Visceral artery aneurysm: an unusual cause of abdominal pain.

Visceral artery aneurysms (VAAs) are uncommon with an approximate incidence of 0.01%-0.2%. Gastroduodenal artery (GDA) aneurysm is a rare subtype of these uncommon visceral aneurysms that can be fatal if ruptured. We present a case of a 58-year-old Caucasian woman with a VAA and a large haematoma arising from an actively bleeding GDA. While patients with VAA may remain asymptomatic, with some of the aneurysms found incidentally during imaging, they may also present with abdominal pain, anaemia and possible multiorgan failure which may be fatal.

'Bleeding Dilemma': The Story of a Periampullary Mass.

Periampullary malignancies arise in the vicinity of the ampulla of Vater, a common passage for biliary and pancreatic secretions. Determining the anatomical origin of these tumors represents a diagnostic challenge. This is especially true for large tumors due to the transitional nature of this region, proximity to different structures, anatomical variations, and overlapping features among constituting structures. This determination has significant prognostic and therapeutic implications. Among them, primary ampullary adenocarcinoma is a rare malignancy that has the best overall prognosis with high rates of potentially curative resection and possible survival even in advanced disease. Due to its rarity, it is also a vague territory with no definitive guidelines regarding management and surveillance currently available. Acute gastrointestinal hemorrhage is a rare presentation of ampullary carcinoma that occurs secondary to tumor ulceration. We report an elderly male with a previously known large, initially asymptomatic periampullary mass who came for evaluation of melena and was noted to be hypotensive secondary to acute blood loss from the large tumor, later determined to be adenocarcinoma of the ampulla of Vater.

Secondary immune deficiencies associated with biological therapeutics.

Biological therapeutics have been utilized in the past several years for the treatment of various autoimmune, cardiovascular, and neoplastic conditions. As these agents target both pathologic and physiologic components of inflammatory and immune systems, the scientific community has been challenged to identify potential secondary immune deficiencies associated with their use. This article will focus on biological agents used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, including tumor necrosis factor-a inhibitors, cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen-4 (CTLA-4 Ig), rituximab, and interleukin-1 receptor agonist (IL-1Ra). Both clinical and in vitro studies have been done to explore the potential immunomodulatory and immunosuppressive effects of these agents.