Simultaneous laparotomy and intraoperative endoscopy for the treatment of high jejunal membranous stenosis in a 1–year–old boy

A 1-year-old boy with high jejunal membranous stenosis was successfully treated “a minima” by antimesenteric longitudinal enterotomy over the diaphragm, excision of the latter, and transverse closure of the bowel. This was made possible by use of simultaneous peroperative endoscopy, which allowed exact localization of the diaphragm. Peroperative endoscopy is a useful and accurate method for this purpose and should be considered in similar cases. © 1993 Raven Press, Ltd. New York.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Gastrin stimulates epithelial cell proliferation in the oesophagus of rats

Gastrin can induce mitotic stimulation in the oxyntic mucosa of the stomach, sometimes leading to abnormal growth. We examined whether gastrin was able to influence cell proliferation in the oesophageal epithelium. Rats were treated with gastrin, omeprazole or saline for 3 days, or were subjected to fundectomy or sham operation. Bromodeoxyuridine labelling (LI) and mitotic (MI) indices were counted in the proliferative zone of the squamous epithelium. Infusion of exogenous gastrin, treatment with omeprazole or fundectomy raised the LI and the MI values in the oesophageal epithelium, indicating that gastrin stimulates cell proliferation in the oesophageal mucosa in the rat.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Cystic duplication of the cecum presenting with intussusception in a 7-day-old boy

A case of ileocolic intussusception due to cystic duplication of the gut near the ileocecal valve in a 7-day-old neonate is presented. A review of the literature on both intussusception and duplications of the intestine reveals the extreme rarity of this entity. Moreover, the very young age at clinical presentation is remarkable. The contribution of ultrasonography in the diagnostic work-up is emphasized.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Endoscopic obliteration of recurrent tracheoesophageal fistula

We report a successful endoscopic obliteration of a large recurrent tracheoesophageal fistula (diameter 0.6 cm, length 2.0 cm) in a 12-year-old girl, using a combination of Histoacryl (n-butyl-z-cyanoacrylate) and Aethoxysclerol injected through a polyethylene catheter. The severe pulmonary infection, which rendered surgery potentially life threatening, disappeared after the endoscopic closure. Since the obliteration, now over 12 months ago, the girl is asymptomatic. Endoscopic obliteration is a worth-while technique and should be considered as an alternative to surgery in patients presenting with a complicated recurrent tracheoesophageal fistula. © 1993 Plenum Publishing Corporation.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Chemical depletion of Arctic ozone in winter 1999/2000

Large losses of Arctic ozone occur during winters with cold, stable stratospheric circulations that result in the extensive occurrence of polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs). Reactions on the surface of PSCs lead to elevated abundances of chlorine monoxide (ClO) that, in the presence of sunlight, destroys ozone. Here we show that PSCs were more widespread during the 1999/2000 Arctic winter than for any other winter in the past two decades. We have used three fundamentally different approaches to derive the degree of chemical ozone loss from ozone sonde, balloon, aircraft and satelite instruments. We show that the ozone losses derived from these different instruments and approaches agree very well, resulting in a high level of confidence in the results. Chemical processes led to a 70% reduction of ozone for a ~1 km thick region of the lower stratosphere, the largest degree of local loss ever reported for the Arctic. The chemical loss of ozone in the total column amounted to about 100 DU by the end of the winter. This total column loss was balanced by transport, resulting in relatively constant total ozone between early January and late March, which is in contrast to the climatological increase of the total ozone column during this period, that is observed during most years