Cardiac paraganglioma: diagnostic work up and review of the literature.

Paraganglioma of the heart are potentially invasive, highly vascularized tumors for which complete resection may be curative. Derived from the cardiac wall in most instances, resectability can be assessed after integration of the data provided by MRI in T2 sequence, and coronarography. A fully documented case of a large cardiac pheochromocytoma of the left atrium and AV groove is reported and the pertinent literature on the subject is here presented.

[A left intraventricular mass]. / Le cas clinique du mois. A propos d'une masse intra-ventriculaire gauche.

We report the case of a 29-years-old male presenting with a large mass inserted at the hypokinetic apex of the left ventricle. Without any early regression under anticoagulant therapy and taking into account recent neurological manifestations, surgical extraction was decided. The mass corresponded to a chronic thrombus lying on a non-transmural myocardial necrosis. This case gives us the opportunity to review all causes of intracardiac masses.

[Spasmolytics indication in renal colic: a literature review]. / La place des spasmolytiques dans la colique néphrétique.

UNLABELLED: Spasmolytics are often prescribed by general practitioners or by emergency services as soon as renal colic is diagnosed. This practice has however been widely contested. This article presents a literature review on the efficiency of spasmolytics for the treatment of renal colic. Furthermore, it draws a comparison with daily practice, and finally summarizes side effects of this treatment. CONCLUSION: Based on the EBM review, it cannot be concluded that spasmolytics are effective in renal colic. A better practice is to use diclofenac as a unique drug, and to complement the treatment with tramadol and antalgics for uncontrolled patients. Furthermore, the use of tamsulosin is proved to be efficient for lithiasis in the lower part of the ureter.

[Comparison of airway remodeling in asthma and COPD]. / Comparaison du remodelage tissulaire dans l'asthme et la BPCO.

Asthma and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) are two pulmonary obstructive diseases. It is well recognized that inflammation plays a key role in the pathogenesis of these two diseases. However, inflammation per se does not entirely account for the progressive loss in pulmonary function. It is admitted that the functional changes partly relate to airway structural alteration called remodeling. In this review we summarize the most frequent tissue abnormalities found in patients with asthma and COPD and report on the relationship between structural alterations and clinical features of the disease.