Delayed presentation of sigmoid volvulus in a young woman.

Volvulus is an unusual condition in Western countries, generally isolated to elderly patients with multiple comorbidities. This report describes an unusual case of a very large gangrenous sigmoid volvulus in a young, otherwise healthy 25-year-old female. A review of the diagnosis and management is subsequently described.

Surgical outcome of community-acquired Clostridium difficile colitis presenting as toxic megacolon: case report.

Background: Over the past decade, there has been an increase in both community-acquired and health-care-associated Clostridium difficile colitis secondary to broad-spectrum antibiotic exposure. Toxic megacolon is a rare complication of pseudomembranous colitis that often necessitates emergency colectomy.

Methods: Review of the pertinent English-language literature.

Laparoscopic management of a duplicated gallbladder: a case study and anatomic history.

Duplication of the gallbladder is a rare entity. This case highlights a 36-year-old woman who presented to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center after referral from an outside institution with gallstone pancreatitis. Ultrasound, computed tomography scan, and magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography showed evidence of a biliary anomaly preoperatively concerning for a duplicated gallbladder or choledochal cyst.

Evaluation of prehospital and emergency department systolic blood pressure as a predictor of in-hospital mortality.

Hypotension is a trauma activation criterion validated by multiple studies. However, field systolic blood pressures (SBP) are still met with skepticism. How significant is the role of prehospital (PH) and emergency department (ED) SBP in the patient's overall condition? A review of the trauma registry over a 5-year period was conducted.

Abdominal computed tomography in the evaluation of acute and perforated appendicitis in the community setting.

Several studies report sensitivity and specificity of abdominal computed tomography scans (CT) for the evaluation of acute appendicitis as high as 98 per cent. Despite increased utilization of CT, the rate of negative appendectomy has remained constant at 10 to 20 per cent. The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness of CT in the evaluation of acute and perforated appendicitis in an academic community-based setting.