A Clinical Review of Slipping Rib Syndrome.

ABSTRACT: Slipping rib syndrome is pain created at the lower, anterior border of the rib cage when performing upper-extremity activities, coughing, laughing, or leaning over. Defects in the costal cartilage of ribs 8 to 10 result in increased movement of the ribs, impinging soft tissue and intercostal nerves. Advancements have been made in the diagnosis of slipping rib syndrome by dynamic ultrasound. Ultrasound can identify abnormalities in the rib and cartilage anatomy, as well as soft tissue swelling. Although the mainstays of treatment continue to be reassurance, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, physical therapy, intercostal nerve injections, osteopathic manipulative treatment, surgery for refractory pain, and botulinum toxin injections have been attempted, and there may be a role for prolotherapy in treatment. Surgical techniques are being examined secondary to recurrence of pain following resection. The hooking maneuver and surgery remain important for identification and treatment, respectively.

Thoracic complications from retained abdominal gallstones after laparoscopic cholecystectomy: is it always mandatory a thoracic approach?

BACKGROUND: Thoracic complications from retained abdominal gallstones are quite rare and the incidence rate ranges between 0.08% and 0.3%. Diagnosis and treatment of these complications are challenging due to the uncommon presentations and the debated role of the thoracic approach. This review of all cases reported in literature aims to discuss the best practice of this rare condition. METHODS: A comprehensive literature search was performed for articles from January 1993 to May 2019 using PubMed, MEDLINE, Embase, ScienceDirect. The following mesh-words were used: 'cholelithopthysis', 'thoracic', 'gallstones' 'retained', and 'spilled'. All cases of thoracic complications from retained gallstones after laparoscopic cholecystectomy were extrapolated. RESULTS: Twenty-four patients were included in this study. The most common symptoms were fever, hemoptysis and lithoptysis. Symptoms after laparoscopic cholecystectomy were presented after a mean time of 9.8±14.2 months (range from one week to 60 months). Delayed diagnosis was found in fourteen patients (58.4.%). Only four subjects were treated successfully with antibiotic therapy alone (16.7%), whereas 20 patients needed surgery or interventional radiology (83.3%). Seven patients (29.2%) were successfully managed with an abdominal approach. Three patients were managed using thoracentesis, thoracoscopic-thoracotomic drainage (12.5%). Right lung decortication and pulmonary wedge resections were necessary for ten patients (41.6%). CONCLUSION: Clinicians always must inquire about the previous cholecystectomy for cholelithiasis related diseases in all patients suffering from recurrent right-sided pleural/lung affections, to improve diagnostic delay. The escalated approach must be performed: empirical antimicrobial therapy followed by targeted therapy as soon as microbiological data are available; afterwards, abdominal surgery is effective in approximately 30% of patients while the remaining patients have to be submitted to a thoracic approach.

Extrapleural hematoma that was not detectable on initial CT in a patient with pneumonia.

Extrapleural hematoma (EH) is an uncommon and occasionally life-threatening condition. Huge EH can cause potentially fatal respiratory and circulatory disturbances. The usual causes of EH are chest trauma, iatrogenic injury, and rupture of a thoracic aortic aneurysm. There have been few reports of EH as a complication of pneumonia. Here we describe a case of EH that was not detectable on initial computed tomography (CT) in a patient with pneumonia despite symptoms suggestive of hemorrhage. A 70-year-old man who had been diagnosed with pneumonia the previous day visited our hospital after developing right upper abdominal pain of sudden onset. Initial noncontrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) showed consolidation of the right lower lobe of the lung but no hematoma. He was discharged from hospital. When the pain recurred the following day, he was transported by ambulance back to our hospital and admitted. Contrast-enhanced CT showed an EH that had not been apparent on the initial CT scan taken 33 h earlier. Coagulation tests were within normal limits. He was treated conservatively and monitored closely. His symptoms improved, and he was discharged 4 days after admission. The EH did not enlarge and had almost disappeared by 56 days after admission. The pathophysiology of the relationship between pneumonia and EH is unclear. This case suggests that EH cannot be ruled out by initial CT findings soon after an episode suggestive of hemorrhage and can occur as a complication of pneumonia. Therefore, patients in whom EH is suspected should be followed up closely.

Herniación pleuro-pulmonar como causa de tumoración en la pared torácica de inicio brusco / Pleuro-Pulmonary Herniation as a Cause of Sudden Appearance of Chest Wall Mass

No disponible

Thoracic splenosis: Case report of a symptomatic case.

