Objective: Colorectal cancer is still one of the most common causes of cancer related deaths in the world despite improvements in diagnosis and treatment modalities, and application of community-based screening methods. Symptoms of colorectal cancer are non-specific and usually manifest following local progression. A number of patients with advanced stage colorectal cancer present to emergency departments with obstruction as the first sign of disease without any previous symptoms. This presentation is an indication for emergency surgery that has a high rate of morbidity and mortality. In this study, we aimed to determine the factors associated with early diagnosis and survival by comparing postoperative results of colorectal cancer patients who underwent surgery under emergency or elective situation. Material and Methods:Files of colorectal patients treated between 2009-2013 were retrospectively analyzed. Data on patient age, gender, operation type, intraoperative results, length of hospital stay, co-morbidities, postoperative complications and pathological results were evaluated and compared.Results: There was no statistical difference between groups in terms of age, gender, and pathology results (p>0.05). The difference between groups in terms of postoperative length of hospital stay, presence of co-morbid diseases, pathological stage, and postoperative complications was statistically significant (p<0.05). Length of hospital stay, advanced stage on admission, complications such as surgical site infection, evisceration, and anastomosis leakage rates were higher in patients in the emergency surgery group. Conclusion:Risk groups should be determined in order to diagnose colorectal cancer patients at an early stage while they are still asymptomatic, and this information should be incorporated into effective screening programs. This approach will be beneficial to treatment outcomes, complication rates, length of hospital stay, and survival and treatment results. INTRODUCTIONColorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most frequent cancers with more than one million people worldwide being diagnosed with CRC annually, which is the most common gastrointestinal tract cancer (1). The majority of these neoplasms are endoluminal adenocarcinoma derived from the mucosa, and over 95% of CRC patients benefit from surgery or colonoscopic interventions for premalignant polyps with early diagnosis (2). Despite advances in diagnosis and treatment and dissemination of communitybased screening, colorectal cancer remains to be one of the main reasons of cancer-related deaths in the world (3).

Clinical diagnosis of appendicitis is usually made on the basis of history, physical examination and laboratory studies. Approximately 30-45% of patients with suspected appendicitis present with atypical clinical and laboratory findings. Recently graded compression ultrasound and thin section unenhanced helical CT have been used to establish diagnosis for patients with suspected acute appendicitis. The purpose of this study was to determine the diagnostic accuracy of thin section unenhanced helical CT protocol in adult patients with suspected acute appendicitis. CT scans obtained when patients presented with right lower quadrant pain and the clinical impression was equivocal for appendicitis were evaluated. Of 296 patients referred for CT, 123 patients subsequently underwent surgery. Appendicitis had been correctly predicted in 104 of 108 patients surgically proven to have appendicitis. Unenhanced helical CT in the diagnosis of acute appendicitis had a sensitivity of 96%, specificity of 98%, positive predictive value of 97% and negative predictive value of 98%. If no definite inflammatory changes are detected, on the basis of our experience we recommend that the patient be monitored clinically, and that thin section unenhanced helical CT is the optimal technique to detect acute appendicitis in adult patients.

Aim. The aim was to evaluate the clinical Alvarado scoring system and computed tomography (CT) criteria for the diagnosis of acute appendicitis. Material and Methods. 117 patients with acute abdominal pain who underwent abdominal CT were enrolled in this retrospective study. Patient demographics, clinical Alvarado scoring, CT images, and pathologic results of the patients were evaluated. Results. 39 of the 53 patients who were operated on had pathologically proven acute appendicitis. CT criteria of appendiceal diameter, presence of periappendiceal inflammation, fluid, appendicolith, and white blood cell (WBC) count were significantly correlated with the inflammation of the appendix. The best cut-off value for appendiceal diameter was 6.5 mm. The correlation between appendiceal diameter and WBC count was 80% (P = 0.01 < 0.05). The correlation between appendiceal diameter and Alvarado score was 78.7% (P = 0.01 < 0.05). Conclusion. Presence of CT criteria of appendiceal diameter above 6.5 mm, periappendiceal inflammation, fluid, and appendicolith should prompt the diagnosis of acute appendicitis. Since patients with acute appendicitis may not always show the typical signs and symptoms, CT is a helpful imaging modality for patients with relatively low Alvarado score and leukocytosis and when physical examination is confusing.

