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Background: Abdominal compartment syndrome (ACS) is a clinical entity that develops from progressive, acute increases in intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) and adversely affects all vital organ systems In this study, the development of intra-abdominal hypertension (IAH) and ACS in a surgical ICU population is described and examined. Methods: Over a one-year period (2004), urinary bladder pressure (UBP) was measured prospectively in all surgical patients with abdominal problems admitted to the ICU of the Imam Hospital complex. UBP of >20 cm H2O indicated IAH. ACS was defined as the development of multiple organ dysfunction including peak airway pressure (PAP) >50 cm H2O, Horowitz quotient

The mortality associated with secondary peritonitis has been unacceptably high. This is despite improvements in diagnosis and surgical methods. The risk factors affecting outcome have been only partially elucidated the records of 303 patients with the established diagnosis of generalized peritonitis were studied retrospectively for various prognostic factors and their outcomes. The associations of probable risk factors were examined by performing logistic regression on outcome. Age, the white blood cell (WBC) count above 20000 cells/mm3, site of infection, mechanism of infection and male sex were associated with mortality rate. Perforation as the mechanism of intra-abdominal infection was surprisingly associated with better prognosis, and the WBC count (less than 20000 cells/m³) and fever showed no significant association with mortality. The observations demonstrate that in patients with potential risk factors. A more aggressive method including earlier surgical management is needed.

The peutz-Jeghers syndrome is characterized by an association of gastrointestinal polyposis with rnelain spots on oral mucosa, lips, and skin. This symdrorne is inherited as a simple mendelian autosomal dominant trait. Intussusception is by far the most common complication. Although these polyps are widely regarded as hamartomas and rarely undergo malignant change, they have been reported to be associated with carcinoma of gastrointestin and ovary."nIn the case reported here, the cancer developed from hamartomatous polyps.

In previous studies, it was established that chitosan and its quaternized derivatives are potent enhancers of hydrophilic compounds absorption across intestinal epithelia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the application of a new quaternized chitosan, triethyl chitosan (TEC), in pharmaceutical approaches. TEC was synthesized by a one step process via a 2(2) factorial design to optimize the preparation conditions. In ex vivo experiments, everted rat colon sac was used to determine the effect of TEC on the penetration of hydrophilic compounds of different molecular masses (e.g., sodium fluorescein and brilliant blue) through colonic epithelia in comparison with chitosan at pH 7.4. These studies indicated a significant increase in absorption of sodium fluorescein and brilliant blue in the presence of TEC compared to chitosan. TEC bearing positive charge is able to interact with the tight junctions of colon epithelia and hence increase the permeation of sodium fluorescein and brilliant blue through the tight junctions. This investigation has shown that triethyl chitosan could be used as a penetration enhancer for poorly absorbable compounds in the colon drug delivery system.