Removal of intra-abdominal mislocated intrauterine devices by laparoscopy.

This retrospective study was carried out on 15 patients who underwent laparoscopy for the removal of a mislocated IUD from 2003 to 2009. The mean duration of usage of an IUD was 16.1 months. The IUD was found in the Pouch of Douglas in six patients; in the posterior wall of the uterus in three patients; in the adnexa in three patients; in the omentum in two patients and it was embedded in the rectal serosa in one patient. The types of the IUDs were TCu-380A (n = 13) and Mirena(®) (n = 2). The mean laparoscopic operation time was 25 min. No major complications occurred. A second ancillary port was required in three patients. All patients were discharged within 24 h. Laparoscopic removal of the intra-abdominal IUD must be the first choice of therapy. If possible, a single ancillary port should be preferred for the removal of mislocated IUDs. We advise that surgical removal and surgical risk should be discussed with the patients, even if asymptomatic.

Percutaneous penetration of uranium in rats after a contamination on intact or wounded skin.

The aim of this work is to assess in vivo in a hairless rat model, the percutaneous diffusion of uranium through intact or wounded rat skin. Six types of wounds were simulated by excoriation and burns with 10 N HF, 2, 5 and 14 N HNO3 and 10 N NaOH on anaesthetised hairless rats. Percutaneous penetration through wounded skin towards blood and subsequent urinary excretion of uranium was followed in vivo during 24 h. The influence of the physicochemical form (solution or powder) of uranyl nitrate (UN) on its percutaneous diffusion was also investigated. UN, even as a powder, can diffuse through intact skin. The presence of uranium in blood is more persistent and its urinary elimination is slower after an HF burn than after an HNO3 burn. Excoriation increases dramatically percutaneous absorption of UN. Thus, percutaneous diffusion of UN is largely dependent on skin barrier integrity with a particular importance of stratum corneum.

Modelling of bioassay data from a Pu wound treated by repeated DTPA perfusions: biokinetics and dosimetric approaches.

The aim of this study is to model plutonium (Pu) excretion from the analysis of a well-documented Pu wound case involving repeated diethylene-triamine-penta-acetic acid (DTPA) perfusions up to 390 d and monitoring up to 3109 d. Three modelling approaches were simultaneously applied involving: (1) release of soluble Pu from the wound, estimated with the ICRP66 dissolution model, (2) systemic behaviour of Pu by using ICRP67 model, but also two new models recently reported and (3) additional 'Pu-DTPA' compartments which transfer Pu directly to urinary compartment from blood, interstitial fluids and liver. The best fit of simulations to biological data was obtained by using the new Leggett's systemic model and assuming the presence of three DTPA compartments. Calculations have shown that DTPA treatments have contributed to a 3-fold reduction of the effective dose. Thus, reduction of doses associated with the DTPA treatments can be estimated by modelling which is useful to improve the efficacy of a DTPA treatment schedule based on a diminution of risk.