Desmoid tumor of the mesentery. Case report of a rare non-metastatic neoplasm.

Desmoid tumors (DT) are rare non-metastatic neoplasms that occur through myofibroblast proliferation in musculoaponeurotic or fascial structures of the body, being commonly diagnosed in young women during pregnancy or in the post-partum period. We present the case of a 38-year-old woman, who recently gave birth, manifesting non-specific abdominal symptoms. Computed tomography indicated the presence of a solitary tumor arising from the intestinal wall or from the mesentery. Surgery confirmed the diagnosis, revealing a tumor that was localized at the level of the jejunal mesentery, having about 7 cm in diameter, in tight contact with the duodenum and the mesenteric vessels. "En bloc" resection of the tumor was performed, together with the involved enteral loops followed by end-to-end anastomosis of the jejunum. Histopathological examination of the surgical specimen sustained the diagnosis of desmoid tumor.

Therapeutic Challenges for Symptomatic Portal Cavernoma Cholangiopathy.

Although transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunts are most frequently used for the management of portal hypertension, the surgical approach is preferred for symptomatic portal cavernoma cholangiopathy. We present the case of a 25-year old female patient with a portal cavernoma secondary to catheterization of the umbilical vein at birth. She had had two episodes of esophageal variceal bleeding, successfully treated by endoscopic banding. and an episode of acute cholangitis secondary to portal cavernoma cholangiopathy. Endoscopic sphincterotomy and biliary stenting were performed, and were followed by repeated episodes of biliary stent occlusion. The last biliary drainage procedure triggered a massive hemobilia. Since endoscopic therapy was ineffective, a surgical mesocaval shunt with graft interposition and splenectomy was performed with favorable outcome. In selected cases, the mesocaval shunting plays an essential role in the treatment of portal cavernoma cholangiopathy even in the era of interventional radiology.

Contrast enhanced ultrasonography in assessing the treatment response to transarterial chemoembolization in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

The last decades have known continuous development of therapeutic strategies in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Unfortunately the disease it still not diagnosed until it is already at an intermediate or even an advanced disease. In these circumstances transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is considered an effective treatment for HCC. The most important independent prognostic factor of both disease free survival and overall survival is the presence of complete necrosis. Therefore, treatment outcomes are dictated by the proper use of radiological imaging. Current guidelines recommend contrast enhanced computer tomography (CECT) as the standard imaging technique for evaluating the therapeutic response in patients with HCC after TACE. One of the most important disadvantage of CECT is the overestimation of tumor response. As an attempt to overcome this limitation contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) has gained particular attention as an imaging modality in HCC patients after TACE. Of all available imaging modalities, CEUS performs better in the early and very early assessment of TACE especially after lipiodol TACE. As any other imaging techniques CEUS has disadvantages especially in hypovascular tumors or in cases of tumor multiplicity. Not far from now the current limitations of CEUS will be overcome by the new CEUS techniques that are already tested in clinical practice such as dynamic CEUS with quantification, three-dimensional CEUS or fusion techniques.

Splenic cystic lymphangioma with atypical ultrasound findings.

Splenic lymphangiomas are rare benign tumors occurring more frequently in children. Because of their asymptomatic growth, splenic lymphangiomas are usually suspected based on incidental findings, the diagnosis relying on different imaging techniques and requiring histological confirmation. The rarity of the disease and its atypical imaging findings make the diagnosis of splenic lymphangiomas challenging. We describe the case of an isolated splenic cystic lymphangioma affecting an elderly female patient. The patient was asymptomatic and the blood tests were normal. The tumor appeared on gray-scale ultrasound as an inhomogeneous, mostly hyperechoic septated mass, which is atypical for a cystic lymphangioma. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound and contrast-enhanced computed tomography suggested the benign nature of the tumor and narrowed the diagnosis. The tumor received histopathological confirmation after splenectomy. Various CT and MRI findings in splenic lymphangiomas have been described, but very few reports regarding CEUS exist to this point.

Intracavitary applications of ultrasound contrast agents in hepatogastroenterology.

