt to function intermittently.

Frog glomerular vasotocin receptors resemble mammalian V1b receptors.

Vasotocin receptors were investigated in glomeruli and nephron segments microdissected from collagenase-treated kidneys of Rana ridibunda, using [d(CH2)5Tyr(Me)2,Thr4,Orn8,125I-Tyr-NH2(9)]vasotocin (125I-OVTA) as a radioligand. Specific 125I-OVTA binding sites were found only in glomeruli and not in all tubule segments tested. Glomerular receptors exhibited the following stereospecificity for recognition of vasotocin analogues: Tyr-NH2(9)-LA-V1a > 125I-OVTA > arginine vasotocin (AVT) > or = [d(CH2)5Tyr-(Me)2]AVP > OVTA > or = [Phe2,Orn8]VT > oxytocin (OT) > or = [d(CH2)5-Sar7]AVP > desGly9[d(CH2)5Tyr(Et)2]VAVP > or = [d(CH2)5Tyr(Et)2]VAVP > AVP > [1-desamino-8-D-arginine]vasopressin (DDAVP) > [Thr4,Gly7]OT.