Role of US in acute scrotal pain.

BACKGROUND: The acute scrotum is a common emergency department (ED) presentation and can be defined as any condition of the scrotum or intrascrotal contents requiring emergent medical or surgical intervention. Although rarely fatal, acute scrotal pathology can result in testicle infarction and necrosis, testicular atrophy, infertility, and significant morbidity. METHODS: Scrotal US is best performed with a linear 7.5- to 12-MHz transducer. In addition to imaging in the longitudinal and transverse planes, it is helpful to obtain simultaneous images of both testes for comparison. Color Doppler is used to evaluate for abnormalities of flow and to differentiate vascular from nonvascular lesions. Attention to appropriate color Doppler settings to optimize detection of slow flow is critical. RESULTS: The evaluation of acute scrotal pain can be challenging for the clinician initially examining and triaging the patient. Acute scrotal conditions due to traumatic, infectious, vascular, or neoplastic etiologies can all present with pain as the initial complaint. Additionally, the laboratory and physical examination findings in such conditions may overlap; this, coupled with potential patient guarding and lack of collaboration, may result in a limited, non-specific physical examination. Therefore, scrotal ultrasound has emerged to play a central role in the evaluation of the patient presenting with acute scrotal pain. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, we are firmly convinced that a scrotal ultrasound should always be performed in the presence of acute scrotal pain. Moreover, urologist should be able to perform a scrotal ultrasound but, if imaging does not supply a clear diagnosis, surgical exploration is still mandatory.

Aseptic nonunion and delay in consolidation in the tibia: treatment by intramedullary nailing and using the Ilizarov method.

The authors present a clinical-radiographic study on two groups of patients affected with aseptic nonunion and delays in consolidation of the tibia treated by intramedullary nailing (24 cases) and Ilizarov method (29 cases). Nailing was locked in 12 cases and associated with resection of the fibula in 15 (in 8 locked nailing). Autoplastic bone grafts were applied in 3 cases of atrophic nonunion. The Ilizarov method was used with different procedures: standard assembly in 23 patients, of which 6 with the application of autoplastic grafts for atrophic nonunion. En bloc resection of the atrophic nonunion was carried out in 6 patients followed by removal (4 cases) or lengthening (2 cases). Parafocal osteotomy according to Paltrinieri was reserved for closed hypertrophic nonunion with severe varus and procurvatum. The data for this study allow the authors to conclude that intramedullary nailing is preferable in delays in consolidation and in hypertrophic nonunion without angular defects or hypometria, while the Ilizarov method is more indicated in atrophic nonunions and in hypertrophic nonunions with hypometria and angular defects.