Extra-axial sacral soft tissue giant cell ependymoma affecting a child: Case report and review of the literature.

An otherwise healthy eight-year-old girl presented with a mass in the soft tissue of the sacral region. The lesion was diagnosed as a vascular malformation on imaging studies, for which percutaneous sclerotherapy was attempted. The mass continued to grow and a complete resection was performed after four years. The pathological diagnosis was giant cell ependymoma (GCE). GCE is a term used to describe a rare histologic variant of ependymoma characterized by malignancy-like morphologic phenotype and indolent behavior. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of extra-axial soft tissue sacral GCE reported in a child.

Prominent EMA 'dots' in tumour-induced Bergmann gliosis.

AIMS: To describe an unusual pattern of epithelial membrane antigen (EMA) immunoreactivity in highly proliferative human Bergmann glia. METHODS AND RESULTS: An immunohistochemical study was performed of postmortem cerebellar tissue from 18 adult patients with cerebellar damage of various aetiologies and 15 biopsies of diverse adult and paediatric cerebellar tumours. We observed marked proliferation of Bergmann glia with unusual prominent dot-like cytoplasmic EMA immunoreactivity in a case with extensive leptomeningeal sarcomatosis. Similar staining was not observed in association with other types of cerebellar pathology, except for other neoplastic conditions, such as leptomeningeal carcinomatosis, adult medulloblastoma, and pilocytic astrocytoma in children. At an ultrastructural level, the index case showed prominent endoplasmic reticulum with some intermediate filaments and lipofuscin granules, but no structures related to cilia or microvilli were observed. CONCLUSIONS: We consider that prominent EMA dots in Bergmann glia might represent excessive activation induced by an overlying leptomeningeal tumour that stimulates the expression of early developmental antigens. This observation suggests modulation of the glial phenotype when exposed to a neoplastic microenvironment that, in turn, might influence the regenerative potential of Bergmann glia.

A paleoneurohistological study of 3,000-year-old mummified brain tissue from the mediterranean bronze age.

OBJECTIVES: Mummified nervous tissue is very rarely found in ancient remains and usually corresponds to corpses which were frozen or preserved in bogs, conditions which limit tissue autolysis and bacterial degradation. Here, we show the unusual finding of spontaneously mummified brain tissue from several individuals from the little known megalithic talaiotic culture of the island of Minorca, dating approximately 3,000 years before present and corresponding to the late Mediterranean Bronze Age. METHODS: These individuals were part of an intact burial site containing 66 subjects. Intracraneal samples were carefully rehydrated with Sandison's solution. We used classical histochemical as well as 2D and 3D (scanning) electron-microscopic techniques. RESULTS: We provide evidence of the nervous nature of the samples as well as a detailed description of the morphological features of these ancient tissues. The intracranial material consisted of well-preserved eosinophilic reticular tissue and, although mostly absent, some exceptional pigment-containing neurons were identified. CONCLUSIONS: We present a detailed morphological analysis which can provide valuable information and guidelines for the interpretation of this scarce type of mummified samples and provide explanations for this surprising preservation.

[Incidence and characteristics of pancreatic cystic neoplasms]. / Incidencia y características de las neoplasias quísticas pancreáticas.

INTRODUCTION: Cystic neoplasms (CN) of the pancreas represent 10% of cystic lesions and 1% of pancreatic tumors. Mucinous cystic neoplasm (MCN), serous cystadenoma (SC) and intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm (IPMN) are cystic neoplasms and represent more than 90% of these types of lesion. Few series have been published on these lesions, especially in Spain. AIM: To evaluate the incidence, characteristics and survival of patients with cystic neoplasms attended in our hospital in the last 12 years. PATIENTS AND METHOD: A retrospective analysis was carried out in all patients diagnosed with CN between January 1997 and December 2008. Diagnosis was made by abdominal computed tomography, pancreatic-magnetic resonance imaging and/or endoscopic ultrasonography. Sex, age, year of diagnosis, symptoms, tumoral location and size, type of surgery, pathology, and survival were evaluated. RESULTS: A total of 117 patients were analyzed. The mean age was 63±14 years and 56% were women. Eighty-eight patients had IPMN, 21 had SC and eight had MCN. Fifty-six per cent were diagnosed in the last 4 years, 42.7% were diagnosed as an incidental finding and 19% had a history of acute pancreatitis. The most frequent location was the pancreatic head (53%). The mean imaging size was 32mm. Surgical resection was performed in 69.2% of the patients. Twenty-three percent of the tumors were malignant, 30% were carcinoma in situ and 70% were invasive. Thirteen percent of the patients died; of these 93.3% had invasive carcinoma. Five-year survival was 94.7% in SC, 76% in IPMN and 60% in MCN. CONCLUSIONS: CN were mainly identified as incidental findings, although acute pancreatitis is another possible cause. The most frequent tumor in our environment is IPMN. Surgical treatment of IPMN and MCN, at the right moment, may be useful to prevent the development of pancreatic carcinoma.

Clinico-pathological discrepancies in the diagnosis of causes of maternal death in sub-Saharan Africa: retrospective analysis.

