[Mediastinitis following EBUS : about a complication after a minimally invasive investigation]. / Médiastinite post-EBUS : à propos d'une complication après une procédure peu invasive.

Endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) is a minimally invasive investigation method that permits transbronchial needle aspiration (TBNA) of mediastinal and hilar lymphadenopathies in order to determine their etiology. Its indications are notably lung cancer staging and lymphadenopathy exploration in case of sarcoidosis and malignant lymphomas. The employment of EBUS-TBNA has grown over the past few years and has become an alternative to mediastinoscopy due to a lower complication rate. However, in rare cases, complications can occur as hemorrhage, infections (mediastinitis, pneumonia, pericarditis, cyst infection, sepsis) or other (pneumothorax, pneumomediastinitis). We report herein a case of a mediastinitis after endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration which occurred in a 63-year-old patient treated by methotrexate and methylprednisolone for a rheumatoid arthritis. The symptoms appeared as fever and progressive dyspnea some days after the endoscopic procedure.

L'échographie endobronchique (EBUS : EndoBronchial UltraSound) est une technique d'investigation mini-invasive permettant la cyto-ponction transbronchique à l'aiguille fine (TBNA-TransBronchial Needle Aspiration) d'adénopathies médiastinales et hilaires afin d'en déterminer l'étiologie. Son recours est notamment indiqué dans la stadification des adénopathies lors du bilan d'extension de cancers broncho-pulmonaires et dans l'exploration d'adénopathies, par exemple en cas de sarcoïdose et de lymphomes. L'utilisation de l'EBUS-TBNA s'est répandue ces dernières années et est devenue une alternative intéressante à la médiastinoscopie, notamment en raison d'un taux de complications moindre. Néanmoins, le risque zéro n'existant pas, il se peut que surviennent, dans de rares cas, des complications de type hémorragiques, infectieuses (médiastinite, pneumonie, péricardite, infection de kyste, sepsis) ou autres (pneumothorax et pneumomédiastin). Nous rapportons le cas d'une médiastinite post-EBUS survenue chez un patient de 63 ans, traité par méthotrexate et méthylprednisolone pour une polyarthrite rhumatoïde, et se manifestant par l'apparition d'une fièvre et d'une dyspnée progressive quelques jours après le geste endoscopique.

Survival outcomes in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer treated with erlotinib: expanded access programme data from Belgium (the TRUST study).

Erlotinib has been shown to prolong progression-free (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We report here on effectiveness data on the subsample of 261 patients from 40 centres in Belgium involved in the TRUST study. Median age was 63 years. Most (69.0%) were male and current/former smokers (84.7%); with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status (PS) of 0 or 1 (74.3%), stage IV disease (75.1%) and adenocarcinoma by histology (54.0%). Erlotinib was administered mainly as second- (47.1%) or third-line treatment (48.3%). Response rate was 6.5%; disease control rate 58.3%. Median PFS was 2.2 months. Better PS (P = 0.0384), stage IIIB disease (P = 0.0018) and presence of rash (P < 0.0001) were associated with longer PFS. OS rates at 1, 2 and 3 years were 26.4%, 10.9% and 6.4% respectively. Median OS was 5.9 months. Female gender (P = 0.007), better PS (P < 0.0001), stage IIIB disease (P = 0.0355) and presence of rash (P < 0.0001) were associated with longer OS. The findings confirm the therapeutic benefit of erlotinib in a broad range of patients in a sample from a country with a historically high lung cancer morbidity and mortality burden. Several determinants of PFS and OS are identified.

[Catamenial pneumothorax : a case report]. / Le cas clinique du mois. Pneumothorax cataménial: a propos d'un cas.

Catamenial pneumothorax is an unusual and rarely recognized entity that belongs to the thoracic endometriosis syndrome. The increase a number of published cases over the last years allows a more frequent diagnosis and understanding. We describe the story of a young woman with a recurrent right sided pneumothorax and discuss the different pathogenic mechanisms and current therapies. The rarity of the disease makes a prospective study very difficult. To this day, there is no consensus on a standardized therapeutic attitude.

[Diabetes insipidus in a patient with small-cell lung cancer: a paradox?]. / Diabète insipide dans le cadre d'un carcinome pulmonaire à petites cellules: un paradoxe?

We observed oat-cell lung carcinoma in a man who presented with diabetes insipidus. The chest radiograph showed a suspect nodule within a context of major nicotine addiction. Histopathological examination of the transbronchial biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of oat-cell carcinoma. Brain CT revealed metastasis to the pituitary gland and the pituitary stalk. Vasopressin was undetectable. This case illustrates an uncommon clinical presentation of small-cell lung carcinoma. Oat-cell carcinoma can modify osmoregulation in two different ways. Only sporadic cases of neurogenic diabetes insipidus due to the primary involvement of small-cell lung carcinoma have been reported. More often, this type of lung tumor is associated with inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion.

[Clinical case of the month. A recurrent chylothorax in Bourneville tuberous sclerosis]. / Le cas clinique du mois. Un chylothorax récidivant dans un contexte de sclérose tubéreuse de Bourneville.

Bourneville's disease, first described in 1862, is a phacomatosis that is either autosomal dominant or sporadic. Its typical clinical signs include mental retardation, epilepsy and cutaneous adenomas. The pulmonary form is rare, less than 1%, and is secondary to occlusion of the bronchus, vascular and lymphatics by immature smooth muscle cells. Chylothorax may appear in more than 50% of all cases. No guidelines currently exist for treatment of recurrent chylothorax. However, several possibilities are described in the literature.

[The clinical case of the month. Apropos of a case of unexplained fever]. / Le cas clinique du mois. A propos d'une fièvre inexpliquée.

An episode of fever of prolonged duration and undetermined origin always remains a difficult clinical problem. Several etiologies can indeed be responsible. If one wishes to obtain a diagnosis of the origin of the fever, one should adopt a well-structured strategy in which the various investigations are carried out in a strictly determined hierarchical order. This is badly needed if one wishes to reach a clue to the diagnosis and be able to implement an adequate therapy. In spite of all this, some cases will remain without precise diagnosis. The treatment of those cases will primary be empirical.