The fist model for nasal packing.

Epistaxis is a common ear, nose and throat emergency. A variety of nasal packs are available to control the bleeding by tamponade. Training of junior doctors to insert nasal packs is difficult when dealing with a bleeding patient. We discovered a readily available and simple model to enable trainees to learn the method of nasal packing.     

Psoas abscess: Difficulties encountered

From 1961 to 1989, 67 patients underwent various surgical procedures for psoas abscess. Retrospective analysis was undertaken in an effort to determine optimal surgical therapy. Forty patients were cured with one operation. Twenty-one patients required two operations, four patients required three operations, and two patients required more than three operations. The reason for failure of treatment was failure to resect the diseased bowel or to drain the psoas abscess adequately. A technique to recognize and treat the abscess definitively will be illustrated. The most common etiologies were Crohn's disease in 49 patients, postoperative sepsis in eight patients, and complications of renal disease in four patients. The length of hospital stay ranged from 5 to 392 days (mean, 26 days). There were two deaths. Failure to recognize and treat psoas abscess results in considerable morbidity.Poster presentation at the meeting of The American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons, St. Louis, Missouri, April 29 to May 4, 1990.     

Relative carriage rates of nuclear dehydrogenating clostridia in two populations of different colorectal cancer risk

Carriage of nuclear dehydrogenating clostridia has been associated with colon cancer and implicated in its aetiology. This study has compared the carriage of these organisms in a British population at high risk for the development of colon cancer with a low risk Nigerian population. Clostridia were found in all of the stools from both populations. Nuclear dehydrogenating clostridia were only found in the stools of the British subjects (32%). These results support the suggestion that the carriage rate of nuclear dehydrogenating clostridia in a population is related to the risk of colon cancer.     

Use of post-mortem human synaptosomes for studies of metabolism and transmitter amino acid release

Synaptosomes have been prepared from human brain obtained at autopsies carried out up to 24 h postmortem (p.m.). They showed generally good retention of morphology, as well as accumulation of tissue potassium and linear rates of oxygen uptake. In response to veratrine depolarization they showed increased respiration rate, decreased tissue potassium content and the specific release of transmitter amino acids. Regression analysis indicated that metabolically and functionally active preparations may be obtained up to ca. 25 h p.m. Preparations obtained from patients dying with brain injury were inactive.     

Development of hatching blastocysts from immature human oocytes following in-vitro maturation and fertilization using a co-culture system

Recently, in-vitro maturation (IVM) of immature human oocytes recovered from non-stimulated follicles has been applied in the treatment of infertility. However, in previous reports, very few embryos cultured in conventional medium have reached the expanded blastocyst stage following in-vitro maturation and fertilization (IVM/IVF). The objective of this study was to investigate whether the developmental competence of human embryos following IVM/IVF could be enhanced by the use of a human ampullary cell co-culture system. Immature human oocytes were aspirated from small follicles at Caesarean section and then cultured in medium containing human menopausal gonadotrophin for 36 to 48 h, followed by insemination. Zygotes were randomly cultured either in conventional culture medium alone or in the co-culture system. Of 48 embryos cultured in conventional medium alone, all arrested at the 2-16- cell stage on day 3 after insemination. Of 46 embryos cultured in the co-culture system, 26 embryos (56.5%) arrested at the 2-16-cell stage. Six embryos (13%) developed to the morula stage. Fourteen embryos (30.4%) developed to expanded blastocysts and two blastocysts were hatching on day 7 after insemination. We conclude that co-culture significantly enhances the development of blastocysts in embryos resulting from IVM/IVF.