BACKGROUND: Maternal mortality is a major public-health problem in developing countries. Extreme differences in maternal mortality rates between developed and developing countries indicate that most of these deaths are preventable. Most information on the causes of maternal death in these areas is based on clinical records and verbal autopsies. Clinical diagnostic errors may play a significant role in this problem and might also have major implications for the evaluation of current estimations of causes of maternal death. METHODS AND FINDINGS: A retrospective analysis of clinico-pathologic correlation was carried out, using necropsy as the gold standard for diagnosis. All maternal autopsies (n = 139) during the period from October 2002 to December 2004 at the Maputo Central Hospital, Mozambique were included and major diagnostic discrepancies were analyzed (i.e., those involving the cause of death). Major diagnostic errors were detected in 56 (40.3%) maternal deaths. A high rate of false negative diagnoses was observed for infectious diseases, which showed sensitivities under 50%: HIV/AIDS-related conditions (33.3%), pyogenic bronchopneumonia (35.3%), pyogenic meningitis (40.0%), and puerperal septicemia (50.0%). Eclampsia, was the main source of false positive diagnoses, showing a low predictive positive value (42.9%). CONCLUSIONS: Clinico-pathological discrepancies may have a significant impact on maternal mortality in sub-Saharan Africa and question the validity of reports based on clinical data or verbal autopsies. Increasing clinical awareness of the impact of obstetric and nonobstetric infections with their inclusion in the differential diagnosis, together with a thorough evaluation of cases clinically thought to be eclampsia, could have a significant impact on the reduction of maternal mortality.

Ultrastructure of canine meninges after repeated epidural injection of S(+)-ketamine.

BACKGROUND: The safety of ketamine when administered by the spinal route must be confirmed in various animal species before it is approved for use in humans. This study evaluates the ultrastructure of canine meninges after repeated doses of epidural S(+)-ketamine. METHODS: Five dogs received S(+)-ketamine 5%, 1 mg/kg, twice a day for 10 days through an epidural catheter with its tip located at the L5 level. One dog received the same volume of normal saline at the same times. The spinal cord and meninges were processed for histopathological and ultrastructural studies. Clinical effects were assessed after each injection. RESULTS: Motor and sensory block appeared after each injection of S(+)-ketamine, but not in the dog receiving saline. No signs of clinical or neurologic alterations were observed. Using light microscopy, no meningeal layer showed alterations except focal infiltration at the catheter tip level by macrophages, lymphocytes, and a few mast cells. The cells of different layers were studied by electron microscopy and interpreted according to data from human and other animal species because no ultrastructural description of the canine meninges is currently available. There were no cellular signs of inflammation, phagocytosis, or degeneration in meningeal layers and no signs of atrophy, compression, or demyelinization in the areas of dorsal root ganglia and spinal cord around the arachnoid. These findings were common for dogs receiving S(+)-ketamine and the dog receiving saline. CONCLUSION: Repeated doses of epidural S(+)-ketamine 5%, 1 mg/kg, twice a day for 10 days was not associated to cellular alterations in canine meninges.

Hepatic preconditioning after prolonged warm ischemia by means of S-adenosyl-L-methionine administration in pig liver transplantation from non-heart-beating donors.

BACKGROUND: This study ascertained the effect of S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAMe) administration on the ischemia-reperfusion injury associated with pig liver transplantation from non-heart-beating donors (NHBDs) after prolonged warm ischemia. METHOD: Twenty-five animals underwent transplantation with an allograft from an NHBD. After donor cardiac arrest, cardiopulmonary bypass and normothermic recirculation (NR) were performed for 30 min. Ten animals were given SAMe during NR. Donors were cooled to 15 degrees C, and liver procurement was performed. RESULTS: SAMe reduced histologic liver damage 5 days after transplantation. The necrotic area affected 15.9%+/-14.5% of the liver biopsies in controls and 7.4%+/-9% in SAMe livers. Six of eight controls and only one of eight survivors in the SAMe group developed ischemic cholangitis. SAMe reduced apoptosis of hepatocytes 5 days after transplantation and apoptosis of sinusoidal endothelial cells at reperfusion and at 5 days. SAMe increased energy charge at the end of NR and favored the balance between adenosine and xanthine. It was also associated with higher portal blood flow (740+/-59.2 vs. 475.2+/-65.0 mL/min-1/m-2), hepatic hyaluronic acid extraction (132+/-72.2 vs. -205.8+/-64.6 microg/L), and lower levels of alpha-glutathione-S-transferase after reperfusion (2,601%+/-581% with respect to baseline vs. 6,488%+/-5,612%). CONCLUSION: SAMe administration during liver procurement from NHBDs prevents liver endothelial, parenchymal, and biliary tract damage. The protective role of SAMe may be partially mediated by the effect of adenosine during liver procurement.

