RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Mucormycosis is a devastating opportunistic fungal infection resulting in significant mortality, especially in pediatric patients with predisposing risk factors. MATERIALS & METHODS: Biopsies and surgical specimens reported and proven as Mucormycosis in children under 12 years of age were retrieved from the records for three years (January 2018 to January 2021). Complete data, predisposing factors, treatment, and clinical outcome were recorded. RESULTS: 15 cases were identified, ranging from 9 days to 5 years. The male-female ratio was 3:1; three children were preterm. Fourteen children were diagnosed with gastrointestinal Mucormycosis (14/15), and one had palatal and sinusoidal involvement. Abdominal pain with distention was the most typical complaint. On microscopy, biopsies and surgical specimens showed extensive liquefactive necrosis with broad aseptate fungal hyphae. An intraoperative diagnosis was rendered in two cases. All neonates underwent exploratory laparotomy with surgical debridement and were administered Liposomal Amphotericin B. However, only two neonates survived out of the fifteen cases, one with disease limited to the appendix and pouch colon. The others succumbed to the disease despite antifungal therapy and surgical debridement. Thus, the overall mortality in the current study was calculated to be 86%, with neonatal mortality of 75%. CONCLUSION: Gastrointestinal involvement is more common in neonates and infants with a male preponderance. The diagnosis relies on direct microscopy, histopathology, and fungal culture. Intraoperative tissue may be sent in all suspected cases for direct microscopic examination for rapid diagnosis and treatment.
RESUMO
INTRODUCTION: Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) is the commonest mesenchymal tumor of GI tract and 60-70% of it seen in the stomach, whereas Gastric schwannoma is a benign, slow growing and one of the rare neoplasms of stomach. Age distribution, clinical, radiological features and gross appearance of both tumors are similar. PRESENTATION OF CASE: We report a rare case of gastric schwannoma in a 20-year-old girl, who underwent subtotal gastrectomy with the suspicion of a GIST preoperatively but later confirmed to be gastric schwannoma postoperatively after immunohistochemical study. DISCUSSION: Accordingly, the differential diagnosis for gastric submucosal mass should be gastric schwannoma. Furthermore, Gastric schwannoma is a benign neoplasm with excellent prognosis after surgical resection, whereas 10-30% of GIST has malignant behavior. Therefore, it is important to distinguish between gastric schwannoma and GIST so as to make an accurate diagnosis for optimally guide treatment options. CONCLUSION: Due to the paucity of gastric schwannoma, the index of suspicion for this diagnosis is low. So it is important to include gastric schwannoma in the differential diagnosis when preoperative imaging studies reveal submucosal exophytic gastric mass and after resection of the tumor with a negative margin, it should be sent for immunohistochemical study for confirmation of diagnosis.
