Neonatal ovarian cyst: prenatal diagnosis and analysis of the cyst fluid.

Ovarian cysts of clinical significance are uncommon in the fetus and neonate. The authors diagnosed a large fetal cyst prenatally by ultrasound scan and removed it in the neonatal period. Analysis of the fluid obtained from the cyst demonstrated a capacity of the fetal ovary to synthesize estrogen and progesterone.

The clinical significance of blood transfusion at the time of radical hysterectomy.

A retrospective review was conducted to evaluate the clinical implications of perioperative blood transfusion in the surgical management of stage IB cervical cancer. The investigation focused on 126 patients treated with radical hysterectomy and retroperitoneal lymph node dissection who were found to have clear surgical margins, negative retroperitoneal lymph nodes, and no lymph-vascular space involvement in the hysterectomy specimen, and who had no perioperative radiation therapy, no history of immunosuppression with medication, and at least 18 months of follow-up. The distributions of age, weight, operative time, nodal yields, mean lesion diameters, median depths of invasion, and histologic subtypes were not statistically different between the transfused and untransfused groups. The average estimated blood loss among the transfused patients was 1104 mL, compared with 764 mL among the untransfused patients (P = .015). Among the 68 who received blood perioperatively, there were ten recurrences (14.7%), compared with two (3.4%) among the 58 patients who did not receive blood (P = .035). In this select population of patients, in which perioperative transfusion was isolated as a variable, transfusion adversely affected the outcome of surgical therapy.

Sarcoid-like lesions associated with epithelial ovarian adenocarcinoma.

A woman with poorly differentiated endometrioid adenocarcinoma of the ovary had sarcoid-like lesions in the bone marrow. Sarcoid-like lesions may be misinterpreted as metastatic disease, resulting in inappropriate modification of therapy.

Postpartum femoral neuropathy.

Two cases of postpartum femoral neuropathy occurred. The literature on this subject is reviewed, and possible etiologic mechanisms are discussed. Complete functional recovery is typical of the excellent prognosis of puerperal femoral neuropathy. The importance of recognizing this complication is to predict a favorable prognosis and thus eliminate anxiety for both patient and physician.

Sarcoma botryoides of the cervix: excision followed by adjuvant chemotherapy for preservation of reproductive function.

Sarcoma botryoides is most often seen arising in the infantile vagina. Occasionally, disease will arise in the cervix in the adolescent. Most patients have been treated by radical surgery combined with multiagent chemotherapy. We recently treated a patient by local excision followed by multiagent chemotherapy in an attempt to preserve reproductive potential. The present case and a review of the literature suggest that excisional therapy with subsequent chemotherapy should be adequate for localized disease.

Endolymphatic stromal myosis: surgical and hormonal therapy for extensive venous recurrence.

The surgical management for recurrent endolymphatic stromal myosis metastatic to the inferior vena cava is described. Positive estrogen and progesterone receptors in the resected tumor are reported. A plan of therapy is suggested for patients with endolymphatic stromal myosis, including a rationale for adjuvant progestin therapy.

Virilizing malignant lipid cell tumor producing erythropoietin.

Paraneoplastic erythrocytosis associated with production of erythropoietin and testosterone by a malignant lipid cell tumor is demonstrated in this case report. Several chemotherapeutic regimens failed to halt the progression of this aggressive metastatic lipid cell tumor. The scant literature on malignant lipid cell tumors is reviewed. Possible mechanisms for paraneoplastic erythrocytosis are presented. Adequate control of polycythemia preoperatively will reduce thromboembolic and hemorrhagic complications.

Embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma of the uterine corpus and cervix.

Embryonal rhabdomyosarcomas of the uterus and cervix are rare tumors with a very poor prognosis historically. Adjuvant multidrug chemotherapy combined with local radiation therapy and/or surgery has resulted in markedly improved survival rates. Six patients with embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma of the uterus/cervix are reported, with a compilation of 28 additional patients from the literature. Nineteen of 24 patients (79%) treated with combination therapy were alive and well 4-147+ months (median 61 months) after diagnosis. The six cases from USC Medical Center and affiliated hospitals are all well 17-144 months (mean 95 months) after diagnosis. Analysis of the collected series indicates that extent of disease is an important prognostic factor. Adjuvant chemotherapy with vincristine, actinomycin D, and cyclophosphamide (VAC) improves survival. Initial therapy for embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma confined to the uterus/cervix should include radical hysterectomy, pelvic lymphadenectomy, and adjuvant chemotherapy with VAC. Pelvic radiotherapy should be employed for involved surgical margins or positive nodes. Advanced disease managed initially with chemotherapy and radiotherapy may allow subsequent curative extirpative surgery.

Experience with the pulmonary artery catheter in obstetrics and gynecology.

Although traditionally the exclusive domain of other medical specialties, pulmonary artery catheterization may be of tremendous benefit to a variety of obstetric and gynecologic patients. Our experience with such invasive hemodynamic monitoring in 72 patients in an obstetrics and gynecology service is presented. In 86% of cases, catheter placement and primary management were carried out by residents in obstetrics and gynecology. Although many of the indications for pulmonary artery catheterization encountered are common to other areas of medicine, certain conditions such as severe preeclampsia or rheumatic heart disease in pregnancy involve pathophysiologic conditions unique to our specialty. On the basis of our experience, recommended indications for pulmonary artery catheterization in obstetric and gynecologic patients are presented. Insertion techniques, complications, and clinical outcome are discussed.

The impact of subspecialty training on the management of advanced ovarian cancer.

A retrospective study was conducted to determine the influence of subspecialty training in gynecologic oncology as well as several other covariates on the feasibility, operative mortality, and survival benefits of cytoreductive surgery for 263 patients with stages IIIC and IVA epithelial ovarian cancer. Covariates most predictive of an optimal (< or = 1 cm) cytoreductive outcome were the diameter of the largest metastases before cytoreduction (< or = 10 cm vs > 10 cm, P < 0.001) and the specialty training of the physicians present at surgery (gynecologic oncologists vs other, P < 0.001). Age influenced operative mortality most (< 60 vs > or = 60, P < 0.001). Covariates found to most significantly influence survival time include the specialty training of the physicians present at surgery (gynecologic oncologists vs other, P < 0.0001), cytoreductive outcome (complete vs optimal, P = 0.001, optimal vs suboptimal, P < 0.0001), grade of tumor (grade 1 vs grades 2 and 3, P = 0.01), and pelvic disease status (frozen pelvis vs mobile primary tumor, P = 0.03). We conclude that patients with advanced epithelial ovarian cancer should undergo aggressive cytoreductive surgery by gynecologic oncologists, with the objective to remove all macroscopic disease. Subsequent treatment with platinum-based chemotherapy offers the best chance for long-term survival or cure.