Conservative management of pelvic abscess following sacrocolpopexy: a report of three cases and review of the literature.

INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: After sacrocolpopexy, intra-abdominal pelvic abscesses are often managed with intravenous antibiotics, excision of the mesh involved, and debridement of compromised tissue. METHODS AND RESULTS: Three cases of successful management of pelvic abscesses after sacrocolpopexy using long-term antibiotics and percutaneous drainage of intra-abdominal abscesses without removing the mesh are presented. CONCLUSIONS: In selected patients who have undergone sacrocolpopexy, with careful counseling, conservative management of pelvic abscesses with percutaneous drainage and long-term antibiotic treatment without the surgical excision of the mesh may play a role.

Medium-term CT evaluation of stent geometry, integrity, and valve function of the Edwards SAPIEN transcatheter heart valve in the pulmonary position.

OBJECTIVE: Distortion of transcatheter heart valve (THV) stent shape and morphology has been shown to impact on THV function. This study sought to evaluate the relationship between geometrical CT follow-up data and consequent valve function in patients undergoing transcatheter pulmonary valve replacement with the Edwards SAPIEN THV. METHODS: All patients were enrolled in the COMPASSION trial. Multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) was performed as part of the study protocol at 6 months and yearly thereafter following valve implantation. Prosthesis eccentricity indices, circularity ratios, and expansion ratios (ER) were calculated. Valve function and reintervention rates were correlated with MDCT findings. RESULTS: Twenty consecutive patients undergoing 58 CT scans were included. Maximum Doppler gradients across the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) were significantly reduced following valve implantation (P < 0.001). Geometrical indices and maximum RVOT gradients were compared between the reintervention group (n = 4) and the nonreintervention group (n = 16). Although there was no difference in eccentricity index between the groups, ER [6 months: 90 +/- 12% vs. 69 ± 9%; P = 0.014; at 12 months: 89 ± 14 vs. 69 ± 10%; P = 0.018; at 24 months: 87 ± 14% vs. 70 ± 11%; P = 0.056] and valve area [6 months: 3.98 ± 0.54 vs. 2.86 ± 0.38 P = 0.005; at 12 months: 3.93 ± 0.56 vs. 2.86 ± 0.39 P = 0.006; 24 months: 3.78 ± 0.50 vs. 2.90 ± 0.45 P = 0.019] were lower in the reintervention group compared with the nonreintervention group at all time periods. CONCLUSION: Geometrical THV measurements as assessed by CT may predict the need for reintervention in patients undergoing transcatheter pulmonary valve replacement with the SAPIEN valve. Valve symmetry is maintained, however under-expansion and smaller valve area are strongly associated with the need for reintervention.

Inguinal hernia containing a kidney with a duplicated system: an exceptionally rare case.

An inguinal hernia is a commonly encountered surgical case, with multiple unusual contents being reported. We present an exceptionally rare case of an inguinal hernia. Computed tomography imaging of the 62-year-old male patient showed a large left inguinal hernia extending into the left scrotum that contained a duplicated left kidney. There was an associated large left hydrocele and incidental non-obstructive nephrolithiasis. Left nephropexy, left orchiectomy, and repair of the incarcerated left inguinal hernia with mesh placement via a preperitoneal (retroperitoneal) approach were performed. The patient was discharged to home on post-operative day 5 and the post-operative course was uneventful. We discuss a possible mechanism for this rare event.

MRI: is there a role in obstetrics?

Magnetic resonance imaging has a complementary role in obstetrical imaging to ultrasound (US). Although US has advantages as an initial imaging technique, there are significant numbers of patients who cannot be adequately evaluated for a variety of reasons including calvarial calcification, oligoanhydramnios, or simply obesity. MR can provide additional information that cannot be obtained by US and is invaluable in central nervous system anomaly evaluation, airway management, and planning for postnatal intervention. Newer techniques established in the postnatal population such as spectroscopy, diffusion-weighted imaging, and functional imaging have future applications in the fetus.

Rare primary pulmonary angiosarcoma with aberrant neuroendocrine differentiation.

