Intrathoracic fracture-dislocation of the humeral head: a case report.

Fracture-dislocation of the humeral head into the thoracic cavity is a rare injury. We present one such case in a 70-year-old woman. She presented with a 4-part fracture-dislocation of the proximal humerus, with displacement of the humeral head into the thoracic cavity. She had no signs of acute distress or hemodynamic instability. She underwent hemiarthroplasty of the right shoulder, but the humeral head fragment could not be removed. At 27-month follow-up, the patient had limited mobility of her right shoulder due to axillary nerve palsy but no pain or intrathoracic complications. In the absence of intrathoracic complications, the removal of the humeral head may not be necessary.

Nonreferral of possible soft tissue sarcomas in adults: a dangerous omission in policy.

Introduction. The aim of this study is to compare outcomes in three groups of STS patients treated in our specialist centre: patients referred immediately after an inadequate initial treatment, patients referred after a local recurrence, and patients referred directly, prior to any treatment. Patients and methods. We reviewed all our nonmetastatic extremity-STS patients with a minimum follow-up of 2 years. We compared three patient groups: those referred directly to our centre (group A), those referred after an inadequate initial excision (group B), and patients with local recurrence (group C). Results. The study included 174 patients. Disease-free survival was 73%, 76%, and 28% in groups A, B, and C, respectively (P < .001). Depth, size, and histologic grade influenced the outcome in groups A and B, but not in C. Conclusion. Initial wide surgical treatment is the main factor that determines local control, being even more important than the known intrinsic prognostic factors of tumour size, depth, and histologic grade. The influence on outcome of initial wide local excision (WLE), which is made possible by referral to a specialist centre, is paramount.