The Wiltse method is less invasive and causes less tissue damage. It reduces the change of hemorrhage and multifidus muscles and offers a shorter duration of hospitalization with less pain.

The aim of our study was to determine the efficacy of preoperative early arterial Computed tomography angiography (CTA) in donor nephrectomy, to assess the renal arterial and venous structures of donor kidneys. Seventy living donor candidates were included to this study, who had CTA for the assessment of their renal vessels in our hospital between January 2011 and January 2015. Only early arterial phase images were obtained to avoid exposing the patients from high dose of radiation. Scans were reported by two radiologists independently. The number of renal arteries, veins and their tributaries were documented. The donor kidneys were removed by two consultant surgeons, and after back-table perfusion the same details were recorded and taken as the reference findings for the operation side. A total of 70 potential live kidney donors underwent renal CTA, among them fifty five patients had donor nephrectomy. A total of 140 kidneys were evaluated by CTA and the vessels of 55 harvested kidneys were compared with CTA findings. There were 40 kidneys that had at least one accessory or polar artery. There were 5 early branching renal arteries, two retroaortic and two circumaortic renal veins. Three kidneys had multiple renal veins. Operation findings were totally consistent with CTA findings in patients who underwent donor nephrectomy. Arterial phase CTA is sufficient for evaluation of both arterial and venous vessels of kidneys, and precontrast, venous or late phase imaging should be preserved only for chosen circumstances to avoid high radiation exposure.

Background and Objectives: Physiotherapy approaches are used to eliminate the problems caused by cervicogenic headache (CHA), known as secondary headache associated with the structures of the upper cervical region. This study aimed to investigate the effects of cervical mobilization (CM) with clinical Pilates exercises (CPE) on pain, muscle stiffness and head–neck blood flow in CGH. Materials and Methods: A total of 25 patients participated in this randomized controlled study and were randomized into either the CM group or the CM+CPE group. All treatment methods were applied 3 days a week for 6 weeks. The outcome measure was headache intensity and frequency, the number of analgesics, muscle stiffness and vertebral artery (VA) and internal carotid artery (ICA) blood flow. Headache intensity was measured by a visual analogue scale, muscle stiffness by a myotonometer and blood flow by Doppler US. Evaluations were repeated after 6 weeks of treatment. Within-group comparisons were made by the Wilcoxon signed rank test, and between-group comparisons were made by the Mann–Whitney U test. Results: After treatments in the two groups, headache intensity and frequency and the number of analgesics decreased, the muscle stiffness of the suboccipital, upper trapezius and sternocleidomastoid (SCM) muscles decreased, and the blood flow of the ICA and VA increased (p < 0.05). There was a significant difference between the groups in terms of headache intensity (p = 0.025) and muscle stiffness in SKM (p = 0.044) in favor of the CM+CPE group. Conclusions: Non-pharmacological treatment approaches have an important role in CHA related to the upper cervical region. This study suggests that it would be beneficial to add CM in combination with CPE to the non-pharmacological treatment of patients with CHA.

Here we present our clinical experience in a case of esophagus perforation due to the swallowing of a bone piece causing acute angina pectoris and leading to misdiagnosis of acute coronary syndrome. A 73-year-old Caucasian man underwent urgent coronary angiography with possible diagnosis of acute coronary syndrome. His coronary arteries were found to be normal. A computed tomography examination revealed esophagus perforation by a foreign body (a piece of bone), and he underwent urgent left thoracotomy and the foreign body was removed. Sometimes, even a piece of bone within a meal can lead to esophagus perforation, and injure the pericardium and myocardium. The symptoms of esophagus perforation may be confused with acute coronary syndrome due to their similarities and lack of knowledge about the detailed clinical history as shown in our case. Thus, careful consideration of detailed clinical history as well as choosing an appropriate medical imaging modality, such as computed tomography, should always be kept in mind in order to promptly diagnose and start early treatment to reduce mortality.

İkidağ MA. Korean Circ J. 2016 Sep;48:e89. https://doi.org/10.4070/kcj.2018.0092