Toxoplasma lymphadenopathy

Toxoplasmosis is a common and widely distributed infection, especially in warm moist climates. This is shown by the high incidence of positive serological tests found in appropriate surveys. The purpose of this paper is to describe three cases of toxoplasma lymphadenopathy in order to draw attention to a condition which must be commoner in Malta than is generally supposed. Three young adults have been diagnosed as suffering from toxoplasma lymphadenopathy within the past year. The condition is not diagnosed as frequently as it ought to be. Though it is on the whole uncommon, it should become increasingly recognised in future, in this way helping to reduce the number of obscure cases of lymphadenopathy. It has been estimated that some 7% of cases of lymphadenopathy clinically diagnosed as glandular fever but giving a negative Paul-Bunnell test will be accounted for by toxoplasmosis.peer-reviewe

Medico-legal aspects of surgical practice

The following paper was read at a meeting of "The Association of Surgeons and Physicians of Malta", held under the Chairmanship of The Hon. Mr. Justice Richard Farrugia. New medico-legal points of major interest to a surgeon are hereby discussed. One of the most common problems that have to be faced is to decide whether bodily harm in any particular patient is grievous or slight. For instance, severe bodily harm can give rise to loss of life, permanent disability of any organ of the body, permanent mental infirmity, deformity, and physical and mental infirmity. It can also prevent an injured person to return to his normal occupation. It can also induce premature delivery of a pregnant woman. Another noteworthy aspect is the case of a death certificate, for which the primary cause of death may differ from a postmortem report. Though the consent of the deceased's relatives for a post-mortem examination is not legally necessary, it has become customary to ask for it and it is most welcome to the clinician.peer-reviewe

Tube decompression after distal colectomy

Paper read at the Annual Clinical Meeting of the Association of Surgeons and Physicians of Malta in December 1971. Defunctioning of the proximal colon after resection of the distal colon and anastomosis is a well-recognised procedure. It is not always carried out after pelvic colectomy or anterior resection of the rectum. There is, however, another method of producing decompression of the proximal colon that is rarely described. It has been used on eight consecutive patients with carcinoma of the pelvic colon or recto-sigmoid junction over a twelve month period: October 1970-October 1971. A short summary of the eight cases is presented. Decompression by rectal tube after distal colectomy appears to work satisfactorily and should reduce, at least, if it does not abolish, the practice of a transverse colostomy.peer-reviewe

Tubo ovarian abscess as a complication of typhoid fever

This paper was read at a joint meeting of the Association of Surgeons and Physicians of Malta and the Fifth Army Surgeons Travelling Club at a meeting in Malta, in May 1968. Typhoid Fever has been notorious over the decades for the variety of complications that may arise from it, and numerous references are to be found in the medical literature devoted partly or exclusively to discussion of these complications. Abscess involvement of the ovaries or Fallopian tubes is one of the rarest of complications. A patient who developed this rare complication is here described and a short review of the literature made. Factors that may have contributed to this complication are furthermore discussed. A particular aspect of typhoid management which this case study illustrates is the relationship of relapse to dosage of Chloramphenicol. It is strongly believed that the complication of tubo-ovarian abscess in the present case would not have arisen had a fully adequate dose of Chloramphenicol been given at home from the start.peer-reviewe

Laparotomy for fever

This is a paper read at The Annual Clinical and Scientific Meeting of The Association of Surgeons and Physicians of Malta in Jan. 1973. The problems involved in the diagnosis of fever of uncertain or unknown origin are well known. In the majority of these patients, the diagnosis becomes established after a full investigation. There are, however, cases where the most careful investigation fails to discover the cause even though the fever may have lasted months. It is indeed some of these patients who may benefit by a laparotomy not only because a definite diagnosis may result but also because a definitive cure becomes possible. Two case studies that illustrate this fact are described, whereby they show that laparotomy may at the very least provide definite diagnosis of an intra-abdominal disorder allowing rational management of the patient and may also in the best of cases cure such disorder.peer-reviewe

A case of anorectal agenesis : postoperative complications

An analysis of the postoperative complications of a case of ano-rectal agenesis is here presented. The multiplicity of factors involved, with special emphasis on protein-calorie malnutrition, together with the importance of team-work in the management of this case, is emphasised. The postoperative care of a seriously ill child who has undergone major surgery and may be suffering from multiple complications, necessitates close liaison between the surgeon, the pediatrician and the laboratory and nursing staff. It is clear from the comments about this case that the utmost attention to detail is crucial in the management of such casespeer-reviewe

The mutational landscape of lethal castration-resistant prostate cancer

none27noneGrasso, Catherine S.; Wu, Yi-Mi; Robinson, Dan R.; Cao, Xuhong; Dhanasekaran, Saravana M.; Khan, Amjad P.; Quist, Michael J.; Jing, Xiaojun; Lonigro, Robert J.; Brenner, J. Chad; Asangani, Irfan A.; Ateeq, Bushra; Chun, Sang Y.; Siddiqui, Javed; Sam, Lee; Anstett, Matt; Mehra, Rohit; Prensner, John R.; Palanisamy, Nallasivam; Ryslik, Gregory A.; Vandin, Fabio; Raphael, Benjamin J.; Kunju, Lakshmi P.; Rhodes, Daniel R.; Pienta, Kenneth J.; Chinnaiyan, Arul M.; Tomlins, Scott A.Grasso, Catherine S.; Wu, Yi Mi; Robinson, Dan R.; Cao, Xuhong; Dhanasekaran, Saravana M.; Khan, Amjad P.; Quist, Michael J.; Jing, Xiaojun; Lonigro, Robert J.; Brenner, J. Chad; Asangani, Irfan A.; Ateeq, Bushra; Chun, Sang Y.; Siddiqui, Javed; Sam, Lee; Anstett, Matt; Mehra, Rohit; Prensner, John R.; Palanisamy, Nallasivam; Ryslik, Gregory A.; Vandin, Fabio; Raphael, Benjamin J.; Kunju, Lakshmi P.; Rhodes, Daniel R.; Pienta, Kenneth J.; Chinnaiyan, Arul M.; Tomlins, Scott A