Angiosarcomas are aggressive, malignant endothelial cell tumors derived from the vascular or lymphatic epithelium. Angiosarcomas makes up less than 1% of all soft tissue sarcomas. Primary pulmonary angiosarcoma is a rare tumor that most commonly presents as metastatic disease and carries a grim prognosis. The disease rarity and low index of suspicion make the diagnosis problematic. In this report, we present a case of primary pulmonary angiosarcoma with aberrant neuroendocrine differentiation. The diagnostic images, pathology and management strategy are discussed in this case with overall longer survival. The unique neuroendocrine pathologic subtype may contribute to the overall longer survival, however, there are only a few limited cases published. Further recognition and investigation of primary pulmonary angiosarcoma with aberrant neuroendocrine differentiation is warranted to further characterize diagnostic markers, determine more effective treatment strategies, and establish a possible link to improved survival.

A comparative assessment of coronary artery calcification on chest CT scans of patients referred to a cardio-oncology clinic.

BACKGROUND: The presence and burden of coronary artery calcium (CAC) is a strong predictor of cardiovascular events. In an effort to gain insight into the utility of CAC for coronary artery disease (CAD) screening in cancer patients with heart disease, we sought to determine the presence and burden of CAC detected on routine chest CT in patients referred to a cardio-oncology clinic, comparing them to a conventional cardiology clinic with the general population as controls. METHODS: Patients from the cardio-oncology clinic, general cardiology clinic, and the general clinic population at Rush University Medical Center who had a chest CT as part of their previous treatment were identified. Each CT scan was evaluated for presence, extent, and severity of CAC by 3 independent readers. RESULTS: In multivariate analysis, when compared with cardio-oncology clinic, CAC was more prevalent in the CT scans of cardiology patients (p = 0.04), but not the general clinic population (p = 0.5); CAC extent (p = 0.05) and severity (p = 0.05) was significantly higher in the cardiology patients but the extent (p = 0.05) and severity (p = 0.92) was similar in the general clinic population. CONCLUSION: Despite being matched by age and sex, controlling for other major cardiovascular risk factors, patients referred to our cardio-oncology clinic had similar and less prevalent/severe CAC burden compared with the general population and conventional cardiology clinics respectively. Whether this translates to less utility of CAC for CAD screening, or to less overall coronary events in a cardio-oncology clinic, is of interest.

TNF inhibitors to treat ulcerative colitis in a metastatic breast cancer patient: a case report and literature review.

Adalimumab (ADA) is a tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitor, used for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. Previous studies have reported an increased risk of cancer following exposure to TNF inhibitors, but little has been reported for patients with cancer receiving TNF-inhibitor treatment. We present a female patient with metastatic breast cancer and ulcerative colitis (UC) who was treated with ADA. A 54-year-old African American female with a past history of left-sided breast cancer (BC) diagnosed at age 30 was initially treated with left-breast lumpectomy, axillary dissection, followed by chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Years after initial diagnosis, she developed recurrent, bilateral BC and had bilateral mastectomy. Subsequent restaging computed tomography (CT) scan demonstrated distant metastases to the bone and lymph nodes. Three years into her treatment of metastatic breast cancer, she was diagnosed with UC by colonoscopy. Her UC was not controlled for 5 mo with 5-aminosalicylates. Subcutaneous ADA was started and resulted in dramatic improvement of UC. Four months after starting ADA, along with ongoing chemotherapy, restaging CT scan showed resolution of the previously seen metastatic lymph nodes. Bone scan and follow-up positron emission tomography/CT scans performed every 6 mo indicated the stability of healed metastatic bone lesions for the past 3 years on ADA. While TNF-α inhibitors could theoretically promote further metastases in patients with prior cancer, this is the first report of a patient with metastatic breast cancer in whom the cancer has remained stable for 3 years after ADA initiation for UC.

Ectopic pregnancy in a cesarean section scar treated with intramuscular methotrexate and bilateral uterine artery embolization.

We report a case of an ectopic pregnancy implanted in the myometrium at the site of a scar from a previous cesarean section that presented with vaginal bleeding and was successfully treated with bilateral uterine artery embolization and intramuscular administration of methotrexate. The combination of minimally invasive interventional techniques and medical therapies can preserve fertility.

Spontaneous twin tubal ectopic gestation.

We present a case of a viable spontaneous unilateral twin ectopic pregnancy in the right fallopian tube that was diagnosed with transvaginal sonography and subsequently treated with laparotomy and salpingectomy.