Management of renal injury in a UK major trauma centre

Introduction

This study reviews the type, severity, management and follow-up of renal trauma presenting to a major trauma centre in the northwest of England in the four years following inception of the major trauma centre. Given the recent introduction of major trauma centres nationally, research is needed within every specialty to ensure that the centralisation of services benefits all patients affected by these changes.

Methods

Patients presenting to Aintree University Hospital with renal trauma between June 2012 and June 2016 were identified using the Trauma Audit and Research Network (TARN) database. The data gathered retrospectively for each patient included mechanism of injury, injury severity score, American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST) grading, management of injury, and follow-up.

Results

Out of a total of 2595 trauma patients, 33 renal injuries were identified. The 31 patients who received imaging were classified according to AAST grading, with 8 Grade I (25.8%), 4 Grade II (12.9%), 8 Grade III (25.8%), 4 Grade IV (12.9%), and 7 Grade V (22.6%) injuries. Twenty-five out of the 30 surviving patients received conservative treatment, three patients received angioembolisation (AE), one patient received a laparotomy with renal suturing, and one patient required a nephrectomy. Of these 30 surviving patients, seven received urology follow-up in clinic (23%).

Conclusion

The findings appear to support the growing trend towards the conservative management of high-grade renal injuries, and provide further evidence for the value of AE in renal trauma. The success of AE in this study appears to support the centralisation of services in renal trauma; however, the low nephrectomy rate could be interpreted as suggestive of the opposite. The study revealed that improvements to follow-up are needed, and that further research should seek to inform the optimal radiological follow-up of high-grade renal injury.

Epithelioid haemangioma: a rare cause of painful erections and sleep deprivation

Epithelioid haemangioma of the penis is a rare condition which usually presents a solid single nodule. We report a case in a 43-year-old man who presented with painful erections and sleep disturbance with two palpable penile nodules. Magnetic resonance imaging with an artificially induced erection revealed these as individual lesions, and local excision was successfully undertaken. Pathological diagnosis of epithelioid haemangioma was confirmed with positive staining for CD31. Although rare, penile epithelioid haemangioma should be considered as a differential in an atypical penile mass. Induction in of an artificial erection prior to MRI can aid diagnosis and treatment is typically with surgical excision.

Confirmed testicular torsion in a 67 year old

Torsion amongst the elderly population is rarely described. This case presents the oldest surgically confirmed case of testicular torsion, in a 67-year-old male, within the UK. Presenting to the emergency department with a 10-day history of left-sided testicular pain, initially treated with antibiotics. There was no pyrexia or urinary symptoms and negative urine dipstick. In adults above the age of 40, likely diagnoses include epididymo-orchitis, epididymitis, neoplasm or hydrocele. Clinical differentiation with epididymo-orchitis can be difficult in any age range. Clinical signs such as fever, elevated C-reactive protein and positive urine dipstick test are suggestive of epididymo-orchitis/orchitis. This case study demonstrates that testicular torsion can occur at any age, and clinical suspicion should always be high in patients presenting with testicular pain and a negative urine dipstick, regardless of age. Although risk in this subgroup is low, the identification of a potentially reversible testicular abnormality should be of high priority.