The volvulus of the small bowel is a surgical emergency, causing small bowel obstruction. We performed a retrospective study of all the patients diagnosed and treated with small bowel volvulus between 1977 and 2007 at our institution. One hundred twenty-nine patients were analyzed. Thirty-nine patients presented primary volvulus and 90 secondary ones. The most frequent symptom was sudden abdominal pain. CT scan was the best diagnostic method with an accuracy of 83 per cent. Necrotic small bowel loops appeared in 46.5 per cent of the patients. Eighteen patients had postoperative complications (14%). Mortality rate was 9.3 per cent. A higher mortality is observed among patients with previous abdominal surgeries and cardiopathies. Necrotic loops are associated with higher mortality and incidence of surgical complications; patients with diabetes are associated with a higher incidence of necrotic loops. Cardiopathies are associated with more frequent medical and surgical complications. Recurrence rate was 3.9 per cent associated with simple devolvulation. Primary volvulus are more frequent among males and patients with diabetes. Jejunal location is associated with primary volvulus and these correlate with a higher incidence of necrotic loops. Primary volvulus presents a higher incidence of surgical complications. A bowel obstruction with sudden abdominal pain must be suspicious of small bowel volvulus. The main aim is to achieve an early diagnosis to prevent a necrotic small bowel. CT scan is the imaging test with the best diagnostic accuracy. Primary volvulus, the presence of necrotic loops, and patients with cardiopathies, diabetes mellitus, and with previous abdominal surgery are associated with a worse outcome.

Introduction: visceral arterya neurysmsa re an infrequent entity. most of them are asymptomatic, but when they present as arupture, ahigh mortality is associated.Material and Methods: We review our experience of 18 casesbetween 1988 and 2006.Results: 9males and 9females with amean age of 66,5 years are analyzed. aneurysms were located in splenic artery (9), hepatic artery (2), superior mesenteric artery (2), celiac trunk (3), inferior mesenteric artery (1) and gastroduodenal artery (1). three of them were associated with abdominalaorta aneurysms.fourteen patients were asymptomatic, three presenteda bdominalp ain and one case presented with rupture and intraperitoneal bleeding.surgical treatment was performed in thirteen of the patients and endovascular in five. Twocases of endovascular treatment failed and surgery was necessary.Postsurgical mortality was 0a nd complications appearedi n2patients. mean hospital stay after surgicaltreatmentwas 11 days and 3days after endovascular one. none of the patients presented recurrences, and one has chronic mesenteric ischemia as sequelae of surgical treatment of asuperiormesenteric artery aneurysm.Conclusion: visceral arteryaneurysmsmust be treated if it is feasible, due to the potential risk of rupture. Endovascular treatment associates lower morbimortality rates and shorterhospital stay than surgical one, but nowadays many aneurysms are not suitable for this management. Endovascular treatmenti sat echnically difficult approach, that requires aspecific training and the first cases represent alearning curve.

The aim of this study is to analyze the clinical outcome of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) and to determine new prognostic factors. We perform a retrospective study of all the patients diagnosed with GIST in any location and operated on between 2000 and 2008 at our institution. We analyzed 35 patients, 16 males (45.7%) and 19 females (54.3%), with a mean age of 64 ± 13.8 years. The tumors were located in the stomach in 22 patients (62.9%), in the small bowel in 10 (28.6%), and the retroperitoneum in three (8.6%). Referring to gastric GIST, endoscopy revealed an ulceration in the mucosa in five cases, suggesting an epithelial neoplasm. In all these cases, pathology of the biopsy specimen was nonconclusive. Survival rate at 1 and 5 years was 94.3 and 88.6 per cent, respectively. Disease-free survival at 1 and 2 years was 91.4 and 88.6 per cent, respectively. Analyzing prognostic factors, a lower disease-free survival was observed among patients with constitutional syndrome at diagnosis ( P = 0.000), small bowel GIST ( P = 0.037), and tumors not expressing actin ( P = 0.015). A lower global survival was observed among men ( P = 0,036), patients with an abdominal mass ( P = 0.033) or with constitutional syndrome ( P = 0.007) at diagnosis and tumors at a retroperitoneal location ( P = 0.0002). Gastric GIST may be confused with epithelial neoplasms, modifying the surgery. In our patients, masculine gender, constitutional syndrome and abdominal mass at diagnosis, small bowel and retroperitoneal location, and actin negative tumors are bad prognostic factors.

Laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication appears to be at least as safe and long term in effectiveness for GERD as the open approach, with the associated postoperative advantages of a minimally invasive access.

No abstract

Radiation enteritis must be initially conservatively managed, but in those cases without response, surgery is indicated. Surgical treatment should not be delayed fearing postoperative complications, which are more susceptible to appear in deteriorated patients. If technically possible, the affected region should be resected, because complications may appear later at this damaged location.

Conservative surgery of the pancreas is preferred, but aggressive surgery is indicated when the primary tumour can be controlled. Despite of minimising pancreatic resection, there is a high complication rate, mainly pancreatic fistulas, though they can often be conservatively managed. Insulinomas are the PNT with better outcome; those completely resected also associate a better prognosis.

No abstract