Journal of surgical case reports
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A 13-year-old boy was presented in the pediatric emergency with a 2-week history of swelling of the right scrotal contents of simple evolution, which was worsened by the appearance of an acute scrotal pain 48 h prior to his consultation. The doppler ultrasound and computed tomography (CT) scan revealed an incarceration of the omentum in an inguinal hernia. ⋯ However, omentum is a rare content of inguinal hernia in children and infarct is exceptional. It should be included in the differential diagnosis of an acute scrotum.
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Case Reports
Complete cricotracheal transection due to blunt neck trauma without significant symptoms.
Laryngotracheal injuries are relatively rare but their mortality rate is fairly high. Complete disruption of trachea is extremely rare and a systematic approach is needed for early diagnosis and favourable outcome. The patients symptoms and physical signs do not necessarily correlate with the severity of the injuries and this case report highlights it. ⋯ A computed tomographic scan showed distortion of cricotracheal framework. Flexible bronchoscopy showed cricotracheal transaction. Immediately, the endotracheal tube was advanced distal to the transection site under bronchoscopic guide and then after neck exploration primary end-to-end cricotracheal anastomosis was performed.
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Here, we present a case of pneumoperitoneum caused by traumatic pneumothorax after a fall. The patient is an 82-year-old male who was brought into the emergency department after being found at the bottom of a flight of stairs with a bleeding scalp laceration. Upon presentation, the patient underwent emergent intubation followed by tube thoracostomy placement, had necessary imaging and was transferred to the surgical intensive care unit (SICU). ⋯ In the SICU, the patient became hemodynamically unstable requiring vasopressor support, which in the face of documented pneumoperitoneum without a clear cause mandated exploration. He was taken to the operating room for suspected viscus perforation, though none was found after extensively searching during an exploratory laparotomy. We suspect the patient developed pneumomediastinum and pneumoperitoneum as a result of traumatic pneumothorax, hastened by his subsequent intubation and mechanical ventilation.
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A 67-year-old lady was found to have a giant appendicolith during a colorectal cancer screening colonoscopy, following a positive faecal occult blood test. Computed tomography confirmed the presence of a calcified giant appendicolith within the base of the appendix, which otherwise appeared normal. Appendicoliths are widely believed to be a major cause of acute appendicitis via obstruction of the appendix lumen, although this is disputed due to a lack of strong evidence. ⋯ All of the few cases of giant appendicoliths reported so far have been managed by extracting the lesions. Our patient was asymptomatic and had bilateral lung transplants, so a conservative watchful waiting approach was adopted. The authors propose expectant management of giant appendicoliths as a reasonable option in patients with significant operative risks.
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Chilaiditi's sign and syndrome seem similar but are actually different entities, difficult to distinguish from each other. A 60-year-old female presented with a clinical scenario of intestinal obstruction, which was thought to be Chilaiditi's syndrome because of the unusual impression of gas under the diaphragm, but was confirmed as Chilaiditi's sign after laparotomy. The interposition of dilated small bowel loops below the diaphragm due to distal obstruction somewhere else can also produce a Chilaiditi's sign.