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A prospective study evaluating the surgical technique used in the treatment of chronic anal fissures, which is fissurectomy, partial sphincterotomy and anoplasty, was carried out in University Teaching Hospital Dakar. Thirty one patients with chronic anal fissures (20 males and 11 females) with average age 38 years and mean consultation period of 3 years, were treated with this technique. The delay of healing was between 4 to 12 weeks for a mean period of six weeks with 27 cases healed before 2 months and 4 cases after. One patient developed transitory faecal incontinence, recurrences, anal stenosis, haemorrhoidal relapses. noticed after simple lateral sphincterotomy were not found in our study as written in the medical literature. The surgical treatment of chronic anal fissures by fissurectomy, partial sphincterotomy and anoplasty is an important corner stone in this pathology. However lately healing may be a source of discomfort for the patient.

The recent introduction of laparoscopic surgery in the therapeutic arsenal of duodenal ulcer enabled us to carry out these interventions by abdominal route in order to appreciate the early results. It concerned a prospective study from March 1999 to August 2000 of 53 cases of which were 47 men and 6 women, aged from 16-75 years average age 52 years. Twenty six patients had pyloro-duodenal stenosis, the rest, chronic duodenal ulcer. Vagotomy was carried out on a patient on dorsal decubitus under general anesthesia with oro-tracheal intubation operator within the legs of the patient and the monitor at the right hand side. The process required four trocars depending on the morphology of the patient. A pneumoperitoneum of 3-5 litres permitted to attain the oesophagial hiatus by collapsing the pars-flaccida of the minor epiploon, the reperation of the right diaphragmatic pillar and the discovery of the posterior vagus nerve which was coagulated and sectioned. The traction of the body of the stomach towards the ombilious exposed the anterior portion of the stomach, thanks to the coagulator, the anterior branches of the vagus nerve are sectioned. Drainage by minilaparotomy terminates the intervention if only stenosis existed. Mortality was nul. The time of intervention was 35 to 135 minutes with an average of 71 minutes. The hospital stay was between 3 and 12 days with an average of 5 days. Three conversions to laparotomy (difficultdissection, liver cirrhosis, breakdown of materials), pleural wound consisted the morbidity. Two cases of re-operation due to evacuaton poorly appreciated in pre-operation period were observed. The results according to Visick criterias were: 1 : 51; II : 0; III : 0; IV: 2 patients for a follow up of 3-17 months. Vagotomy under coelioscopy is an intervention which permits to obtain results comparable to those of conventional surgery.

Second reason for consultations in proctology in our department after hemorroïds-linked illnesses, fistulas in ano constitute a chronic disease which causes therapeutic difficulties linked mainly to the futur functionning of the sphincter, especially in its most complex types. In our group of 43 patients in whom surgical exploration with stylet was the key of the diagnosis, the anorectoscopy and even less chirurgical examination were not often contributive, the fear of post-operative incontinence forced us to prefer ligation-section with rubber every time that the sphincter was involved. With our results, the majority of patients (41/43) healed in normal periods with a sufficient functionning of the anus. This result confirmed our attitude towards the sphincter: that is to save if possible.

We report a case of giant ovarian cyst in pregnancy of 23 weeks of amenorrhea revealed by digestive and respiratory compression. As the absence of ultrasonographic and biologic malignancy criterias, several punctures of the cyst were done permitting the evolution of pregnancy until the preterm period. An annexectomy done in the immediate post-partum permitted to avoid the frequent mechanical accidents during this period. From this case, we discuss clinical and therapeutic problems of this association.

Lumbar hernia through Jean Louis Petit Triangles is rare. Usually asymptomatic, it is sometime revealed by lumbar mass or a complication. Surgical treatment consists on parietal repair. This could be done by direct suture, muscular plasty or prothetic material. We hereby, report three cases of lumbar hernia. We get the opportunity to make an update in the anatomical, clinical and therapeutical point to view.

The left paraduodenal hernia obtains when the small intestine goes through the left paraduodenal fosset. It (the hernia) develops on the left, at the back of the descending mesocolon. The present authors study one case looking at its pathogeny and the clinical and therapeutic problems posed by such a variety of congenital internal hernia. The authors emphasize, in particular, its morbid associations with the volvulus of the pelvic colon. Finally they highlight the importance of a through and careful exploration of the abdominal cavity during any laparatomy following an occlusive syndrome.

