An Unusual Presentation of Congenital Megacolon with A Rare Vascular Anomaly A Case Report

Congenital megacolon also referred to as Hirschsprung’s disease or aganglionic megacolon is characterized by the absence of nerve plexus in the colon, it rarely affects the small intestine. Whereas acquired megacolon is a constant dilatation of the large intestine in the absence of disease but occurs due to various factors such as infections, emotional disturbances, stress, or secondary to inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) such as ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, and proctocolitis. In the present case, we report here an unusual form of megacolon. The sigmoid colon was significantly enlarged but twisting or volvulus was not detected. The ascending, transverse, and remaining part of descending colon and mesentery appeared normal, The possibility of false rotation of the gut was excluded. Interestingly, the artery supplying the left one-third of the transverse colon and descending colon originated from a branch of the middle colic artery. This anomalous artery was found to form a communication with the trunk of the inferior mesenteric artery, the Arc of Riolan, and gave branches that supplied the descending colon. The left colic artery was absent. The transverse colon showed a stricture between its right 2/3rd and left 1/3rd, confirming with vascular accidents, resulting in anomalous blood supply and aganglionosis. The dilated part of the sigmoid colon was found to be with ganglion cells, while the distal part after the megacolon, lacked ganglion cells in all layers of the sigmoid colon. This case documents a very rare finding which will make the surgeons aware of a newer arterial pattern associated with congenital megacolon.

Morphometric and Clinical Analysis of Moderator Band in Humans.

Background: The moderator band has the right bundle of His within the right ventricle. It also is known to prevent the over dilatation of RV. It is important because of its involvement in RV infarcts, in differentiating RV from LV in congenital anomalies, in VPDs & VTs and in VSDs. The present literature is very much lacking in its morphometry. Materials and Methods: Moderator band was looked for in 50 hearts and only in this study did we find it in all the hearts. The length, the thickness, the distance from the tricuspid valve along with the presence of any trabeculations in the septal end or in the papillary muscle end were looked for and recorded. Results: The average length was 14.71±4.99mm, the average thickness was 4.97±1.64 mm, the average distance from the tricuspid orifice was 19.85±5.92 mm. The attachment to the anterior papillary muscle was found to be branched in 8 hearts that is having an incidence of 14% . The septal end were branched and separated as two in only two specimens. Only one specimen had branched attachments on both the apical and septal ends. Conclusion: The distance from tricuspid valve and knowledge of branching are important in corrective surgeries of the VSDs. An awareness of length and thickness helps the clinician to differentiate moderator band from the other structures, which may result in misdiagnosis during echocardiography. Its presence may in fact be of significance in preventing over distension of the heart in RV myocardial ischaemia.

Variations in the posterior division branches of the mandibular nerve in human cadavers

<p><b>INTRODUCTION</b>The lingual, inferior alveolar and auriculotemporal nerves, being branches of the posterior division of the mandibular nerve, mainly innervate the mandibular teeth and all the major salivary glands. Anomalous communications among these branches are widely reported due to their significance to various treatment procedures undertaken in the region. This study was performed as detailed exploration of the functional perspectives of such communicating branches would further enhance the scope of these procedures.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 36 specimens were dissected to examine the infratemporal region. The branches from the posterior division of the mandibular nerve--namely the lingual, inferior alveolar and auriculotemporal nerves--were carefully dissected, and their branches were studied and analysed for abnormal course.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Communication between branches of the posterior division of the mandibular nerve was observed in four specimens. In two of the four specimens, communication between the mylohyoid and lingual nerves was observed. A rare and seldom reported type of communication between the auriculotemporal and inferior alveolar nerves is described in this study. This communicating nerve split into two to form a buttonhole for the passage of the mylohyoid nerve.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Such communicating branches between nerves found in this study are developmental in origin and thought to maintain functional integrity through an alternative route.</p>