Successful laparoscopic removal of an ingested toothbrush.

Most ingested foreign bodies will pass through the gastrointestinal tract without any problems. On the other hand long, slender objects such as a toothbrush will rarely be able to negotiate the angulated and fixed retroperitoneal duodenal loop. Spontaneous toothbrush passage has never been described and therefore endoscopic or surgical removal is always required.

Pitfalls in the use of laparoscopic staplers to perform subtotal cholecystectomy.

Laparoscopic subtotal cholecystectomy (LSC) is considered to be a safe option in severe cholecystitis with non-discernible anatomy within the Calot's triangle where there is a potential risk of causing injury to the common bile duct. Here we present two cases of gallstone pancreatitis associated with use of an endoscopic stapler during LSC.

Bile in the esophagus-model for a bile acid biosensor.

Acid and bile acids form important constituents of the refluxed substances in patients who suffer from gastroesophageal reflux disease. Whilst 24h ambulatory pH monitoring using antimony or glass pH electrodes measures acid levels 5 cm above the gastroesophageal junction, there are no reliable methods of measuring other constituents of duodenal juices such as bile acids. Past studies in detection of bile acids have included esophageal aspiration studies with detection of bile acids with HPLC or indirect methods using fiber-optic bile sensor "Bilitec" to detect bilirubin in the bile.

Physiologic basis for the treatment of epiphrenic diverticulum.

Objective: To quantitate and characterize the motility abnormalities present in patients with epiphrenic diverticula and to assess the outcome of surgical treatment undertaken according to these abnormalities.

Summary Background Data: The concept that epiphrenic diverticula are complications of esophageal motility disorders rather than primary anatomic abnormalities is gradually becoming accepted. The inconsistency in identifying motility abnormalities in patients with epiphrenic diverticula is a major obstacle to the general acceptance of this concept.