Laparoscopic Management of Multiple Liver, Omental, Mesenteric, Peritoneal, and Round Ligament Hydatid Cysts-A Rare Report of a Case and a Systematic Literature Review.

Hydatid cyst disease is a parasitic ailment with an endemic nature, predominantly affecting geographical areas with a tradition in animal husbandry. The most common localization of hydatid disease is in the liver (60%), followed by the lungs, with other organ localizations comprising less than 10%. The surgical approach to this condition can be carried out through open surgery or laparoscopy. The coexistence of hepatic and intraperitoneal hydatidosis often leads to the preference for open surgery. We performed a literature review aiming to retrieve data regarding demographic characteristics, clinical features, preoperative management, and surgical approach concerning these unusual localizations of hydatid disease. It was observed that the mesenteric localization frequently presented with acute abdominal pain (p = 0.038) and that the open approach was preferred in 85.71% of cases. Furthermore, an interdependence was identified between the localization of the cysts and the type of surgical approach (p = 0.001), with mesenteric localizations being approached through laparotomy and excision (p = 0.037), while omental localizations, due to the easier approach, benefited from laparoscopy with excision in 14.29% of cases. Overall, the laparoscopic approach was less frequently used, but its utilization resulted in a lower number of complications and faster recovery. Additionally, we present a rare case of hepatic and intra-abdominal hydatidosis, resolved exclusively through a laparoscopic approach, including a review of the literature for these uncommon localizations of hydatid disease. A 45-year-old patient diagnosed with multiple hydatid cysts, both hepatic and intraperitoneal, underwent surgical intervention with exploratory laparoscopy. Laparoscopic excision of peritoneal, epiploic, mesenteric cysts, and round ligament, along with laparoscopic inactivation, evacuation, and pericystectomy of hepatic hydatid cysts, was performed. The patient's recovery was uneventful, and she was reevaluated at 3 and 9 months without signs of recurrence. The association of hepatic hydatid cysts with multiple intra-abdominal localizations is not commonly encountered. The treatment of choice is surgical and is predominantly conducted through open surgery. The presented case is unique due to the exclusive laparoscopic approach in the management of mixed hepatic and intra-abdominal hydatidosis.

Is prolonged febrile syndrome associated with reactive thrombocytosis a possible association in the diagnosis of Takayasu's arteritis? A case report.

Takayasu's arteritis is a rare, systemic, inflammatory vasculitis of large blood vessels with an unknown aetiology that more frequently affects women of childbearing age with progression to stenosis, fibrosis or thrombogenesis. Clinical manifestations are associated either with inflammation of the vascular wall (including fever, myalgia, arthralgia, weight loss) or the development of aneurysms and extensive vascular lesions, which creates challenges for a differential diagnosis. This current report presents the case of a female Caucasian patient, aged 23 years, that presented herself repetitively at the hospital reporting symptoms including fever, productive cough, myalgia associated with physical effort, arthralgia, inconstant headache, weight loss and altered general condition. The patient was diagnosed with Takayasu's arteritis in the context of a prolonged febrile syndrome associated with reactive thrombocytosis. This association results in the need to exclude multiple differential diagnoses. Nonspecific management was initiated, which included antibiotic treatment, antifungal medication, anticoagulants, steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and correction of anaemia. The patient slowly improved. Takayasu's arteritis in the inflammatory phase associated with a prolonged febrile syndrome and reactive thrombocytosis is a rare diagnosis of exclusion of a multitude of inflammatory diseases of large blood vessels, infectious diseases and neurofibromatosis, which requires multiple investigations for an accurate diagnosis and management.

