The anatomy of the sacrococcygeal cornual region and its clinical relevance

There has been no systematic study of the anatomy of the region between the sacral and coccygeal cornua. Reference texts describe an intercornual ligament connecting these structures. The aim of this study was to investigate the anatomy of this region, which may be relevant to unexplained cases of coccygeal pain (coccydynia) and local nerve blocks. The bony anatomy of the sacrococcygeal (SC) cornual region was analyzed in 33 CT scans obtained from supine adults of mostly European origin with no known SC pathology, 7 μCT scans of cadaver SC specimens, and 105 Asian Indian adult skeletons. A further five cadaver SC specimens were examined histologically. SC cornual fusion was seen in 45 % of CT/μCT scans (mean age 67 years, 20 males) and in 20 % of adult skeletons (78 males); there was no association with age or sex. In the absence of SC fusion, the mean intersacrococcygeal cornual gap was 7.1 ± 2.4 mm; this was bridged by an intercornual ligament composed of parallel vertical collagen fibers reinforced by elastin fibers on its anterior surface. Small nerve branches were observed adjacent to the ventral aspect of the intercornual ligament and, in one case, traversing the ligament. Ipsilateral sacral and coccygeal cornua are therefore normally bridged by an intercornual ligament that is probably innervated. The cornua are fused on one or both sides in 20–45 % of adults. These findings may have implications for some cases of coccydynia and for anesthetists performing local nerve blocks.     

Paediatric emergencies.

During the last decade neonatal surgical results have improved considerably. Except for infants born with serious congenital heart disease, diaphragmatic hernia or exomphalos, postoperative mortality rates for infants with single anomalies have fallen to the region of 10%. This dramatic success story has been marred by a corresponding increase in the number of individuals with several anomalies entering late childhood with severe chronic handicaps. During the remainder of this century much effort will be expended in devising programmes of investigation which will attempt to predict which individuals will have a poor long-term prognosis. Such programmes will necessitate very close liaison between obstetricians, radiologists, neonatologists, local paediatricians, paediatric surgeons, general practitioners and parents. Very urgent surgery is necessary for the best results in infants with gastroschisis, intestinal volvulus and irreducible inguinal hernia, but for most other conditions there have been recent trends away from very urgent surgery to operation during daylight hours within the ensuing 24 h. Surgery within a few hours of presentation is necessary for intussusception and for early acute appendicitis, but perforated appendicitis should be treated by aggressive fluid replacement and intravenous antibiotics and surgery should be contemplated only in the rare cases of continued deterioration.     

Access to palliative care for homeless people: complex lives,complex care

Background

People experiencing homelessness often encounter progressive incurable somatic diseases in combination with psychiatric and psychosocial problems, and many need palliative care at the end of their lives. Little is known about how palliative care for this group can be started in good time and provided optimally. The objective of this paper is to give insight into the extent people experiencing homelessness have access to good palliative care.

Methods

Qualitative in-depth interviews were held to reconstruct the cases of 19 people experiencing homelessness in the Netherlands. Eight cases concerned persons being in the palliative phase (using the surprise question) and the other 11 cases concerned persons recently died after a period of ill health due to somatic illness. We used purposive sampling until data saturation was reached. The total number of interviews was 52. All interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed inductively.

Results

Three key themes were: ‘late access’, ‘capricious trajectory’ and ‘complex care’. The first key theme refers to the often delayed start of palliative care, because of the difficulties in recognizing the need for palliative care, the ambivalence of people experiencing homelessness about accepting palliative care, and the lack of facilities with specific expertise in palliative care for them. The second key theme refers to the illness trajectory, which is often capricious because of the challenging behaviour of people experiencing homelessness, an unpredictable disease process and a system not being able to accommodate or meet their needs. The third key theme refers to the complexity of their care with regard to pain and symptom control, psychosocial and spiritual aspects, and the social network.

Conclusions

The care for in the palliative phase does not satisfy the core requirements of palliative care since there are bottlenecks regarding timely identification, the social network, and the assessment and management of physical symptoms and psychosocial and spiritual care needs. Education in palliative care of outreach professionals, training staff in shelters in the provision of palliative care, and building a network of palliative care specialists for people experiencing homelessness.