[Diagnostic accuracy in 267 patients with suspected appendicitis: a retrospective study].

Despite what is commonly believed, the diagnosis of acute appendicitis is not always easy. Proof of this is the high rate of negative appendicectomies performed yearly in any surgery unit. "Unnecessary" operations involve a huge waste of resources and are sometimes associated with severe complications.

[Solitary perforated diverticulum of the cecum: a case report].

The Authors report a case of acute abdomen caused by a perforated solitary diverticulum of the cecum recently treated. This is a rare disease that usually is diagnosed, in the surgical theatre because it is a topic of emergency surgery. From Literature analysis it is obvious that a correct preoperative diagnosis is difficult to make because of the large number of possible abdominal pathologies with similar symptoms.

[Wandering spleen with torsion of the pedicle. A case report and review of the literature].

Congenital deficiency or acquired laxity of the suspensory ligaments, that usually hold the spleen in place in its compartment, may result in extreme splenic mobility. Consequently, this mobility predisposes to torsion of the elongated splenic vascular pedicle creating a situation of acute abdomen due to haemorrhagic infarction. Various imaging modalities for diagnosing the wandering spleen such as ultrasonography, CT scan, MR-angiography, nuclear scan and arteriography are of great value both in the asymptomatic condition and in acute abdomen.

[Carcinoma of the pancreatic body and tail].

Carcinoma of the body and tail of the pancreas still remains the disease form with the worst prognosis and evolution. In spite of a huge improvement in diagnostic methods, anaesthetic and surgical procedures and pre- and postoperative assistance, the results in terms of early diagnosis and long-term survival have been generally disappointing. The authors describe their own experience regarding three such tumours treated in five years, analysing the literature data, and referring to the current guidelines in diagnostics and surgical therapy.

[Torsion of the greater omentum as a rare cause of acute abdomen].

Taking as their starting point a case of greater omental torsion recently observed in their surgical department, the authors carefully review the topic and the relevant literature data. This is a rare condition, which though presenting diagnostic difficulties which make it hard to identify preoperatively, poses no problems of a therapeutic nature.