Thoracic splenosis is the autotransplantation of splenic tissue in the left thoracic cavity as a result of a splenic injury. This rare pathology is usually asymptomatic and may be discovered on incidental imaging, but the diagnosis often requires invasive procedures such as surgery in order to eliminate a neoplasic origin. We report a rare symptomatic case of a 39-year-old man presenting with chest pain and multiple nodules revealed on a computed tomography scan. The patient underwent a surgical exploration and the pathological studies concluded to a thoracic splenosis. Indeed, the previous medical history of the patient revealed a left thoraco-abdominal traumatism during childhood. The aim of this paper is to emphasize that the diagnosis can now be performed using only imaging techniques such as technetium-99 sulfur colloid or labelled heat-denatured red blood cell scintigraphy to avoid unnecessary invasive procedures including thoracotomy.

Understanding Respiratory Restrictions as a Function of the Scoliotic Spinal Curve in Thoracic Insufficiency Syndrome: A 4D Dynamic MR Imaging Study.

BACKGROUND: Over the past 100 years, many procedures have been developed for correcting restrictive thoracic deformities which cause thoracic insufficiency syndrome. However, none of them have been assessed by a robust metric incorporating thoracic dynamics. In this paper, we investigate the relationship between radiographic spinal curve and lung volumes derived from thoracic dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI). Our central hypothesis is that different anteroposterior major spinal curve types induce different restrictions on the left and right lungs and their dynamics. METHODS: Retrospectively, we included 25 consecutive patients with thoracic insufficiency syndrome (14 neuromuscular, 7 congenital, 4 other) who underwent vertical expandable prosthetic titanium rib surgery and received preimplantation and postimplantation thoracic dMRI for clinical care. We measured thoracic and lumbar major curves by the Cobb measurement method from anteroposterior radiographs and classified the curves as per Scoliosis Research Society (SRS)-defined curve types. From 4D dMRI images, we derived static volumes and tidal volumes of left and right lung, along with left and right chest wall and left and right diaphragm tidal volumes (excursions), and analyzed their association with curve type and major curve angles. RESULTS: Thoracic and lumbar major curve angles ranged from 0 to 136 and 0 to 116 degrees, respectively. A dramatic postoperative increase in chest wall and diaphragmatic excursion was seen qualitatively. All components of volume increased postoperatively by up to 533%, with a mean of 70%. As the major curve, main thoracic curve (MTC) was associated with higher tidal volumes (effect size range: 0.7 to 1.0) than thoracolumbar curve (TLC) in preoperative and postoperative situation. Neither MTC nor TLC showed any meaningful correlation between volumes and major curve angles preoperatively or postoperatively. Moderate correlations (0.65) were observed for specific conditions like volumes at end-inspiration or end-expiration. CONCLUSIONS: The relationships between component tidal volumes and the spinal curve type are complex and are beyond intuitive reasoning and guessing. TLC has a much greater influence on restricting chest wall and diaphragm tidal volumes than MTC. Major curve angles are not indicative of passive resting volumes or tidal volumes. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level II-diagnostic.

Feasibility of real-time cine cardiac magnetic resonance imaging to predict the presence of significant retrosternal adhesions prior to redo-sternotomy.

BACKGROUND: Injury to vital structures posterior to the sternum is a complication associated with redo sternotomy in congenital cardiac surgery. The goal of our study was a novel evaluation of real-time cine cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) to predict the presence of significant retrosternal adhesions of cardiac and vascular structures prior to redo sternotomy in patients with congenital heart disease. METHODS: Twenty-three patients who had prior congenital heart surgery via median sternotomy had comprehensive CMR studies prior to redo sternotomy. The real time cine (RTC) sequence that was used is an ungated balanced steady-state free precession (bSSFP) sequence using SENSitivity Encoding for acceleration with real-time reconstruction. Spontaneously breathing patients were instructed to take deep breaths during the acquisition whilst increased tidal volumes were delivered to mechanically ventilated patients. All patients underwent redo cardiac surgery subsequently and the presence and severity of retrosternal adhesions were noted at the time of the redo sternotomies. RESULTS: Median age at the time of CMR and operation were 5.5 years (range, 0.2-18.4y) and 6.1 years (range, 0.3-18.8y) respectively. There were 15 males and 8 females in the study group. Preoperative retrosternal adhesions were identified on RTC in 13 patients and confirmed in 11 (85%) at the time of surgery. In only 2 patients, no adhesions were identified on CMR but were found to have significant retrosternal adhesions at surgery; false positive rate 15% (CI 0.4-29.6%), false negative rate 20% (CI 3.7-36.4%). The total classification error of the real time cine sequence was 17% (CI 1.7-32.4%) with an overall accuracy of 83% (CI 67.7-98.4%). Standard breath-hold cine images correlated poorly with surgical findings and did not increase the diagnostic yield. CONCLUSIONS: RTC imaging can predict the presence of significant retrosternal adhesions and thus help in risk assessment prior to redo sternotomy. These findings complement the surgical planning and potentially reduce surgical complications .