The era of the real time low mechanical index (MI) contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) began in 2004. Since then, CEUS with second generation contrast agents like SonoVue has been able to offer a new clinical utility both in diagnosis and in interventional therapies. Intracavitary administration of SonoVue is an off-label, extravascular application of CEUS. There are two distinct applications in gastroenterology that are currently emerging: contrast agent injection into physiological cavities and injection into non-physiological cavities and fistulas. Numerous reports on the extravascular or intracavitary administration of SonoVue have been published and the results are positive, even though larger prospective studies are still lacking.

Ultrasound aspect of mesenteric panniculitis. Case report.

Mesenteric panniculitis represents a cronic inflammation of the adipose tissue of the mesentery which can present sometimes with the imagistic aspect of one or multiples pseudotumors. We present the case of female patient in which mesenteric panniculitis was found accidentally during a routine abdominal ultrasound examination leading to differential diagnostics problems. Color Doppler and contrast enhancement ultrasonography were helpful for diagnosis evidencing a benign circulatory signal.

Contrast enhanced ultrasound and computer tomography diagnosis of solid and mixed pancreatic tumors - analysis of confounders.

AIMS. The aim of this study was to evaluate the leading causes of discrepancies between imaging studies [contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) and contrast enhanced computer tomography (CECT)] diagnosis and histology in patients presenting to a tertiary referral center with previously detected pancreatic masses by standard abdominal ultrasound. METHODS. We performed a prospective longitudinal observational study on 76 patients with pancreatic masses: 57 (75%) patients with solid pancreatic tumors and 19 (25%) patients with cystic and mixed pancreatic masses. For each tumor the CEUS and CECT features were analyzed and compared with the final histological diagnosis. RESULTS. Testing the performance of CEUS and CECT in evaluating the benign or malignant etiology of pancreatic masses, we obtained a probability of 82% for CEUS and of 83% for CECT, for a randomly selected individual from the pancreatic tumor group to have an imaging result indicating suspicion for malignancy. We obtained discordances with the histopathological diagnosis in 25 (32.89%) patients for CEUS and in 23 (30.26%) patients for CECT. In multiple regression analysis, two variables independently influenced the discordance between the two imaging methods and histological conclusion: enhancement pattern and tumor nature (solid vs. cystic). CONCLUSIONS.CEUS and CECT showed a good diagnostic performance in differentiating benign from malignant pancreatic tumors. Enhancement pattern and tumor nature (solid vs. cystic) are independent confounders between imaging and histological diagnosis.

Contrast enhanced ultrasound in assessing therapeutic response in ablative treatments of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Percutaneous ablative methods guided by imaging techniques are considered nowadays curative treatment for early HCC in patients who are not candidates for liver transplantation and surgical resection. The final goal of all ablative treatments is to achieve complete destruction of neoplastic tissue by disruption of tumor vascularity. The best way to demonstrate the efficacy of any ablative methods noninvasively is to demonstrate that the blood supply has been disrupted both inside and at the periphery of the tumor by means of imaging methods. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) with second generation contrast agents is almost as sensitive as CT (considered to be the gold standard) in depicting the residual tumor after an ablation. Moreover, CEUS can be used before ablation to plan the treatment, during the procedure to guide the needle insertion, or immediately after to determine whether the tumor has been ablated or needs additional treatment which can be performed in the same session.

Radiofrequency by open surgical approach in the treatment of hepatic tumours: early experience with 14 cases.

The aim of the study was the evaluation of radiofrequency in the treatment of hepatic tumours during laparotomy performed for hepatic tumours. The initial experience with 14 patients operated for hepatic tumours (5 primary and 9 metastatic) is presented. The paper also presents the technique concerning the intensity and duration of the power applied, the association with the surgical resection, the immediate postoperative evolution and the dynamics of the hepatic enzymes as well as the postoperative results of ultrasound and CT examinations performed within the first 6 weeks. The indications of RF during laparotomy and the place of RF ablation in the treatment of liver tumours in comparison with other ablation techniques are discussed