Diagnostic yield and endoscopic patterns of laparoscopy in the diagnosis of granulomatous hepatitis.

In reviewing 54 cases of granulomatous hepatitis (GH) diagnosed among 2,620 laparoscopies, we have been able to classify the capsular GH changes into five patterns: Macular, exudative, pinpoint, granular and cord-like. The exudative pattern was the most frequent one, and predominated in brucellosis. The granular pattern was most common in tuberculosis.

A randomized trial of tamponade or sclerotherapy as immediate treatment for bleeding esophageal varices.

Sengstaken-Blakemore tamponade is used for the initial control of bleeding esophageal varices (BEV), although it is known to be potentially dangerous. Sclerotherapy has been shown to be effective in the treatment of BEV. This trial has been designed to evaluate comparatively the effectiveness of both procedures in the initial control of the hemorrhage.

[Initial isolation and characterization of Yersinia enterocolitica in human feces in Argentina].

The isolation of Yersinia enterocolitica from a child's feces with an acute diarrhea is reported for the first time in Argentina. The strain was classified as belonging to the biotype 4 of Wauters, serotype O:3, phage type VIII. The virulence-associated test of autoagglutination, calcium dependency and production of heat-stable enterotoxin were positive, whereas neither lethality for the adult mouse by oral route, nor invasiveness by using the Serény test in the mouse, were demonstrated.

Efficacy of monopolar electrocoagulation in the treatment of bleeding gastric ulcer: a controlled trial.

With the aim of evaluating, in a controlled prospective fashion, the efficacy of monopolar electrocoagulation in the emergency treatment of bleeding gastric and stomal ulcers, 37 patients were studied: 16 were electrocoagulated (EC group) while the remaining 21 were treated by conventional methods (control group). The hemorrhage recurred in only one of the 16 patients belonging to the EC group, but in 11 of the 21 control patients (p less than 0.0005).

Enteropathogens associated with acute diarrhea in hospitalized infants.

Thirty-five infants of low socioeconomic status who were living in urban Santiago were hospitalized for acute diarrhea were prospectively evaluated for the presence of enteropathogens associated with the episode. Some degree of malnutrition was evident in 20 infants (57.1%); 15 of these (75%) were under 6 months of age.

Retrospective endoscopic analysis of gastric xanthelasma in the non-operated stomach.

To investigate the significance of gastric xanthelasma, a retrospective review of 109 cases with an endoscopic diagnosis of this lesion was undertaken. A predominance in older patients was noted, with a similar distribution in antrum and fornix. In 15 cases (16.