BACKGROUND: Sacrococcygeal pilonidal disease (estimated incidence, 25/100,000) is a chronic inflammatory condition that commonly affects young adults. However, the ideal surgical treatment for this disease remains undetermined. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to compare the results of the unroofing curettage and those of the modified Limberg flap surgical technique. DESIGN: This is a retrospective cohort study. SETTINGS: Procedures were performed by 2 surgeons between January 2013 and January 2017. PATIENTS: The data of 278 patients who underwent surgery for the treatment of pilonidal disease were analyzed. INTERVENTIONS: Unroofing curettage was performed under local or spinal anesthesia, whereas spinal anesthesia was used for the modified Limberg flap procedure. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was recurrence rate. Secondary outcomes included adverse events, limitation of daily activities, and healing time. RESULTS: Between the 2 groups (unroofing curettage, n = 135; modified Limberg flap, n = 143), recurrence was lower in the unroofing curettage group after a 60-month median follow-up period, but the difference was not statistically significant (1.5% vs 4.2%, p = 0.45). The duration of surgery and length of hospital stay were shorter in the unroofing curettage group (11.44 ± 3.56 minutes vs 52.47 ± 7.92 minutes and 0.27 ± 0.45 days vs 1.07 ± 0.26 days, p < 0.001). Postoperative complications were significantly higher in the modified Limberg flap group (9.8% vs 2.2%, p = 0.009). The time required to return to work or school was shorter in the unroofing curettage group (8.6 ± 7.8 days vs 25.01 ± 6.3 days, p < 0.001). The complete healing time was longer in the unroofing curettage group (35.3 ± 9.2 days vs 23.2 ± 5.4 days, p < 0.001). LIMITATIONS: The retrospective study design was a limitation of this study. CONCLUSIONs: Unroofing curettage provided more clinical benefits than the modified Limberg flap approach. Unroofing curettage should be considered as the first choice of surgical treatment for pilonidal disease. See Video Abstract at http://links.lww.com/DCR/B824. DESTECHAMIENTO Y CURETAJE VERSUS COLGAJO DE LIMBERG MODIFICADO EN LA ENFERMEDAD PILONIDAL: UN ESTUDIO DE COHORTE RETROSPECTIVE ANTECEDENTES: La enfermedad pilonidal sacrococcígea (incidencia estimada, 25 / 100.000) es una enfermedad inflamatoria crónica que comúnmente afecta a adultos jóvenes. Sin embargo, el tratamiento quirúrgico ideal para esta enfermedad permanece indeterminado. OBJETIVO: Comparar los resultados del destechamiento y curetaje y los de la técnica quirúrgica con colgajo de Limberg modificado. DISEÑO: Estudio de cohorte retrospectivo. ENTORNO CLINICO: Los procedimientos fueron realizados por dos cirujanos, entre enero del 2013 y enero del 2017. PACIENTES: Se analizaron datos de 278 pacientes intervenidos quirúrgicamente para el tratamiento de la enfermedad pilonidal. INTERVENCIONES: Se realizó destechamiento y curetaje con anestesia local o raquídea, mientras que para el procedimiento de colgajo de Limberg...

<b>Introduction: </b> Inflammation plays a key role in atherosclerosis, and discovering new biomarkers of inflammation is becoming important in order to uncover the pathogenesis of atherosclerotic coronary artery disease (CAD). Recent studies have focused on polymorphonuclear neutrophils. It has been suggested that human neutrophil peptide 1-3 (HNP1-3) is proatherogenic. In this study, we aimed to investigate the associations between plasma HNP1-3 levels and the severity of atherosclerosis via a generally accepted scoring system.<br /> <b>Material and methods</b>: This cross-sectional, observational study included 107 consecutive patients suffering from stable angina pectoris and undergoing coronary angiography (CAG). Patients were divided into two groups according to the Gensini scoring (GS) system evaluating disease severity. Group 1 was composed of mild CAD patients with GS < 20 and group 2 consisted of severe CAD patients with GS ≥ 20. Plasma HNP1-3 levels were assessed by the ELISA method.<br /> <b>Results</b>: The mean HNP1-3 levels were found to be lower in group 1 than group 2 (134.7 ng/ml vs. 147.5 ng/ml). HNP1-3 levels were significantly higher in the severe CAD group than the mild CAD group according to GS (p < 0.001). The results of multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that only age > 62 years and HNP1-3 > 134 ng/ml were independent predictors of the severity of CAD after adjusting for gender, smoking, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, family history of CAD and white blood cell count. In predicting the severity of CAD, the sensitivity and specificity of HNP1-3 were 83.9% (p < 0.001) and 58.8% (p < 0.001), respectively.<br /> <b>Conclusions</b>: This study revealed that the plasma levels of HNP1-3 were significantly higher in severe CAD than mild CAD.