Acquired diaphragmatic hernias are usually posttraumatic in occurrence. In patients who have blunt trauma and associated diaphragmatic hernia, the diagnosis may be missed or delayed, often leading to poor treatment outcomes. We present a rare occurrence of tension viscerothorax due to missed traumatic diaphragmatic rupture in a 25-year-old woman whose condition was complicated by gangrene and perforation of the fundus as well as questionable viability of the anterior wall of the body of the stomach. The patient had a successful emergency transabdominal suture plication of the diaphragm and gastroplasty and has remained symptomless 3 months postoperatively.

Sharp foreign body ingestion and management pose a great challenge to the surgeon. Majority of ingested foreign bodies pass through the gastrointestinal tract spontaneously. Organ perforations and possible migration should be kept in mind in patients with abdominal pain when the progress of the foreign body through the gastrointestinal tract cannot be ascertained by radiography. A 26-year-old male psychiatric patient presented with epigastric pain following ingestion of 18 sewing needles. His abdominal radiograph showed multiple metallic foreign bodies in the abdominal cavity consistent with the shape of sewing needles. He passed some needles spontaneously while the others which were retained were removed via a laparotomy after a successful pre-operative localization. Post-operative period was uneventful. A deliberate ingestion of foreign bodies should be kept in mind in patients with psychiatric disorders and mental retardation when they present with abdominal pain to the emergency department. An initial wait and see line of management may be instituted with the hope of spontaneous passage which can be monitored via radiological means. However, if the objects fail to pass naturally, surgery is indicated. Sharp foreign bodies which fail to pass spontaneously should be surgically removed after a proper localization since they could cause life threatening complications.

Background: Coronavirus disease had a devastating effect on the World, with significant disruption in healthcare, the burgeoning impact is still unfolding. The inequities and fragilities amongst nations particularly low and medium economic countries whose patients are dependent on out of pocket expenditure to access healthcare, has occasioned varied consequence of the pandemic on patients in the health care setting and it has reshaped how health care is practiced. Aims: The aim of this review article was to assess the impact of Coronavirus disease on health care utilization by non -COVID patient during the pandemic. Methods: The review article was carried out with a search engine focused on articles related to impact of Coronavirus disease published between December 2019 till date, which were identified and reviewed. Conclusion: The review article gave an insight to the significant disruptions in health care services amongst patients witnessed across countries of the world, the disparities in the disruptions were due to heterogeneity amongst nations, national policies and health policies during the pandemic and the socioeconomic realities that ensued. Outpatient services witnessed varying reduction across the globe ranging between 30-50%. Sub-Saharan Africa witnessed disruption as much as 50% depending on load of COVID-19 infection amongst populace. The reason for the interruptions across the world was the fear of contracting the disease, access to health care setting due to lock down and shortage of health care personnel, in addition in sub-Saharan Africa, the economic down turn occasioned by the pandemic reduced household income which in turn reduced expenditure on health since most countries were dependent on out of pocket expenditure to fund health care services. In-patient care was also not spared of the disruptions witnessed even though emergency care was prioritized. Overall, there was a reported reduction in admissions for respiratory diseases due to non- pharmacological measures aimed at stemming COVID-19 infection which was equally effective for other respiratory diseases. In some countries like United States the reduction in hospital admissions was paralleled by increasing mortality particularly amongst Hispanic blacks as more acute and severe cases were deemed to have presented for admissions. Surgical priority was maintaining emergency services and prioritization of cancer care, there was a measurable reduction in surgical procedures as elective surgeries were postponed or cancelled. Most laparoscopic and endoscopic procedures were cancelled because of the perceived notion that they are aerosol generating and could increase transmission of COVID-19 infection from asymptomatic carriers, however US jettisoned cancellation of its surgical procedures after 35 days considering that it could not cope. The psychosocial impact of the pandemic and health care access spiraled into increasing anxiety and depression for both health care workers and patients, while the fear of stigmatization was rife from contracting the disease. The consensus therefore was to strengthen adaptive measures and reconfigure health care to mitigate this impact in future pandemic, while allowing telehealth to take center stage.

Objectives: Testicular torsion is the twisting of the spermatic cord with attendant loss of the blood supply to the affected testis. It is a common urological emergency and one of the frequent causes of acute scrotum in adolescents and young adults. Prompt diagnosis and immediate surgical intervention are necessary for testicular salvage. Testicular loss is directly linked to delay in presentation, surgery, and the referral patterns at the point of the first contact with health-care providers. The purpose of our study is to assess the knowledge, management methods, and referral pattern among health care workers in the primary health-care facilities in Auchi primary health-care zone, Nigeria. Material and Methods: This was a cross-sectional carried out among primary health care workers in Auchi primary health-care zone between May and October 2020. A structured self-administered questionnaire was given to all the first contact health care workers in this zone. The knowledge, management, and referral pattern of testicular torsion were determined based on responses to the questionnaires. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 21. Results were displayed with frequency distribution tables and charts. Results: Eighty-seven health care workers met the inclusion criteria and were given questionnaires to fill. The mean age of the respondents was 37.74 ± 7.53 years. The majority of the health workers (n = 66, 75.9%) have more than 5 years’ experience with only 12 (13.8%) having a secondary level of education. Most respondents have heard of testicular torsion (n = 77, 88.5%) and know the symptoms (n = 68, 78.2%) but they have a poor knowledge of the age group predominantly affected (n = 36, 41.1%) and testicular survival time following torsion (n= 41, 47.7%). Only about a third (n = 28, 32.2%) had attended to patients with testicular torsion. Of the 28 health workers who had managed patients with testicular torsion, less than half (n = 11, 39.3%) referred almost immediately, while about half treated conservatively (n = 14, 49.9%) keeping the patients under their care for a period of 3–7 days. Conclusion: This study showed that a comprehensive education of all categories of health workers in the primary health-care centers is needed. This is necessary for the early identification and appropriate surgical intervention or prompt referral of patients with testicular torsion to prevent avoidable testicular losses.