The presentation and management of 24 patients with endometriosis (median age 34 (range 21-68)years) presenting to general surgeons over a period of 10 years (1985-1994) was reviewed. Patients presented with an abdominal wall swelling related to a previous Pfannenstiel incision (seven patients), umbilical swelling (four), inguinal canal swelling (two), incidentally following appendicectomy (five), terminal ileal obstruction (two), rectal bleeding (two) and urinary symptoms (two). Endometriosis was not suspected in most patients but was confirmed by surgical excision or resection with minimal morbidity. No recurrence occurred during a median follow-up of 53 (range 9-113) months. Endometriosis is a disease rarely seen by general surgeons and is often diagnosed incidentally or on histological examination. Cyclical symptoms associated with menstruation are present in 50 per cent of patients and should suggest the diagnosis in those presenting with scar-related and/or subcutaneous swellings. Simple excision or resection of the presenting lesion provides adequate treatment but, since pelvic endometriosis may be present, referral to a gynaecologist is recommended in every case.

using the Cochrane Library, MEDLINE and EMBASE databases. Primary endpoint was limb salvage; secondary endpoints were mortality and patency of the bypasses.Results: Eight prospective studies and 25 retrospective studies with 895 patients presenting with acute ischaemia were included. No randomised trials were included. The mortality rate after surgical repair was 3.2% (95% confidence interval (C.I.) 1.8 -4.6). The amputation rate was 14.1% (95% C.I. 11.8 -16.4). Thrombolysis before surgery did not result in a significant reduction of the number of amputations, compared with surgery (thrombectomy and bypass) alone. The mean primary patency rates of the bypasses at 1, 3 and 5 years were 79%, 77% and 74%, respectively, in the 'thrombolysis' group and 71% (P ϭ 0.026), 54% (P ϭ 0.164) and 45% (P ϭ 0.249) in the 'thrombectomy' group. No distinction could be made regarding secondary patency and limb-salvage rates between the groups owing to insufficient data.Conclusions: Preoperative and intra-operative thrombolyses result in a significant improvement in 1-year primary graft patency rates, but do not result in a significant reduction for amputations compared with surgery alone.

It remains the minority of patients who have elective operation before the onset of symptoms and/or rupture. Despite anaesthetic and surgical specialization, the results of AAA repair have not improved over the past two decades. Operative mortality may be increasing, possibly because of the increasing age and associated comorbidity of the patients presenting to this unit.

Over half of patients undergoing emergency operation and more than a quarter of those having elective aortic surgery suffered myocardial necrosis as determined by detectable cTnI levels. This was accompanied by a raised CK/CK-MB ratio in less than one-fifth of patients.

the combination of low PC and high glycocalicin levels suggests that there is increased platelet destruction, most likely due to activation within the aneurysm sac.