Burkitt lymphoma associated with human immunodeficiency virus infection and pulmonary tuberculosis: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: The association of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection with Burkitt lymphoma is related to the presence of Epstein Barr virus infection and the impact of the HIV antigen on the expansion of B-polyclonal cells. In Southeast Europe, the association is rare, and recognizing this is important in the therapeutic decision to increase patient survival rate. The association of HIV with Burkitt lymphoma and tuberculosis is even more rarely described in the literature. PATIENT CONCERNS: We present the case of a 40-year-old patient who presented with a 3-week history of fever (max. 38.7 °C), painful axillary swelling on the right side, lumbar pain, gait disorders, headache, and night sweats. Clinical manifestations included marked weight loss (about 30 kg in the last 2 months before his admission). DIAGNOSIS: A LyCD4 count of 38/µL and a HIV1 viral load of 384,000/mm3, classified the patient into a C3 stage. A biopsy of the right axillary lymph node was performed for suspected ganglionic tuberculosis due to immunodeficiency. Histopathological examination confirmed the diagnosis of Burkitt lymphoma. Cultures on Löwenstein-Jensen medium from sputum harvested at first admission were positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. INTERVENTIONS: Highly active antiretroviral therapy, chemotherapeutic agents for Burkitt lymphoma, anti-tuberculous drug therapy, neurosurgical intervention of spinal cord decompression, and antibiotic therapy of the associated bacterial infection. OUTCOME: Burkitt lymphoma disseminated rapidly, with central nervous system, spinal cord, osteomuscular, adrenal, and spleen involvement. The evolution under treatment was unfavorable, with patient death occurring 6 months after diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: The association of HIV infection with Burkitt lymphoma and tuberculosis is rare in the highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) era, posing prompt and multidisciplinary therapeutic management issues. Similar cases of HIV-TB and Burkitt lymphoma association have been described, but none of the other cases showed the involvement of the central nervous system or of the bilateral adrenal glands.

Liver infarction in a patient with Clostridium Difficile colitis. A possible connection?

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Orbital optic nerve gliomas in children with neurofibromatosis type 1.

PURPOSE: To describe the clinical course and treatment of symptomatic orbital optic nerve gliomas in children with neurofibromatosis type-1 (NF-1). METHODS: A retrospective review of the records of patients with NF-1 and symptomatic orbital optic nerve gliomas seen in a large multidisciplinary NF-1 clinic of a tertiary care children's hospital. The main outcome measures included presenting symptoms and signs, ophthalmologic examination at diagnosis, the presence of progressive disease following diagnosis, type of therapy, and the reasons therapy was instituted. RESULTS: Twelve patients with symptomatic orbital optic nerve gliomas, all of which led to proptosis (eight girls, four boys), were identified. The mean age of diagnosis of NF-1 was 20 months; the mean age of diagnosis of the orbital optic nerve glioma was 26 months. At the time of diagnosis of the tumor, 10 of 12 patients (83%) had decreased visual acuity in the affected eye. Three patients underwent optic nerve resection; eight received chemotherapy, and one was observed without therapy. Of the eight children who received chemotherapy, progressive disease prior to treatment could be documented in only three; none of these eight children had a reproducible improvement in vision following chemotherapy. There was no demonstrable improvement in vision in any treated patient with NF-1-associated orbital optic nerve gliomas. CONCLUSIONS: Although not definitively proven, our data and previous studies suggest that NF-1-associated orbital optic nerve gliomas should not be treated unless there is clear evidence of either ophthalmologic or radiographic progression. Surgical excision of tumors which have led to proptotic eyes without functional vision should be reserved for cosmetic purposes or to treat complications of exposed globes.

PHACE syndrome: association with persistent fetal vasculature and coloboma-like iris defect.

PHACE Syndrome is a neurocutaneous disease spectrum encompassing the following features: Posterior fossa brain malformations, large facial Hemangiomas, Arterial anomalies, Coarctation of the aorta and cardiac defects, and Eye abnormalities. We report the ocular and systemic findings, as well as the management course, of an infant who has all the characteristic features of PHACE syndrome and also describe what we believe to be the first reported case of this syndrome with Persistent Fetal Vasculature (PFV).