McKittrick Wheelock syndrome secondary to adenocarcinoma of the rectum: case report and diagnostic considerations

Introduction: McKittrick-Wheelock syndrome is a rare entity characterized by chronic diarrhea, acute kidney injury, and hydroelectrolytic imbalance associated with a large rectal tumor, frequently a villous adenoma. Case report: A 69-year-old male with chronic diarrhea with mucus. He underwent a colonoscopy with biopsies, reporting adenocarcinoma of the rectum in situ, and underwent a robot assisted intersphincteric resection with colo-anal anastomosis and a protecitive ileostomy. Discussion: Described in 1954, this syndrome is manifested by electrolyte imbalance and acute renal injury secondary to diarrhea associated with a rectal villous adenoma, often with long lasting symptoms. The most frequent symptom being watery diarrhea with mucus. The definitive treatment consists of surgical resection. Conclusion: Although this is a rare pathology, it should be considered as a differential diagnosis in cases of chronic diarrhea associated with water and electrolyte disorders. (AU)

Evaluation of the necessity of the three-film abdominal series in the diagnosis of abdominal pain.

The routine plain-film abdominal series, consisting of supine and upright abdominal radiographs and upright chest radiograph of 246 patients, who presented with abdominal pain from the emergency room of Bangkok Metropolitan Administration Medical College and Vajira Hospital from January 2000 to May 2001 were reviewed. Each radiograph was independently interpreted to detect any radiographic abnormality. Radiographic abnormalities were detected in 35 per cent on abdominal films and 13 per cent on chest films. The supine abdominal views could diagnose abnormalities in 84 per cent of these patients while the upright views diagnosed abnormalities in only 16 per cent of these cases. Most of the detectable abnormalities in the upright views were pneumoperitoneums that were clearly demonstrated on the upright chest radiographs. So elimination of the upright abdominal view from the routine plain-film abdominal series in the screening of surgical cases from medical cases could result in cost-saving and a decrease in radiation exposure without significant loss of diagnostic information.