[Evidence for use of electroshock devices].

The authors tested whether use of an electro shock weapon (stun gun) leaves marks on skin which can be found in an exterior examination. On pig skin such marks could not be produced postmortally. An experiment on one of the authors caused reddish skin marks which persisted for about 2 h.

[A gun silencer of a special kind].

The authors report about a small bore pistol with silencer. In addition, the silencer can be sealed up by a rubber plate. This leads to a false estimation of the shooting distance.

[Greater success by cooperation between claim review experts and the police].

The examination of claims settlement in life assurance usually begins when police investigation is finished. During the acute phase of police investigation there is very rarely contact between the police and the life insurance company concerned. The advantages of early cooperation are demonstrated by two case reports.

[Ultrasound diagnosis of soft tissue changes in dialysis-associated amyloidosis].

Aim: To develop criteria for the detection of long term dialysis-associated soft tissue changes due to amyloid deposits in various joints.

Method: Ultrasonographic examination of the shoulder (15 patients), hip (5 patients), knee (6 patients) and elbow (2 patients) using a 7.5 or 5 MHz scanner.

[Diagnostic possibilities of sonography: ankle joint, foot and Achilles tendon].

In patients with soft tissue swelling and pain of the foot and ankle, ultrasonography is a simple and reliable diagnostic procedure to demonstrate joint effusions or a tendovaginitis which may have caused the symptoms of the patient. The diagnostic puncture of a joint is only necessary to determine the kind of effusion. The diagnostic workup of patients with acute and chronic instability of the proximal ankle joint benefits from the sonographic measurement of the talus tilt and of the anterior drawer.

[Percutaneous drainage of abscesses, biliomas, seromas and hematomas following liver surgery. Experiences with 46 patients].

Fifty-two fluid collections following hepatic surgery were diagnosed in 46 patients, mostly by sonography. These were treated percutaneously. In 7 patients ultrasound-guided puncture was used, in 36 patients catheter drainage was employed and in three drainage was instituted by a catheter in a pre-existing fistula.

[Primary sonographic diagnosis and follow-up of muscular and tendon injuries of the lower extremity].

Ultrasound examination has become an important diagnostic method in muscle and tendon injuries. In addition dynamic ultrasound examination allows evaluation of the course of healing from various aspects. Starting with the sonoanatomy, the pathologic ultrasound patterns typical for injuries to muscle and to Achilles, patellar and quadriceps tendons are demonstrated.

[The visibility of a central venous catheter using digital luminescence radiography in intensive care radiology].

The aim of the following study was to assess the impact of dose alterations on the detection of catheters. We compared the performance of well-exposed conventional and digital portable chest radiographs in the detection of thin catheters and tested the influences of dose alterations. Portable chest radiographs of 20 patients were obtained with conventional film/screen (FR) and with storage phosphors at 50% (SRL), 100% (SRN), and 250% (SRH) of the conventionally required exposure dose.

Sonography and scintigraphy in the diagnosis of diseases of the major salivary glands.

This is a prospective study of 73 patients with diseases of the major salivary glands. The sonographic diagnosis could be confirmed by the course of the disease and/or the histologic result after operation in 67 (93%). In 29 patients, salivary gland scintigrams also were carried out.

Use of sonography in the follow-up of preoperatively irradiated efferent lymphatics of the neck in oropharyngeal tumours.

The applicability of sonography in the control of preoperative radiotherapy of neck lymph nodes in patients with malignancies in the region of the head and the neck was established in a prospective study. Lymph nodes with positive reactions showed a simultaneous reduction in size and structure. Postoperative histology showed no malignancy in these lymph nodes.

[Sonography of the wrist and the hand].

Sonographic examination of the hand requires high-frequency linear transducers. As the relevant structures are located very close to the surface, water stand-off pads are mandatory. Owing to the high sensitivity of sonography in the detection of fluid, exudative synovitis, tenosynovitis and ganglia can be easily diagnosed.

[Ultrasonic evaluation of homologous bone and cartilage transplants of the femoral condyles].

Evaluation of the weight-bearing articular cartilage of the femoral condyles is possible by sonography. Bone and cartilage transplants can be examined by conventional radiological methods combined with sonography. This provides clinically relevant information.

