[Conservative treatment using mesalazine in ischemic colitis].

The authors propose the conservative treatment of ischemic colitis using slow-release mesalazine and enema. The excellent tolerability of the treatment and the good level of therapeutic efficacy was confirmed in 13 cases treated without signs of recurrence of disease.

[Ambulatory saphenectomy: 80 operated cases using tumescent anesthesia].

The authors describe their experience with local tumescent anaesthesia with lidocaine and bupivacaine in 80 cases of saphenous stripping. The method is discussed thoroughly and provides: 1) good anaesthesia throughout surgery, requiring only brief propofol sedation in 55 patients with large-volume legs; 2) less bleeding during and after surgery in all patients, with visual evaluation of ecchymoses at 3 and 7 days; 3) good postsurgical analgesia without functional impairment in all patients. These are real advantages in the ambulatory and day-hospital surgery settings, inasmuch as the scheduled discharge time is not modified.

[Prosthetic repair of inguinal and crural hernias].

335 inguino-femoral hernias were repaired with polypropylene mesh from December 1991 through December 1995. Eleven patients underwent mesh reinforced Bassini, 167 modified Lichtenstein's technique and 108 Trabucco's repair. Forty-three patients were treated under regional anesthesia.

Comparison between therapeutic regimes in erosive chronic gastritis associated with Helicobacter pylori.

Following numerous reports confirming the role of erosive chronic gastritis and ulcer, several treatment protocols have been used with the aim of eradicating this microorganism. Elimination was initially achieved using polychemotherapeutic associationsbismuth salts+metronidazole+amoxycillin and/or tetracyclineswhich proved relatively efficacious in therapeutic terms, but often led to side effects, the onset of bacterial resistance and scarse patient compliance. The authors consider that these limits can be overcome by using a new association of homeprazole+azithromycin, whose effica-cy in the eradication of Helicobacter pylo-ri has been shown to be of about 85% of cases treated for a relatively short period (4 weeks).

[Hemorrhage of the upper digestive tract in the elderly patient: is the limit of 60 years of age still biologically valid? Statistical study].

The authors examine 192 consecutive cases of upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage; the series included 133 males and 59 females with a mean age of 55.78 years (SD +/- 17.88) and range of 18-97.