Sarcoidosis and coronary bypass surgery: a case report

Sarcoidosis, a chronic granulomatous disease with unknown etiology and pathogenesis, affects the skin and many other organs and has a course characterized by remissions and relapses. We describe a patient with sarcoidosis, which we diagnosed retrospectively after we had difficulties in harvesting the left internal thoracic artery because of giant and disseminated mediastinal lymphadenopathies on the anterior thoracic wall during urgent coronary artery bypass surgery.     

A case of cerebello-oculo-renal syndrome with situs inversus totalis: a new phenotype

Cerebello-oculo-renal syndromes are rare, autosomal recessive syndromes with uncertain nosology. Cerebello-oculo-renal syndromes involve many congenital malformations and may be associated with other disorders. The authors present a case of cerebello-oculo-renal syndrome with situs inversus totalis from a consanguineous family. The patient had cerebellar vermis hypoplasia, ocular abnormalities (Leber congenital amaurosis with retinal dystrophy, abnormal eye movements), developmental delay, growth deficiency, severe renal failure, and severe anemia. Imaging studies showed molar tooth sign, which was compatible with cerebello-oculo-renal syndromes and situs inversus totalis.     

Isolated posterior spinal artery aneurysm causing intracranial acute subarachnoidal hemorrhage

A case of an isolated posterior spinal artery aneurysm of the upper cervical spinal cord is presented. Spinal artery aneurysms that are not associated with other entities are extremely rare. Four cases have been reported in the literature to date. The patient developed symptoms and signs of intracranial subarachnoid hemorrhage. The aneurysm was successfully clipped. No other vascular abnormalities were seen.     

Unilateral agenesis of internal carotid artery with subarachnoid hemorrhage: Report of two cases

Internal carotid artery (ICA) is a rare anomaly of embryologic development. Digital subtraction angiography examination showed no visualization of the ICA on the right side in a 30-year-old male patient and on the left side in a 47-year-old female patient. Computed tomography (CT) revealed the absence of the corresponding bony carotid canal. Doppler examinations of the common carotid and external carotid arteries on the affected sides demonstrated high-resistance flow characteristics. Two cases of ICA agenesis with subarachnoid hemorrhage were presented and the literature is reviewed.     

Ophthalmic techniques described by Serefeddin Sabuncuoğlu (1385-1468 AD)

¸Serefeddin Sabuncuoglu (1385?1468 ad ) was a Turkish surgeon who lived in the Ottoman Empire during the fifteenth century, a time of progressive expansion. When in his eighties, he wrote Cerrahiyyetü’l‐Haniyye, which means Imperial Surgery. His book is the first example of an illustrated surgical textbook in the Turkish?Islamic medical literature. The importance of his book rests upon the inclusion of colour miniatures of the surgical procedures, incisional techniques and instruments, all drawn by Sabuncuog?lu himself. Only three hand‐written copies exist, two of which were originally written by the author and are currently exhibited in Paris and Istanbul. The book was rediscovered in 1936, but some parts of it are still suspected to be missing. At present, the book consists of three chapters divided into 193 known sections. The sections deal with all fields of surgery including ophthalmology, and cite relevant Greek, Arabic and Persian textbooks. In this historical article the sections of Cerrahiyyetü’l‐Haniyye pertinent to ophthalmology are critically reviewed, including a selection of the coloured drawings.