Intraperitoneal migration of a hookwire following wide local excision of a breast lesion presenting as a spontaneous pneumothorax.

Hookwire migration is a rare complication of wide local excision surgery for breast neoplasia. We report the case of a 64-year-old woman who presented to hospital with acute on chronic left upper quadrant and left scapular pain. She had undergone a hookwire-guided wide local excision of a right breast neoplasm 5 years previously. Her vital signs, clinical examination and blood test were unremarkable. A CT scan revealed a left-sided pneumothorax and a 20 cm metallic intraperitoneal foreign body transpiercing the diaphragm. A review of the patient's clinical record revealed that she experienced a vagal collapse during hookwire implantation. This article underlines the importance of clear communication between members of a multidisciplinary team involved in a staged surgical intervention and exemplifies that foreign bodies can migrate across large distances, sometimes against gravity, to cross multiple anatomical compartments and cause iatrogenic injuries multiple years after an index intervention.

A case of cystic lymphatic malformation mimicking acute appendicitis in an adult patient: a rare diagnostic pitfall.

Abdominal cystic lymphatic malformations are rare pathological entities of uncertain aetiology that usually present in early childhood with indolent abdominal distention. We report the case of a 17-year-old man who presented to our hospital with acute right lower quadrant pain, nausea and anorexia. His blood tests revealed a raised white cell count and elevated inflammatory markers. Clinical examination revealed signs of localised right lower quadrant peritonism. A diagnosis of clinical appendicitis was made, and in keeping with local management protocols, the patient proceeded to theatre for a diagnostic laparoscopy without radiological investigations. Operative findings yielded a normal appendix and a large abdominal cystic malformation. This article highlights the need to keep a broad differential diagnosis when performing surgery on patients with clinically presumed appendicitis and the importance of radiological investigations in clinical decision-making, we also review abdominal cystic lymphatic malformations as a rare diagnostic pitfall.

Metastatic choriocarcinoma induced separate simultaneous intracerebral haemorrhages: a very rare occurrence and its novel association with Klinefelter syndrome.

Non-traumatic separate simultaneous intracerebral haemorrhages (SSIHs) are rare. Relevant aetiologies are diverse and their diagnosis challenging. We report a unique case of SSIH in an 18-year-old male with a background of previously undiagnosed testicular choriocarcinoma and Klinefelter syndrome. The patient was admitted to Auckland City Hospital with headaches, drowsiness and vomiting. A CT scan revealed SSIH in a background of tumorous lesions. His ß human chorionic gonadotropin titre was elevated at 355 000 IU/L. The SSIH and the associated tumorous lesions were acutely surgically resected and the patient started on bleomycin, etoposide and cisplatin combination chemotherapy with excellent results. In this article, we underline choriocarcinoma as a rare aetiology of SSIH and present an example of the clinical presentation, investigation and management of this very rare pathological entity.