[Unusual differential diagnosis of posttraumatic back pain].

The differential diagnosis of lumbar back pain includes a broad spectrum of vertebral and extravertebral pathologies. Even in cases of a traumatic event physicians should keep an extravertebral cause in mind. This is a case report on the coincidence of perforated sigma diverticulitis and traumatic spine compression fracture in an 85-year-old woman with acute back pain.

Monitoring peri-operative immune suppression in renal cancer patients.

The aim of this study was the identification of surrogate markers of host immunity in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) patients. Using 4-color flow cytometry the immunophenotype of blood immune cells of RCC patients was compared to that of healthy volunteers and correlated with staging and grading of patients. Furthermore, the time course of these immune markers was compared in RCC patients undergoing either open surgery or laparoscopy.