Intraosseous migration of tendinous calcifications: two case reports.

Calcific tendinopathy of the rotator cuff is a common cause of shoulder pain. Inflammation of the rotator cuff tendons may be complicated by adjacent bone erosion and subsequent migration of calcific deposits within the bone resulting in marrow inflammation. Bone marrow involvement is not readily visible using X-ray and ultrasound (US) and further testing is necessary. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a highly sensitive technique that can detect a focal bone T1 and T2-weighted hypointensity with bone marrow edema-like signal and cortical erosion. These findings can mislead the radiologist by suggesting an infectious or neoplastic lesion, often requiring further evaluation with computed tomography (CT) and biopsy. We report two cases of patients with shoulder pain in which different radiological approaches were used with pathological confirmation in one of them. In the first case, MRI revealed significant bone involvement in the head of the humerus and cortical erosion of the greater tuberosity. A CT examination and a biopsy was necessary for a final diagnosis of inflammatory bone reaction from intraosseous migration of tendinous calcifications. In the second case, similar MRI findings prompted re-evaluation of imaging to make a diagnosis of intraosseous migration of tendinous calcifications, obviating the need to perform CT and biopsy. We illustrate MRI signs of this complication that we think would allow to narrow the differential diagnosis potentially avoiding biopsy and additional CT examinations.

Choroidal metastasis from carcinoma of the hypopharynx: a case report.

Choroidal metastasis from primaries other than breast or lung cancer is a rare event. There is no documented case in the literature of choroidal metastases in patients with hypopharynx carcinoma. Early treatment with radiation therapy provides effective palliation by preserving visual function and preventing the need for enucleation. Chemotherapy alone does not seem to be as effective as radiation therapy for patients with choroidal metastases. In this paper a case of choroidal metastasis arising from a primary hypopharynx carcinoma is presented.

[Role of magnetic resonance in hemodialysis patients with amyloid shoulder arthropathy]. / Il ruolo della Risonanza Magnetica nell'artropatia della spalla da amiloidosi nei pazienti emodializzati.

PURPOSE: Amyloid shoulder arthropathy is a frequent finding in long-term hemodialysis patients. Assessing the symptoms is fundamental in the approach to these patients but their long life expectancy means that the correct imaging quantification of scapulohumeral joint impairment is just as important. We investigated the role of MRI in amyloid shoulder arthropathy in long-term hemodialysis patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS: From January, 1995, to December, 1996, twelve long-term (mean: 13 years) hemodialysis patients with amyloid shoulder arthropathy were examined with MRI. All of them had undergone physical examination to detect the most involved scapulohumeral joint. MRI was carried out with a 1.0 T Magnetom Impact unit (Siemens, Germany) using T1-weighted Turbo SE sequences at high resolution on coronal and sagittal planes, respectively parallel and perpendicular to the supraspinatus tendon, and FLASH sequences on the axial plane. Six patients were then submitted to surgery. RESULTS: MRI had identified 3/12 rotator cuff tears (always involving the supraspinatus tendon and other tendons), 7/12 rotator cuff tears from supraspinatus tendon injury, and 1/12 thickening and structural dishomogeneity of the supraspinatus tendon. Finally, no structural changes were shown in 1/12 cases. In addition, most MR examinations (11/12) showed some inhomogeneous material characterized by intermediate-to-low signal intensity on T1-weighted sequences; such changes were found in subacromial and subdeltoid bursas in part of the articular capsule and were always associated with hypointense nodular images in all sequences. Surgery was carried out in 6 patients and confirmed both the structural changes of the rotator cuff and the presence of amorphous material which appeared to be amyloid deposits at subsequent histology. MRI proved to be a very reliable tool even in the study of skeletal structural changes, permitting both the identification of periarticular calcifications and the accurate analysis and quantification of subchondral erosions. CONCLUSIONS: MRI was a very reliable tool not only in the study of rotator cuff tears due to amyloid deposition but also in the analysis of bone changes. Thus MRI could play a growing role in treatment planning.

[Magnetic resonance in the study of the painful shoulder. The surgical comparison in 30 consecutive cases]. / La Risonanza Magnetica nello studio della spalla dolorosa. Raffronto chirurgico in 30 casi consecutivi.

Eighty patients complaining of shoulder pain were examined with MRI from January, 1993, through December, 1994. Thirty of them were submitted to surgery, with an exhaustive inspection of shoulder structures and the treatment of abnormal findings. In this subgroup of surgical patients, MRI had depicted 16 complete tears of the rotator cuff, 4 partial tears, 8 cases of subacromial impingement, I humeral head osteochondritis and, finally, I humeral head osteochondritis with complete rotator cuff tear. Surgical findings confirmed MR diagnosis in 97% of cases. MR findings were then compared with literature data and some atypical features were observed in our series. MRI was totally reliable in complete cuff tears (16/30 patients), always showing the involvement of supraspinatus tendons and, in some cases, of other cuff tendons. In partial cuff tears (4/30 patients), besides the classic pattern of a fissure in the deep/superficial supraspinatus tendon, we observed intra- and peritendinous changes, with no tendon interruption, due to diffuse microlesions. When impingement due to subacromial space narrowing, with no cuff tear, was present (8/30 patients), MRI depicted different causes--e.g., acromioclavear arthrosis, coracoacromial ligament hypertrophy and posttraumatic changes. MRI showed tendinosis in all patients but overestimated it in one case where partial cuff tear was not confirmed surgically--the only false positive in our series. At surgery, all these cases were classified as stage I-II impingement (according to Neer's classification). Finally, MRI was very reliable in the study of bone conditions (osteochondritis), both isolated and associated with cuff tears. The diagnostic accuracy of MRI in the study of the painful shoulder was very high (97%), in agreement with literature data. This is very important because many different causes of shoulder conditions (abnormal tendons, bones and mechanics) may present with similar clinical symptoms. MRI appears as the only imaging method yielding complete and accurate pieces of information in the patients with a painful shoulder.

Giant cell tumour of the mandibular condyle.

The authors report a case of giant cell tumour of the mandibular condyle, which is a rare finding. This tumour, studied using the main three radiological modalities (plain radiography, CT and MRI) showed characteristic radiological features of "giant cell tumour".

Double congenital patella: case report and review of the literature.

The authors report a case of double congenital patella, which is a rare finding. This anomaly was studied using radiography, CT and MR. Magnetic resonance imaging has enabled us to make an accurate anatomical evaluation of the double congenital patella.

[A giant-cell tumor of the mandibular condyle. A report of a clinical case]. / Tumore a cellule giganti del condilo mandibolare. Presentazione di un caso clinico.

The authors present a case of a giant cell tumor of the mandibular condyle, which is a very rare condition. Problems relating to diagnosis and treatment are examined. Specifically non neoplastic and neoplastic lesions in which giant cells are identified have been evaluated.