The objective was to verify if the introduction of ultrasonography in our practice has entailed modifications of the epidemiology and the clinic of pancreatic cancer in Senegal. We have performed a retrospective study of cancer of the pancreas diagnosed on the basis of clinical signs, ultrasonography, surgical findings and necropsy from March 92 to October 97. The chi-square test according to Mantel-Haenszel has been used to compare qualitative variables. The routine practice of ultrasonography has allowed to establish the diagnosis of 107 cases of pancreatic cancer within 5 years and half. The sex ratio was 1.05 and the average age was 60 years +/- 13 without significant difference according to the sex. The mean period of diagnosis was 5 months. However the classic form associating thinness and cholestatic jaundice or palpable abdominal mass dominated the clinical symptoms (74.5% of cases). A very deep alteration of the general status has been noticed in 25.5% of cases. At surgery, according to the TNM classification, 22% of our patients were at stage II and 78% from stage III to IV. In Senegal, the prevalence of pancreatic cancer is increasing since the introduction of ultrasonography. This technique has shown that the male predominance is less than reported in previous studies. Nevertheless the diagnosis remains late. As far as we cannot identify risk groups, recent appearance of digestive disturbance even atypical after 50 years old, is enough to suspect the diagnosis.

From 1975 to 1995, 335 patients were operated for hydrocephalus in neurosurgical clinic of CHU Fann, and got ventriculo-peritoneal shunt. 3 cases of patients presenting an uncommon complication of ventriculo-peritoneal shunt: abdominal pseudo cyst, are reported and discussed. The digestive symptoms are the first to manifest themselves for a period of time, then confusing with other forms of abdominal cysts. The suggested treatment is to remove the shunt from the peritoneal cavity and perform a ventriculo-atrial shunt, then to proceed to a laparotomy, drain the fluid and resect the cyst wall. The results are excellent.

Postoperative wound healing is studied after tracheal suturing in 5 primates operated on in two stages. First by double level hemisection comparing continuous and interrupted sutures with polydioxanone. In a second stage: comparison of continuous sutures after tracheal segmental resection. The tracheas were harvested sequentially to study the evolution of the sutured zone by measuring its diameter and by histopathologic examination. The reduction of the tracheal diameter observed was not statistically significant after hemisection using continuous (p = 0.7) or interrupted sutures (p = 0.6). But after tracheal resection the stenosis was significant with continuous sutures (p < 0.05). Histologic study revealed that polydioxanone is well tolerated and is absorbed within 26 weeks. The authors recommend the use of continuous sutures to repair simple wounds and of interrupted sutures after tracheal resection anastomosis.

Tumor seeding of the abdominal wall during fine needle puncture-aspiration of the liver is a very rare complication. The authors report a case of this complication affecting a 50-year-old Senegalese woman. She underwent echo-guided fine needle cyto-puncture of a hepatocellular carcinoma arising from the left lobe, followed by left lobectomy. The subcutaneous nodule was discovered 42 months after cyto-puncture. Histology following its excision revealed infiltration of carcinomatous hepatocytes between the fibers of rectus abdominis. There was no recurrence and the patient was well 10 months after excision of the subcutaneous nodule. With a review of 10 others cases reported in the literature, the authors feel that, although rare, this complication must be avoided and suggest a system for the protection of structures through which the needle passes.

The profile of colic occlusions has been drawn from sixty two (62) observations made at the Surgical Clinic between 1970 and 1984. The male sex was slightly more affected (3 men for 2 women) with the age of the patients ranging from 19 to 82 years. The clinical sign could be summed up as following: a montrous ballooning of the abdomen which is asymmetrical in 89% of the cases. The occlusions with a stade of shock represented 58% of our observations. The abdomen plain film exhibited the characteristic signs in 89% of the cases. The etiology is dominated by the volvulus of the pelvic colon in 83% of the cases. The essentially surgical treatment has mostly consisted on a resection-anastomosis. Mortality rate was 9.7%. Late consultation of the patients, the shortage of fully equiped medical infrastructure explain the gravity of the affection.

The authors report a case of congenital cystic dilatation of the choledochus diagnosed on a 37 years old senegalese woman. It is an uncommon affection in Africa. The clinical presentation with various signs is reviewed. Ultrasound or cholangiography confirms the diagnosis. Surgical excision of the cystic dilatation is the best treatment because of the high risk of cancerisation.

The intestinal post-operative bridle represents the third most important etiology of obstructions at the clinic of the University Hospital of Dakar, behind hernia strangulations and the volvulus of the digestive tube. Between 1970 and 1989, a retrospective study has led to a sample of 79 patients with post-operative bridle obstructions. The group was made of 47 women and 32 men between 17 and 84 years of age. Stomach ache was by far the most common functional symptomatology, followed by the stoppage of the transit and vomiting. In most cases palpation revealed the presence of tympanism. For almost all the patients, the abdomen without preparation revealed either a hydroaeric level or a diffuse grey area. The initial intervention concerned mainly gynecological affections or pathologies of appendicular type. The resection of the bridles was carried out in most cases. There were 10 deaths. The intestinal obstructions by post-operative bridles continue to be a surgical emergency still characterized by a high mortality rate. The late consultation of the patients, often received when presenting considerable visceral deficiency, is one of the main causes of the high rate of fatalities.