[Diagnosis of carotid body tumor by imaging procedures].

The imaging techniques available for the diagnosis of tumors of the glomus caroticum are discussed with reference to four cases (three patients, one with tumor bilaterally). Taking into consideration the practicability and invasiveness of the investigations as well as the risks and costs involved, we propose that the procedures be performed in the following sequence: ultrasonography, Doppler ultrasonography, computed tomography (CT) or (even better) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and selective angiography. In most cases where there is a non-inflammatory mass in the neck, ultrasonography and Doppler ultrasonography may be adequate to establish the diagnosis of a glomus caroticum tumor.

[CMV screening with the latex agglutination test in blood donors. Comparison between EIA and latex agglutination].

For CMV-Screening of blood donors the latex agglutination test (LAT) can be used as a complementary rapid analysis to the enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (EIA). In 98.56% there was no discrepancy between LAT and EIA in the serum, in 1.

[Importance of screening for antibodies to cytomegalovirus in organ transplantation].

The influence of screening blood donors for CMV antibodies on the incidence of CMV infection after transplantation was examined in 81 heart and 81 liver transplant recipients. All heart recipients received CMV-seronegative blood, while the liver recipients were given both CMV-positive and CMV-negative blood, due to the large number of units of blood required. In CMV seropositive organ recipients CMV reactivations occurred at about the same rate in heart and liver recipients (60.

[Management of sonography in blunt abdominal trauma].

A standardized management of sonography in blunt abdominal trauma has replaced peritoneal lavage in our department. The sonographic evaluation is performed simultaneously with additional diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in the emergency room. The primary goal is the exclusion of intraabdominal bleeding.

[Ultrasonic anatomy and study technic of the normal carpal tunnel and the distal median nerve].

The wrists of 16 normal volunteers were examined via high-resolution sonography with special reference to the carpal tunnel. In all cases the surfaces of the carpal bones, the flexor retinaculum, the tendons, the vessels, (Aa. radialis and ulnaris) and the nerves (Nn.

[Percutaneous drainage of abscesses after stomach surgery].

Fifteen abscesses following various types of gastric surgery in 14 patients were treated by three different methods: 1. Multiple puncture under sonographic control, with complete drainage of the abscess. 2.

[Experiences with a "rapid test" in detecting antibodies to cytomegalovirus].

Transmission of cytomegalovirus (CMV) to CMV negative transplant or blood recipients should be avoided in organ transplantations, since CMV infection of immunocompromised patients can result in severe illness. The infectivity of organ and blood donors is judged on the basis of CMV antibody, considering CMV IgG positives as potentially infectious. Several sensitive test systems are available for testing organ and blood donors for CMV IgG antibody which should be carried out prior to each transplantation.

Intravenous DSA and dynamic computed tomography for postoperative follow-up of type A aortic dissections.

We undertook a direct comparison of intravenous digital subtraction angiography and dynamic computed tomography in a follow-up study on 37 patients who had undergone surgery on the thoracic aorta for acute or chronic type A dissections. These are minimally invasive and complementary procedures: IV-DSA provides a clear angiographic image of the dissection, with visualization of the true and false channels, their distal extension and the supra-aortic and abdominal vessels they supply. Dynamic CT best demonstrates the proximal extension of the disease; it visualizes clotting in the false lumen and permits a more accurate measurement of the aortic width, and thus early recognition of a developing aneurysm.

[Sonographic diagnosis and differential diagnosis of neck cysts].

We report 101 patients with the clinical diagnosis of a branchial cyst investigated by ultrasonography. In 78 cases the diagnosis of a branchial cyst was confirmed by the ultrasound findings. The picture of a typical cyst was found in 26 cases, whereas a complex cyst filled with sludge or debris was found in 52 patients.

[Ultrasound sonography in the diagnosis and follow-up of Achilles tendon rupture].

In addition to allowing definite diagnosis of Achilles tendon rupture and localization of the rupture site, ultrasonography also enables the examiner to grade the rupture and the course of healing for quantity and quality. Twenty patients with subcutaneous achilles tendon rupture were examined in a prospective study that is still in progress. In this trial an operative and a conservative-functional treatment with a newly developed shoe were compared.