Late-Onset Superficial Lymphatic Malformation: Report of a Case and Review of the Literature

BACKGROUND: Superficial lymphatic malformations are predominantly developmental malformations of infancy, but they may arise at any age. OBJECTIVE: To describe a patient with a late-onset superficial lymphatic malformation. METHODS: Case report and literature review. RESULTS: A 53-year-old woman was evaluated for a colored lesion that developed spontaneously on the anterior abdominal wall. The lesion was treated by surgical excision. Findings on histopathologic examination of the specimen were consistent with superficial lymphatic malformation. There was no recurrence of the lesion at 4 months after the operation. CONCLUSION: Superficial lymphatic malformations can develop in adults spontaneously without the presence of any predisposing condition. Because the majority of such late-onset malformations reported in the literature are localized lesions similar to the one in our patient, surgical removal with inclusion of subcutaneous tissue usually results in cure without recurrence.     

Intravenous Pyogenic Granuloma of the Hand

BACKGROUND: Intravenous pyogenic granuloma is the intravasal counterpart of cutaneous pyogenic granuloma. This rare, benign lesion appears clinically as a subcutaneous nodule usually located in the upper extremity or neck in middle-aged people. It is hard to make an exact diagnosis on clinical basis, and there is a risk of recurrence because of undertreatment. OBJECTIVE: To report a case of an intravenous pyogenic granuloma located in the hand and to describe the clinical and histopathologic features of this rare vascular tumor. METHODS: An operation was performed on a 58-year-old female who presented with a small, painless mass in the right palm, and the pathologic examination revealed an intravenous pyogenic granuloma. CONCLUSION: This rare lesion should be differentiated from a regular pyogenic granuloma and should be excised with the vein segment to avoid recurrence.     

Testicular torsion: Evaluation of contralateral testicular histology

Infertility may occur in patients with unilateral testicular torsion whose contralateral testis is intact. Depending on this observation, the physicians have begun to examine the contralateral testis. In the present prospective study we aimed to examine the histopathologic alterations occurring in the contralateral testicle with time. Sixty adult male albino rats were included in the programme, and following experimental torsion the histopathologic findings, especially those in the contralateral testis, were evaluated after 4–12 weeks. Long-term and high degree torsion of the testicle led to varying degrees of deterioration in the germinal epithelium and interstitial cells of the contralateral testicle. Histopathologic alterations were reversed in 12 weeks. Tubular diameter and testicular volume also decreased in accordance with the histopathologic alteration. In our opinion, orchiectomy following torsion of one testicle will limit potential histopathologic alterations in the contralateral testicle.     

Time-dependent changes in distribution of basic fibroblast growth factor immunoreactive cells in hippocampus after kainic acid injection in rat pups

Five-day-old Wistar albino rats were injected with kainic acid (KA) or saline i.p. to investigate time-dependent alterations in morphology and number of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) immunoreactive (-ir) astrocytes and neurons in hippocampus at 15, 30, and 90 days after the injections. Sections were stained with cresyl violet for morphological evaluation and bFGF immunohistochemistry was used for quantitative evaluation of bFGF-ir cell density. Fifteen days after KA injection, there was gliosis but no neuronal loss although disorganization in CA1, CA3, CA4 pyramidal layers and neuronal loss were evident 30 and 90 days after the injection. KA injected rats demonstrated significantly increased number of bFGF-ir astrocytes throughout the hippocampus and pyramidal neurons in CA2 after 15 days and decreased number of bFGF-ir cells after 30 and 90 days. The decrease in the number of bFGF-ir astroglia and neurons in long term after KA injection may indicate a decrease in the production of bFGF and/or number of bFGF-ir cells suggesting that protective effects of bFGF may be altered during epileptogenesis in hippocampus.     

The importance of oral foci of infection in renal transplantation

During the treatment of patients with renal failure or renal transplants the most important consideration is to eliminate sources of infection before and after the treatment. Acute or chronic oral infections or bacteraemias resulting from dental procedures may cause serious complications in these patients who already have lowered host resistance caused by immunosuppressant therapy. In order to determine the latest concepts from some international transplantation centres relating to the importance of and the effect of infective sources in the oral cavity, a survey form was prepared which included several questions related to oral foci of infection and renal transplantations.
Results obtained from 22 centres from 12 countries indicated that the majority of the centres included a dental examination in their routine protocol and required completion of any necessary dental treatment before transplantation. However, full agreement among all these centres on the necessity for dental examination as part of the protocol has not yet been reached.     

Time-dependent morphological alterations of cold-stored small bowel in Euro-Collins and Ringer's lactate solutions

Small bowel is one of the organs that can in principle be transplanted. Optimum preservation of the organ is essential for the success of transplantation. The aim of the present study is the investigation of time-related morphological changes of rat small bowel during preservation in hypothermic Euro-Collins (EC) and Ringer's lactate (RL) solution using light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy to evaluate the integrity of intercellular complexes of mucosal epithelium, one of the tissues of the intestine that is most susceptible to ischemia. Small bowels were perfused with either EC, RL solution or physiological saline solution and were placed in the different preservation solutions at 4 degrees C for 0, 3, 6 and 12 h. The results of our study suggest that both preservation solutions are suitable for short-term preservation of the small bowel although RL solution is more effective than EC solution. However, we conclude that further improvement of preservation solutions and/or techniques are needed to perform long-term preservation.     

The effect of varying impact energy on diffuse axonal injury in the rat brain: a preliminary study

Diffuse axonal injury (DAI) is seen as widespread damage in the white matter of brain characterized by morphological changes to axons throughout the brain and brain stem. The current study attempted to investigate the effect of increasing impact energy on the presence and severity of DAI in corpus callosum (CC). DAI was induced in adult male Sprague-Dawley rats using an injury model adapted from Marmarou et al. in 1994. A 450-g cylindrical brass weight was dropped from three different heights (2.0 m, 1.5 m and 1.0 m) on to a metal helmet affixed to the skull of the rats. In the sham group, rats underwent a surgical procedure with no impact. After a 24-h survival period the animals were transcardially perfused. The brain was removed and the cerebral hemispheres were sectioned with a vibrotome and stained by silver impregnation technique. The CC of all the impacted rats showed DAI in the form of beaded axons, retraction balls and vacuole-like enlargements. The axonal injury was most severe in the 2-m group, while mildest in the 1-m group. In the sham group, axons appeared to be normal. This study demonstrates evidence of graded DAI depending on the impact energy. Such data is useful for mathematical modeling of axonal injury in rat brain using the same impact parameters and potential determination of injury thresholds for neural trauma. Electronic Publication     

Potentialities of life quality evaluation for gastroenterological patients

Quality of life (QL) was studied in 112 patients with gastroenterological diseases: 29 cases of gastric ulcer (GU), 53 cases of duodenal ulcer (DU) and 30 cases of chronic pancreatitis (CP). QL was judged according to the test of the Cardiological Research Center of the RAMS. QL in the above gastroenterological diseases was related to restrictions in the diet, emotional and muscular load, long-term treatment. The integral quantitative indices of QL were worse in CP and GU than in DU, and deteriorated with the disease duration and severity. A close correlation was found between QL and subjective symptoms of the disease, especially pain syndrome. The proposed approach to qualitative and quantitative assessment of gastroenterological patients's quality of life adequately reflects this complex phenomenon and closely correlated with clinical evidence.