Mediastinal necrosis in acute pancreatitis - case report

Ascites, pseudocyst, necrosis of the retroperitoneal fat tissue and pancreatopleural fistula with left sided pleural effusion may complicate pancreatitis. However, steatonecrosis of the mediastinum and right side pleural effusion are rather rare complications of pancreatitis. We present a case of a patient with alcohol induced pancreatitis. Chest x-ray showed right sided pleural effusion. Although high levels of amylase in pleural fluid made the diagnosis of pancreatopleural fistula most likely, necrosis of the mediastinal fat tissue with right side pleural effusion was found postmortem.

Accidental plant poisoning with Colchicum autumnale: report of two cases

Colchicine poisoning is a rare but serious and potentially fatal event, which results from food poisoning or overdose with drugs containing colchicine, with no currently available antidote. We report two cases of plant poisoning with Colchicum autumnale, in which the patients had identical initial symptoms but developed extremely different clinical courses. One patient recovered after only moderate gastroenteritis and liver injury, whereas the other died of rapid progressive multiple organ failure 52 h after the plant ingestion. We recommend that all patients suspected of colchicine intoxication due to its unpredictable outcome should be managed according to the principles of intensive care, irrespective of the actual degree of poisoning.