Simplified T-tube replacement with two-piece retrievable catheters.

A new two-piece T tube has been developed for easy reinsertion over a guide wire, usually without the need for tract dilation. It is introduced as a single unit over a removable introducer cannula and is formed in situ within the common bile duct by manipulation of guiding sutures. The self-retaining T configuration is maintained by a suture-locking device. The T tube can be easily retrieved, repositioned, or exchanged. It can be modified distally with either a long limb or a "T loop" to provide internal biliary drainage via the T-tube tract. These low-profile catheters improve the safety of tube replacement through immature tracts (n = 6) and have also been introduced through transhepatic tracts (n = 6). Thirty-three catheters have been placed in 21 patients without significant complications.

Ruptured inferior gluteal artery aneurysm with exsanguinating rectal hemorrhage controlled by transcatheter coil embolization.

A case of exsanguinating rectal and retroperitoneal hemorrhage resulting from a ruptured inferior gluteal artery aneurysm is presented. Transcatheter embolization of Gelfoam and a Gianturco coil device resulted in the control of bleeding and proved to be a life-saving measure in a patient who was a poor surgical candidate.

Osgood-Schlatter's disease, an emphasis on soft tissue changes in roentgen diagnosis.

Osgood-Schlatter's disease is a well known entity affecting the adolescent knee. Radiologic examination of the knee has been an integral part of the diagnosis of this condition for decades. However, the soft tissue changes have not been appreciated sufficiently. Emphasis is placed on the use of optimum radiographic technique and xeroradiography in the examination of the soft tissues of the knee.