[Necrotizing panniculitis of the colon--a rare form of mesenterial panniculitis].

A 37-year old man was admitted with colics in the upper right abdomen. Since the laparoscopy revealed a massive thickening of the right colonic flexure a hemicolectomy was performed. The histologic examination yielded the diagnosis of a necrotizing panniculitis of the colon, a rare variant of mesenterial panniculitis usually occurring in the small intestine.

Smoking during pregnancy. Its effect on maternal metabolism and fetoplacental function.

The effects of smoking during pregnancy on maternal body composition and the fetoplacental unit were investigated serially in well-matched groups of 29 normal, healthy primigravid smokers and 31 nonsmokers. The babies of smokers were lighter by an average of 138 g, and there was a greater proportion of small-for-dates infants among smokers compared with nonsmokers. There was a failure in expansion of mean plasma volume and total body water in patients who smoked throughout pregnancy compared with nonsmokers.