[Chronic post-traumatic extradural and epicranial pneumatocele. A rare complication of skull base fracture]. / Pneumatocèle extra-durale et épicrânienne chronique post-traumatique. Une rare complication d'une fracture de la base du crâne.

A case of chronic epidural and epicranial pneumocephalus in a 31-year-old man with a history of head trauma and progressive development of a soft tissue mass in the occipital region is reported. Its hypothetical pathogenesis and pathophysiology are discussed.

[Intracerebral chondroma. Apropos of a case]. / Chondrome intra-cérébral. A propos d'un cas.

A rare case of intracerebral chondroma in a 45 years old man with a long history of headache and recent epilepsy is presented. Microscopic examination of the resected tumor revealed that it was chondroma.

Priorities in the management of polytraumatised patients with head injury: partially resolved problems.

The results of a retrospective analysis of a series of 73 polytraumatised patients with severe head injuries are presented. The neurological outcome has been less favourable in cases with early osteosynthesis of peripheral fractures compared to cases in which such operations had been delayed. Therefore it seems advisable to postpone the non-vital operative treatment of osteoarticular lesions until stabilisation of the cerebral and vegetative situation.

Unusual cause of cerebellar abscess: occipital dermal sinus and dermoid cyst.

Cerebellar abscess induced by a contiguous dermal sinus is a rare event. In a large series of acute posterior fossa abscedation, otogenic suppuration is the cause in 93% of the cases, while hematogenous infection is infrequent, probably because of the relatively weak bloodflow in this part of the central nervous system. The authors present an occipital dermal sinus and dermoid cyst revealed by a cerebellar abscess. The literature is reviewed briefly, treatment and prophylactic measures are discussed.

Bilateral primary traumatic oculomotor nerve palsy.

Two cases with bilateral traumatic oculomotor palsy are presented. The clinical signs, diagnosis criteria, and mechanisms of injury are discussed with a special emphasis on the absence of early reliable prognosis factors. The possibility of recovery depends on the anatomic lesion and not on the ophthalmologic findings in the acute phase.

Unilateral chest wall paradoxical motion mimicking a flail chest in a patient with hemilateral C7 spinal injury.

After a lower hemi-cervical spinal cord injury, a patient presented with a left hemiplegia and on the same side a unilateral chest wall paradoxical motion mimicking a flail chest. X-rays demonstrated a left hemilateral C6 injury but no rib fractures. We demonstrated that the paradoxical motion was due to the action of the diaphragm acting on the rib cage with intercostal respiratory paralysis on the side of hemiplegia.

Comparative aspects of occult intrasacral meningocele with conventional X-ray, myelography and CT.

A case of occult intrasacral meningocele is reported and the diagnostic reliability of conventional roentgenography, myelography and CT for the management of this rare lesions are evaluated. Probably, CT with the use of an intrathecal contrast agent could yield the most complete information about the precise nature of this cystic congenital dysraphism.

Non-traumatic clostridial myositis: an unusual feature of brain death.

In a case of brain death, a Clostridium sordellii and Escherichia coli septicaemia--of probable gastrointestinal origin--developed and was associated with a diffuse clostridial myositis. Factors responsible for the initiation and development of this unusual clostridial infection are discussed.

[A rare tumor of the neck; a hydatid cyst. Pathophysiology and diagnosis of echonococcal disease (author's transl)]. / Une tumeur latéro-cervicale rare: le kyste hydatique. Mise au point physiopathologique et diagnostique de l'échinococcose.

A rare case of hydatid cyst located in the musculature of the neck without any other detectable site is reported. With the cycle of the taenia echinococcus as reminder several pathophysiological hypotheses which might explain the inefficacy of the hepatic and pulmonary filter are discussed. A concise revue of the recent literature concerning diagnosis and treatment of the disease is given.

Traumatic asphyxia: an unusual cause of traumatic coma and paraplegia. Case report.

An unusual case of traumatic asphyxia with cerebral and spinal cord symptoms is presented. A survey of the literature indicates that a primary cord lesion is very rare as a consequence of such a trauma. The possible pathogenetic mechanisms of these neurological manifestations are discussed.

[Flat crossleg flaps in the repair of large skin, muscle and bone defect of the leg. Present indications, new techniques (author's transl)]. / Les lambeaux plats hétérojambiers dans la reconstruction des grandes pertes de substances cutanées, musculaires et osseuses de la jambe. Indications actuelles, artifices techniques originaux.

This is a report on a patient who suffered a large skin, muscle and bone defect of the leg following a Volkmann's ischemia. The author's indications for a flat crossleg flap are explained : extended skin defect at the anterior and inner aspect of the broken tibia or a skin defect associated to a tibial defect making a secondary bone graft necessary. Finally the authors describe an original technique of crossleg flap : this consists in a trapezoidal flap with the large side being the implantation basis.

[Complications of lumbar sympathectomy. Retrospective study of 791 patients]. / Les complications de la sympathectomie lombaire. Etude rétrospective de 791 malades

The purpose of this paper is to define the nature and the frequency of post-lumbar sympathectomy complications and to reappreciate their importance in the evaluation of operative indication. The non specific miscellaneous complications are no more frequent than after any other lombotomy. The specific complications occur in less than 10%; they are almost always transient. Prolonged paralytic ileus is related to post-operative hematoma in retroperitoneal space. Ejaculation disturbances are produced either by bilateral resection of one of the two first lumbar ganglian or by section of the intermesenteric plexus, the presacral nerves or the hypogastric nerves during associated dissection of the aortic bifurcaiton. Late neuralgia is probably induced by retroperitoneal hematoma; its size increases gradually during the postoperative period by transference of tissue fluids. In conclusion, the morbidity and the morbidity rates of lumbar sympathectomy are remarkably low; these are not arguments against the lumbar sympathectomy.