Correction of congenital penoscrotal webbing in children: A retrospective review of three surgical techniques.

Introduction: Congenital penoscrotal webbing (PSW) is a condition that leads to penile shortening and is a common cause of delayed circumcision. While various techniques for PSW repair have been described, no comparative studies are currently available.

Objective: The goal of this study was to validate and critique three commonly utilized techniques for PSW repair.

Use of human acellular dermal matrix during classic bladder exstrophy repair.

Introduction: The extent of the abdominal wall defect in people with classic bladder exstrophy (CBE) varies, and can be extensive. In this study, human acellular dermis (HAD) was used to bridge the fascial gap, as an alternative to osteotomy, to support a fascial repair of the abdominal wall, and as a filler in selected cases of CBE.

Objective: To demonstrate the efficacy of the employed techniques of using HAD within the bladder exstrophy population.

Activation of toll-like receptor 4 is necessary for trauma hemorrhagic shock-induced gut injury and polymorphonuclear neutrophil priming.

Interactions of toll-like receptors (TLRs) with nonmicrobial factors play a major role in the pathogenesis of early trauma-hemorrhagic shock (T/HS)-induced organ injury and inflammation. Thus, we tested the hypothesis that TLR4 mutant (TLR4 mut) mice would be more resistant to T/HS-induced gut injury and polymorphonuclear neutrophil (PMN) priming than their wild-type littermates and found that both were significantly reduced in the TLR4 mut mice. In addition, the in vivo and ex vivo PMN priming effect of T/HS intestinal lymph observed in the wild-type mice was abrogated in TLR4 mut mice as well the TRIF mut-deficient mice and partially attenuated in Myd88 mice, suggesting that TRIF activation played a more predominant role than MyD88 in T/HS lymph-induced PMN priming.

Trauma hemorrhagic shock-induced lung injury involves a gut-lymph-induced TLR4 pathway in mice.

Background: Injurious non-microbial factors released from the stressed gut during shocked states contribute to the development of acute lung injury (ALI) and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS). Since Toll-like receptors (TLR) act as sensors of tissue injury as well as microbial invasion and TLR4 signaling occurs in both sepsis and noninfectious models of ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, we hypothesized that factors in the intestinal mesenteric lymph after trauma hemorrhagic shock (T/HS) mediate gut-induced lung injury via TLR4 activation.

Methods/principal Findings: The concept that factors in T/HS lymph exiting the gut recreates ALI is evidenced by our findings that the infusion of porcine lymph, collected from animals subjected to global T/HS injury, into naïve wildtype (WT) mice induced lung injury.

Estrogen receptor hormone agonists limit trauma hemorrhage shock-induced gut and lung injury in rats.

Background: Acute lung injury (ALI) and the development of the multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) is a major cause of death in trauma patients. Earlier studies in trauma hemorrhagic shock (T/HS) have documented that splanchnic ischemia leading to gut inflammation and loss of barrier function is an initial triggering event that leads to gut-induced ARDS and MODS. Since sex hormones have been shown to modulate the response to T/HS and proestrous (PE) females are more resistant to T/HS-induced gut and distant organ injury, the goal of our study was to determine the contribution of estrogen receptor (ER)alpha and ERbeta in modulating the protective response of female rats to T/HS-induced gut and lung injury.