Spleen abscesses are infrequent, and are encountered in 0.4 to 0.7%-of the autopsy series. They are diagnosed late and their prognosis is poor. The authors report about 5 cases of spleen abscesses observed at Dakar's University Surgical Clinic over a period of 30 years. The patients were young adults, including one case of sickle-cell anemia. In spite of numerous clinical signs in all cases, the abscess was diagnosed late. In three patients, ultrasound allowed establishing the diagnosis and initiating percutaneous treatment, with no success in two cases. The procedure had consisted in total splenectomy in all cases. One patient died 2 months after surgery, after the evacuation of a hematoma in the splenic compartment. The other 4 patients, seen 7, 4, 3 months and 15 years after total splenectomy, no longer presented with any symptom. The authors emphasize the rarity of spleen abscesses; the fact that the diagnosis is often established late, in spite of the progress made in non-invasive medical imaging, including CT and ultrasound; the physiopathology, etiology and treatment of the disease, the latter still being surgical.

The authors report 4 cases of ruptured hepatic abscesses in peritoneum (2 cas) and in pleural (2 cases). The cases occurred in 3 men (two of them were alcoholic) and one woman who was in the postpartum period. The cases confirm the classic pictures according to which, ruptures of hepatic abscesses have unclear clinical presentation whether they are amoebic or bacterial in origin! In these cases, ultrasound is very useful in the rapid detection of peritoneal or pleural abscesses which can be confirmed by ultrasonically guided fine needle punction When the channel from the intra hepatic abscess can be visualised, or when they are a coexisting hepatic and peritoneal pleural abscesses, the diagnosis is clear. However when the abscess has been completely emptied of its contents the diagnosis may the difficult.

Bloodless laparotomy (BL) is defined as an opened exploration of the abdominal cavity that yields negative results, i.e., "provides no information as to the cause of the clinical and paraclinical symptoms responsible for prompting the surgical investigation". The authors report a retrospective study spanning January 1975 to December 1989, on the incidence of and mortality associated with emergent BL in patients with acute abdominal syndrome, with the intent of reducing its frequency. Over this period, 24 BL occurred in 3480 emergent laparotomies, i.e., 0.63%. These involved 7 men, 5 women, 5 boys and 7 girls, aged 4 to 52 years (mean age = 19.5 years). Indications for surgery were based on clinical signs, as well as on laboratory findings such as chest X-ray and plain radiography and needle-puncture of the abdomen. Surgical data indicated:liver cirrhosis--3 cases; mesenteric adenopathy--3 cases; intestinal parasitosis--1 case; bilateral adnescitis--1 case; polycystic ovaries--1 case; wall abscess--1 case; unexplained pain--14 cases. The mortality rate was 2/24. Use of other paraclinical investigations, namely ultrasonography, laparoscopy and peritoneal lavage, and of computer science methods after a prior clinical examination initiated by history-taking, might help reduce the rate of BLs, which are non-devoid of mortality.

Meckel's diverticula is the most common lesion among the abnormalities resulting from the persistence of the vitelline canal and its vessels. Studying it is interesting, on the one hand, because of the difficulty of detecting it, and, on the other, because of the possibility of accidents dominated by intestinal occlusions and digestive haemorrhages. Two observations on complications in Meckel's diverticula discovered in young men in the casualty unit are covered, and literature on the rare pathology is reviewed.

A pseudocyst of the pancreas (PCP) is a rare affliction in Africa despite widespread malnutrition and abdominal disorders. The authors cover 7 PCP observations on 3 men and 2 women between 18 and 32 years, and 2 boys of 5 and 6 years, in the clinical context of abdominal pain (7/7), an abdominal tumour (7/7) and as a sequence to abdominal contusion (4/7). In 5 cases, echotomography led the etiological investigation of the liquid mass to seek a pancreatic origin. Surgical treatment consisted of 2 termino-lateral cystojejunostomies on a shaped flexure++ and 3 latero-lateral cystojejunostomies (of which one had to be drained externally two times); and a corporeo-caudal pancreatectomy. Supervision of between 1 1/2 and 5 years (1 1/2 years: 3 patients; 2 1/2 years: 2 patients; 5 years: 1 patient; 1 patient lost track of) revealed only one recurrence after internal latero-lateral drainage, and that without clinical repercussions. The authors use this short experiment to study the clinical and paraclinical symptomatology, the etiology and the treatment of PCPs. They stress the role of medical pictures in diagnosis, and of interventional radiology in treatment, but above all the primacy of surgery to treat pseudocysts of the pancreas in Africa.

The authors report on 116 chest wound cases. The initial death rate is very high--47.41%. A knife wound is the most common cause (83.64%). Among casualties brought in alive, pure thorax wounds predominated (67.21%) followed by thoraco-abdominal wounds (26.23%) and cervico-thorax wounds (6.56%). Post-mortems attribute death to the seriousness of visceral lesions with the heart wounded in over 41.81% of the cases. The seriousness of chest wounds is stressed, as is the need for full and rapid therapy.