Value of Multidetector Computed Tomography in the Assessment of Achalasia Subtypes and Detection of Pulmonary and Thoracic Complications.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) findings in patients with achalasia, to assess its role in differentiating subtypes in detecting lung involvement and extra-esophageal thoracic complications. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This clinical retrospective study included 51 patients with manometrically confirmed achalasia who underwent chest X-ray and MDCT in diagnostic work-up. Esophageal wall thickness and morphology, luminal dilatation, lung changes, and extra-esophageal manifestations were analyzed on MDCT by 2 readers. Wilcoxon, Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney test were used for assessing the differences among the achalasia subtypes, and intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) assessing the inter-observer agreement between the measurements of 2 readers. RESULTS: Fourteen (27.5%) patients had achalasia subtype I, 21 (60.8%) had subtype II while 6 (11.8%) had subtype III. Esophageal wall thickness of the esophageal body (EB) and distal esophageal segment (DES) as well as nodular/lobulated appearance of DES were found significantly more often in subtype III (p = 0.024, p < 0.001, p = 0.009, respectively). Esophageal dilatation gradually decreased from subtype I to III (p = 0.006). Chest X-ray revealed lung changes in 9 (17%) and MDCT in 21 (41%) patients (p = 0.001), most frequently in subtype I, with predominance of ground-glass opacities. Tracheal/carinal compression was detected in 27 (52.9%) and left atrial compression in 17 (33.3%) patients. Excellent inter-observer agreement was observed in measuring the EB and DES wall thickness, and diameter of EB (ICC 0.829, 0.901, and 0.922). CONCLUSION: MDCT is a useful tool for detecting lung and extra-esophageal thoracic complications in patients with achalasia, and could be a valuable additional imaging modality in the differentiation of achalasia subtypes.

Thoracic Complications of Bariatric Surgeries: Overlooked Entities.

INTRODUCTION: Bariatric surgeries are increasingly performed to treat obesity worldwide. The currently available literature on these surgeries mainly focuses on their abdominal complications, giving less attention to their thoracic ones. Hence, the present work aimed to highlight the thoracic complications associated with bariatric surgeries. METHODS: A retrospective descriptive study was performed and involved the review of the medical charts of 390 patients who underwent different bariatric surgeries between January 2014 and January 2017 in our hospital or who were referred to us from other centers after their specific operations. The data of patients who developed thoracic complications and who required further intervention were identified and categorized by the modality of diagnosis, outcome, duration of hospital and ICU stays, and management. Patients with a history of a preexisting pulmonary disease were excluded. RESULTS: Twenty-six patients were observed to have thoracic complications secondary to their bariatric surgeries. Twenty-two patients (84.6%) received post-laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LASG). Nine patients (34.6%) required ICU stays. Twenty patients (76.9) had incidences of pleural effusion in the postoperative period. The mean duration of hospital and ICU stays were 4.4 ± 11.67 days and 15 ± 19.36 days, respectively. Other reported thoracic complications included esophageal perforations, thoracic empyema, septic pericardial effusion, and pancreaticopleural fistula. CONCLUSION: Bariatric surgeries are safe procedures in selected patients. There is a significant amount of literature describing abdominal, nutritional, neurological, and even ophthalmic complications after bariatric surgeries. Being that they are relatively rare, thoracic complications are underreported in the literature. The management of thoracic complications after bariatric surgery requires awareness and a high index of suspicion to prevent further morbidities and mortalities.

Intrathoracic Splenosis Without Clinical Evidence of Diaphragmatic Rupture.

Intrathoracic splenosis is a rare diagnosis that is usually made after an invasive procedure. Most cases report concomitant rupture of the spleen and left hemidiaphragm with autotransplantation of splenic tissue into the left hemithorax. We report a case of intrathoracic splenosis with no evidence of diaphragmatic rupture. The mechanism may be explained by hematogenous spread. The patient underwent video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery for diagnosis, which could have been avoided if splenosis was suspected.

Absceso cervicotorácico secundario a punción con aguja fina guiada por ecografía endoscópica transesofágica / Cervicothoracic abscess secondary to transesophageal ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration

No disponible

Extra-thoracic Extrinsic Compression: An Unusual Cause of Dysphagia.

BACKGROUND: Dysphagia affects one in twenty-five adults yearly in the United States. OBJECTIVE: While dysphagia may be common, the prevalence of dysphagia may be underestimated primarily due to under-reporting. Dysphagia may be caused by intraluminal, intrinsic, extrinsic, or motility disorders. METHOD/RESULTS: We present a case of dysphagia caused by extra-thoracic extrinsic compression due to bra use. CONCLUSION: Despite many published reports on dysphagia caused by other diagnoses, we occasionally overlook extrinsic abdominal compression as the cause for dysphagia.

