Specificity of 99mTc-pertechnetate in scintigraphic diagnosis of Meckel's diverticulum: review of 100 cases.

Numerous reports in the recent literature have questioned the value of abdominal scanning with pertechnetate in the diagnosis of Meckel's diverticulum. In an attempt to evaluate further the specificity of pertechnetate in this condition, the clinical data and scintigrams of 100 patients with suspected Meckel's diverticulum were reviewed. The scintigram correctly identified Meckel's diverticulum before operation in seven of eight patients. One false-negative study occurred in 33 patients who underwent laparotomy. Conditions suggested as possible causes of false-positive studies (hydronephrosis, arteriovenous malformations, and intussusception) were found to give negative scans.

Intraluminal duodenal diverticulum. Report of two cases and review of the literature.

Diverticula rarely occur within the lumen of the duodenum. They arise near the papilla of Vater and extend distally. The diverticulum is lined on both sides with duodenal mucosa, and its eccentric opening is usually proximal in the sac. The diverticulum results from incomplete recanalization of the intestinal lumen after the proliferative epithelial stage in the 7-week embryo and represents either a remnant of one of two channels formed during recanalization or a distal ballooning of a congenital duodenal diaphragm. Although the patient with a diverticulum may be asymptomatic, most patients present with abdominal pain and obstructive symptoms; pancreatitis and gastrointestinal bleeding may be associated with the diverticulum. Barium study shows a characteristic radiolucent halo that represents the wall of the diverticulum. Surgery should be approached with caution because injury to the papilla is a hazard, and in children, coexisting congenital anomalies may be present.

The effect of an alexidine mouthwash on dental plaque and gingivitis.

The alexidine mouthrinse used in this study (CP-101) is effective in reducing plaque. There was a reduction in gingivitis after 6-months use but not at a statistically significant level. An extrinsic brown stain occurred at a significant level on the teeth of participants using the active mouthrinse. Blood and urine laboratory results indicated that alexidine can be safely used over a 6-month period.

Experimental infection of chickens with hemorrhagic enteritis virus.

Chickens were experimentally infected with hemorrhagic enteritis virus, causing lesions similar to those observed in turkeys. Lesions were induced by intraperitoneal and oral infection. Virus particles with the morphology of adenovirus were demonstrated in the spleens of infected chickens. Splenic extracts from infected chickens caused lesions of hemorrhagic enteritis in turkeys. Recovery from the infection in chickens was followed by the production of antibodies to HEV, demonstrated by agar-gel precipitin test.

Pathology of velogenic Newcastle Disease virus infection in turkeys.

Twenty-four 4-week-old poults, free from Mycoplasma meleagridis and M. gallisepticum, were inoculated with a velogenic viscerotropic strain of Newcastle disease virus. Clinical signs (gasping, coughing, and dyspnea) developed 4-5 days postinoculation, continued until nervous derangement appeared, and then (usually 3 days after initial clinical signs appeared) declined in severity. Prominent nervous signs were paresis and paralysis of the extremities, with pronounced head-shaking. The most constant gross lesions detected involved the airsacs. The abdominal sacs of a few poults contained a large accumulation of yellowish, cheesy exudate and there was cloudiness of the thoracic airsacs of all inoculated poults. A few turkeys had tracheitis with some catarrhal exudates and casts in the lower part of the tracheal lumen. Congestion of lepto-meningeal vessels usually correlated with the severity of the nervous signs. The histologic lesions were characterized by both degenerative and proliferative changes with predominantly mononuclear cell and heterophil infiltrations throughout the body. The obvious lesion seen in the recovery stage of the disease was proliferation of lymphofollicular nodules in the parenchymatous organs.

Inclusion body disease in a great horned owl.

The carcass of a great horned owl (Bubo virginianus), which had been found moribund in southern Ontario, was presented for necropsy. Throughout the liver and spleen were numerous white foci 1-2 mm in diameter; also noted were white plaques in the mucosae of the pharyngeal papillae and intestine. Results of light and electron microscopic studies and experimental transmission to two captive great horned owls suggested that this was a herpvirus disease similar and possibly indentical to the owl disease reported by other workers in Wiconsin and Australia.

Alleviating mortality associated with a vitamin E-selenium deficiency by dietary ascorbic acid.

Adding ascorbic acid to a practical ration deficient in vitamin E and selenium for the growing duck substantially reduced associated mortality. The continued appearance of various myopathies but absence of vascular faults supported implication of a reduced de novo ascorbate synthesis as part of the syndrome. Presumably, alleviation of this induced secondary inadequacy with its more lethal pathology was the primary reason for the lower death rate.

Pathological studies of "Sudden death syndrome" in broiler chickens.

Sudden death syndrome usually occurs in heavy, fast-growing and healthy-looking broilers. Most of the affected birds are males. The characteristic necropsy changes are seen in well-fleshed broilers with edema and generalized pulmonary congestion, recently ingested feed in the crop and gizzard, distended intestine with creamy content and empty gall bladder. The liver and kidneys are slightly enlarged and the latter have patchy areas of subcapsular hemorrhage. The heart contains clotted blood in the atria but the ventricles are often empty and the left ventricle in particular assumes a hypertrophied appearance. Microscopic examination of heart muscle reveals degeneration of fibers, separation of cardiac muscle fibers by edema and infiltration of heterophils. The lungs have severe vascular congestion, inflammatory cell infiltration in the mucosa of the secondary bronchi and edema fluid in the tertiary bronchi and interlobular connective tissue. The liver has moderate bile duct hyperplasia, periportal hepatitis and mononuclear cell infiltration adjacent to bile ducts which possibly leads to bile duct constriction. The kidneys have subcapsular and parenchymatous hemorrhage.

Studies on effect of lighting on "Sudden death syndrome" in broiler chickens.

Broiler chicken flocks were studied to determine the mortality from sudden death syndrome occurring in the flocks. The difference in the incidence of the syndrome in pullets and cockerels, and the age at which the most birds are affected were also studied. The weight of sudden death syndrome birds was compared with the flock average and the effect of continuous lighting as opposed to intermittent lighting was examined. The results suggest that; continuous lighting produces more sudden death syndrome deaths than intermittent lighting; that the incidence of sudden death syndrome is higher in cockerels than pullets; that the highest death rate occurred during the third and fourth weeks of life, and that sudden death syndrome birds on the average were heavier than the flock average.