Impact of adjuvant chemotherapy in the long-term outcome of patients with resected gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: We analyzed in a retrospective analysis whether adjuvant chemotherapy with mitomycin (MMC) alone or with Tegafur (TG) is associated with long-term survival benefit in resected gastric cancer. Other prognostic factors are compared. METHODS: From 1977 to 1998, 314 consecutive totally resected gastric adenocarcinoma patients have been included in a survival study. In 151 patients no adjuvant therapy was given. In 163 patients, four courses of adjuvant chemotherapy was given, 109 of them with MMC, 10-20 mg/m(2) i.v. every 6 weeks and the other 54 with MMC plus TG, 500 mg/m(2) p.o. day for 42 consecutive days. Univariate and multivariate survival analyses were performed. RESULTS: Survival benefit was seen in patients who had received adjuvant chemotherapy compared with the controls (52% vs. 30% alive at the end of the study, relative risk = 0.46, 95% CI: 0.33-0.62, P < 0.0001), women (52% vs. 35%, RR = 0.83, 95% CI: 0.71-0.98, P = 0.0342) and increment of staging IB, II, IIIA, or IIIB (80, 56, 24 vs. 13%, respectively, RR = 1.83, 95% CI: 1.42-2.35, P < 0.0001). Better prognosis of node-negative patients was observed only in univariate analysis. CONCLUSIONS: After curative surgery, adjuvant chemotherapy with mitomycin C, both alone or combined with Tegafur, improved the long-term cure rate over no postoperative chemotherapy in locally advanced gastric cancer patients. This benefit was not influenced by other prognostic factors.

Incidencia y características de las neoplasias quísticas pancreáticas / Incidence and characteristics of pancreatic cystic neoplasms

IntroducciónLas neoplasias quísticas (NQ) del páncreas suponen el 10% de las lesiones quística y el 1% de las neoplasias del páncreas. La neoplasia mucinosa quística (NMQ), el cistoadenoma seroso (CS) y la neoplasia mucinosa papilar intraductal (NMPI) son algunos tipos de NQ y representan más del 90% de este tipo de lesiones. Existen escasas series publicadas, especialmente en nuestro país.ObjetivoEvaluar la incidencia, características y supervivencia de los pacientes con NQ atendidos en nuestro hospital en un período de 12 años.Pacientes y métodoSe realizó un análisis retrospectivo de todos los pacientes diagnosticados en nuestro hospital de NQ por tomografía computadorizada abdominal, colangiopancreatografía por resonancia magnética y/o ultrasonografía endoscópica, desde enero de 1997 a diciembre de 2008.Pacientes y métodoSe evaluó el sexo, la edad, el año de diagnóstico, la forma de presentación, la localización y el tamaño del tumor, el tipo de cirugía, la anatomía patológica y la supervivencia.ResultadosFueron analizados 117 pacientes con una edad media de 63±14 años, el 56% fueron mujeres. El diagnóstico fue de 88 NMPI, 21 CS y 8 NMQ. El 59% fueron diagnosticados en los últimos 4 años. El 42,7% fueron un hallazgo casual y el 19% tenían el antecedente de pancreatitis aguda. La localización más frecuente fue la cabeza pancreática (53%). El tamaño medio por técnica de imagen fue de 32mm. Fueron intervenidos quirúrgicamente el 69,2%. El 23% eran malignos, 30% carcinoma «in situ» y 70% invasivos. Fallecieron 13% de los pacientes, 93,3% eran carcinomas invasivos. La supervivencia a los 5 años de los CS fue del 94,7%, de las NMPI fue del 76% y de las NMQ del 60%. (..) (AU)

IntroductionCystic neoplasms (CN) of the pancreas represent 10% of cystic lesions and 1% of pancreatic tumors. Mucinous cystic neoplasm (MCN), serous cystadenoma (SC) and intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm (IPMN) are cystic neoplasms and represent more than 90% of these types of lesion. Few series have been published on these lesions, especially in Spain.AimTo evaluate the incidence, characteristics and survival of patients with cystic neoplasms attended in our hospital in the last 12 years.Patients and methodA retrospective analysis was carried out in all patients diagnosed with CN between January 1997 and December 2008. Diagnosis was made by abdominal computed tomography, pancreatic-magnetic resonance imaging and/or endoscopic ultrasonography. Sex, age, year of diagnosis, symptoms, tumoral location and size, type of surgery, pathology, and survival were evaluated.ResultsA total of 117 patients were analyzed. The mean age was 63±14 years and 56% were women. Eighty-eight patients had IPMN, 21 had SC and eight had MCN. Fifty-six per cent were diagnosed in the last 4 years, 42.7% were diagnosed as an incidental finding and 19% had a history of acute pancreatitis. The most frequent location was the pancreatic head (53%). The mean imaging size was 32mm. Surgical resection was performed in 69.2% of the patients. Twenty-three percent of the tumors were malignant, 30% were carcinoma in situ and 70% were invasive. Thirteen percent of the patients died; of these 93.3% had invasive carcinoma. Five-year survival was 94.7% in SC, 76% in IPMN and 60% in MCN.ConclusionsCN were mainly identified as incidental findings, although acute pancreatitis is another possible cause. The most frequent tumor in our environment is IPMN. Surgical treatment of IPMN and MCN, at the right moment, may be useful to prevent the development of pancreatic carcinoma (AU)