Axillary, Chest Wall and Abdominal Hematoma as a Rare Complication of Radial Artery Catheterization.

BACKGROUND Radial artery access during coronary angiography has gained popularity as there are fewer associated complications when compared with femoral artery access. However sporadic complications can occur following radial artery catheterization. A rare case of axillary, chest wall and abdominal hematoma is presented following radial artery catheterization. CASE REPORT A 58-year-old man with hypertension, type 2 diabetes, with a history of smoking, underwent elective coronary artery angiography via the right radial artery route. He was discharged from care without event, before returning 24 hours later with a large hematoma of the right axilla, extending to the anterior chest wall and abdomen. One year previously, he underwent coronary artery angiography with catheterization of the femoral artery, which was without complications. On this occasion, after resolution of the hematoma, he underwent coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. CONCLUSIONS This case has reported a rare complication of radial artery catheterization that involved extensive hematoma involving the chest, abdominal wall, and axilla. Although such complications may be rare, a high level of vigilance should be maintained for rare complications in patients undergoing radial artery catheterization.

Tejido hepático ectópico intratorácico / Ectopic Intrathoracic Liver Tissue

No disponible

Inflammatory breast cancer and chest wall disease: The oncologist perspective.

Chest wall inflammatory and lymphangitic breast cancer represents a clinical spectrum and a model disease. Inflammation and the immune response have a role in the natural history of this special clinical presentation. Preclinical models and biomarker studies suggest that inflammatory breast cancer comprises a more important role for the tumour microenvironment, including immune cell infiltration and vasculogenesis, especially lympho-angiogenesis. Across this clinical continuum of the chest wall disease there is an important role of the inflammation cascade. The activation of mature dendritic cells (DCs) through toll like receptors (TLRs) or by inflammatory cytokines converts immature DCs into mature DCs that present specific antigen to T cells, thereby activating them. Maturation of DCs is accompanied by co-stimulatory molecules and secretion of inflammatory cytokines polarizing lymphocytic, macrophages and fibroblast infiltration. It is unknown whether immune cells associated to the IBC microenvironment play a role in this scenario to transiently promote epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) in these cells. Immune and microenvirnment factors can induce phenotypic, morphological, and functional changes in breast cancer cells. We can hypothesize that similar inflammatory conditions in vivo may support both the rapid metastasis and tight tumor emboli that are characteristic of chest wall disease and that targeted anti-inflammatory therapy may play a role in this patient population. The current review will review biological and clinical data of this special condition.

[Neurofibromatosis as a cause of breathlessness]. / La neurofibromatose rend souvent essoufflé.

INTRODUCTION: Type 1 neurofibromatosis, also called "Recklinghausen's disease" is among the most frequent autosomal dominant genetic disorders, with an incidence of 1:3500 births. It mainly affects the skin and peripheral nervous system. However, in its less frequent manifestations, are tumors such as meningocele and skeletal dysplasias leading to severe clinical presentation. CASE REPORT: We report the case of a 55-year-old patient with type 1 neurofibromatosis and dyspnea due to a large left thoracic meningocele combined with a significant kyphoscoliosis, causing a severe restrictive ventilatory defect, complicated by chronic respiratory failure and pulmonary hypertension. Symptomatic treatment with non-invasive ventilation permitted an improvement of the clinical situation. CONCLUSIONS: Our observation shows the complexity of the therapeutic support of the neurofibromatosis of type 1. The contribution of non-invasive ventilation was illustrated by the arterial blood gas and clinical improvements as well as improved quality of life, with an acceptable level of inconvenience to the patient.

[Extragenital endometriosis: Parietal, thoracic, diaphragmatic and nervous lesions. CNGOF-HAS Endometriosis Guidelines]. / Endométriose extra-génitale : atteinte pariétales, thoraciques, diaphragmatiques et nerveuses. RPC Endométriose CNGOF-HAS.

According to some studies, extragenital endometriosis represents 5% of the localisations. Its prevalence seems to be underestimated. The extra pelvic localisation can make the diagnosis more difficult. Nevertheless, the recurrent and catamenial symptomatology can evoke this pathology. Surgery seems to be the unique efficient treatment for parietal lesions. Pain linked to nervous lesions (peripheric and sacral roots) seems to be underestimated and difficult to diagnose because of various localisations. Neurolysis seems to have encouraging results. Diaphragmatic lesions are often discovered either incidentally during laparoscopy, or by pulmonary symptomatology as recurrent catamenial pneumothorax or cyclic thoracic pain. Surgical treatment seems as well to be efficient.