Caecal faecolith, a cause of acute appendicitis.

A 60-year-old woman presented to the accident and emergency department with a 3-day history of lower abdominal pain, which was sudden in onset, localised to the right iliac fossa, constant and aggravated by movements. On examination, she was febrile (100 · F), tachycardic and normotensive. Examination of the abdomen revealed an ill-defined tender mass in the right iliac fossa.

Unusual presentation of gastrointestinal stromal tumor of stomach in neurofibromatosis type 1: a case report.

A 38-year-old woman with generalized neurofibromatosis was admitted to the emergency department with complaint of pain and nontender mass in epigastrium. She had been treated in another hospital as an intra-abdominal abscess and tube drain was seen to be coming out of the centre of the mass. Later investigations and surgery revealed a large exophytic tumor arising from the posterior wall of the stomach infiltrating the transverse colon.

Incidental thyroid carcinoma.

Objective: to find out the frequency of incidental thyroid carcinoma (ITC) in patients presumably operated for benign thyroid diseases.

Methods: a total of 187 patients undergoing surgery for benign thyroid diseases were included in the study. All the patients underwent fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC).

Sonography: an underutilized diagnostic tool in the assessment of metastatic groin nodes.

Purpose: To assess the diagnostic value of gray-scale sonography in differentiating benign reactive nodes from metastatic nodes in the groin.

Methods: Twenty-seven patients with carcinoma of the penis, 3 patients with cutaneous melanoma, and 2 patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the lower extremity with inguinal lymphadenopathy were studied. A total of 122 nodes in the groin were examined sonographically using a 7.

Treatment of anal fissures using a combination of minoxidil and lignocaine: a randomized, double-blind trial.

Aim: Anal fissures are associated with hypertonia of the internal anal sphincter and pain. We evaluated the efficacy of local application of a combination of minoxidil and lignocaine in healing anal fissures.

Methods: In this prospective, randomized, double-blind study, 90 patients with anal fissure were recruited.

Delay in surgery for acute appendicitis.

Background: The present study investigates the effect of delay in appendicectomy on the outcome of surgery and also examines the contribution of patient and physician related delay to the stage of appendicitis.

Methods: During a 12-month period, 114 consecutive adult patients undergoing appendicectomy for acute appendicitis were monitored prospectively. Time of onset of symptoms, presentation to the hospital, surgery consultation, decision to operate and starting of surgery were all noted.

Risk factors predicting operative mortality in perforated peptic ulcer disease.

Following the introduction of H2-blockers and proton pump inhibitors, there has been a sharp decrease in elective peptic ulcer surgery. However, emergency operations for complications such as perforation are on the rise. This study was undertaken to review the factors which determine mortality following emergency surgery for peptic ulcer perforation.

Value of core needle biopsy in the diagnosis of soft tissue tumours.

We performed a prospective study to determine the accuracy of core needle biopsy in the diagnosis and grading of soft tissue tumours and to study the morbidity of core needle biopsy. Forty one cases of soft tissue tumours, 24 of them malignant and 17 benign, were biopsied with an 18G core needle. Core needle biopsy reports were compared with the final histopathological report after definitive procedure or incisional biopsy.

Recurrent gastric trichobezoar.

Trichobezoars are concretions of ingested hair that are found in the stomach. Recurrence of this condition has not been reported. We report an 18-year-old girl with recurrent trichobezoar; this emphasizes the need for counseling in these patients.

Rectal bleeding: a rare complication of abdominal pregnancy.

A rare case of abdominal pregnancy, causing massive rectal bleeding due to invasion of the rectal wall by the placenta, is reported.