This article is the largest hospital-based series evaluating the laparoscopic versus open approach for pregnant patients with presumed acute appendicitis. While methodological limitations preclude a definitive recommendation, laparoscopy appears to be a safe, feasible, and efficacious approach for pregnant patients with presumed acute appendicitis. We conclude that it is likely not the surgical approach but the underlying diagnosis combined with maternal factors that determine the risk for pregnancy complications. A benefit of laparoscopy is the diagnostic ability to identify other intra-abdominal pathology which may mimic appendicitis and harbor pregnancy risks.

Macrodystrophia lipomatosa is a rare entity that is mostly diagnosed in children. It has been very rarely reported in adults. Here, we describe the X-ray and computed tomography findings in a case of macrodystrophia lipomatosa in an elderly female presenting with an enlarged second toe since birth and bony outgrowths causing pressure effects and cosmetic problems.

The purpose of this study was to identify risk factors predictive of severe nonocclussive ischemic colitis (IC) requiring operation or resulting in mortality. One hundred seventeen patients with nonocclussive IC were identified and divided into two groups: those with severe disease (n = 24) and those with disease that resolved with supportive care (n = 93). Univariate and multivariate logistic regression models were used. The splenic flexure was the most common involved segment (57.3%), whereas the right colon was involved in 17.9 per cent of patients. Multivariate logistic regression identified three independent risk factors for severe disease: leukocytosis greater than 15 3 109/L (odds ratio [OR], 5.7; confidence interval [CI], 1.5 to 21), hematocrit less than 35 per cent (OR, 4.5; CI, 1.1 to 17), and history of atrial fibrillation (OR, 15; CI, 1.3 to 190). Right-sided IC and chronic renal insufficiency did not affect severity. Special attention should be given to patients with the following risk factors for a severe course: atrial fibrillation, elevated white blood cell count, and anemia. These factors might enable earlier identification of patients who may benefit from early operation. Further prospective studies focusing on subgroups of IC (occlusive and nonocclusive) are required.

Aneurysmal bone cyst is an uncommon but interesting condition, more so when it involves the vertebrae. Three cases of aneurysmal bone cysts of the dorsal spine, suspected on clinicoradiological findings and confirmed by histopathology, are reported in this paper. The authors believe that when the disease affects the pedicles or transverse processes of a vertebra, the plain roentgenographic findings are quite typical of the disease, and a confident radiological diagnosis is possible in the majority of cases.

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