Acute appendicitis in children: not only surgical treatment.

Purpose: An accurate diagnosis of acute appendicitis is important to avoid severe outcome or unnecessary surgery but management is controversial. The aim of study was to evaluate, in younger and older children, the efficacy of conservative management for uncomplicated appendicitis and the outcome of complicated forms underwent early surgery.

Methods: Children with acute appendicitis were investigated by clinical, laboratory variables and abdominal ultrasound and divided in two groups: complicated and uncomplicated.

Snodgrass urethroplasty: grafting the incised plate--10 years later.

Purpose: We report our retrospective, nonrandomized, single center experience with modified tubularized incised urethral plate repair, consisting of grafting the incised urethral plate before tubularization, as first introduced 10 years ago. Indications, technical points and results are described.

Materials And Methods: From 1997 to 2007 at our unit 1,095 cases of hypospadias were treated, including 75% primary and 25% repeat cases.

Scafoid megalourethra--a reliable surgical approach.

Congenital megalourethra is a very rare malformation, which has 2 anatomical variants, scafoid and fusiform. The etiology of this malformation is still a matter of discussion. A surgical approach is proposed here, which has been successfully used in the case of a boy affected by scafoid megalourethra.

Surgical approach to the congenital megaprepuce.

The megaprepuce (MP) is a very rare malformation of unknown aetiology, with anatomical findings similar to those observed in the congenital buried penis (BP). The aspect of this entity and the symptoms are rather typical: the penis is totally buried and before micturition an evident pubic and scrotal swelling denounces the urine collection in an abnormal preputial cavity surrounding the entire shaft. Early surgery is recommended, in order to deal with functional and cosmetic aspects.

Preoperative tracheobronchoscopy in newborns with esophageal atresia: does it matter?

Background/purpose: Despite surgical refinements, perioperative use of tracheobronchoscopy (TBS) as part of surgical approach to esophageal atresia (EA) is still controversial. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the influence of preoperative TBS in newborns with EA in preventing complications and improving diagnosis and surgical treatment.

Methods: In the period ranging from 1997 to 2003, 62 patients with EA underwent preoperative TBS.