Aneurysmal artery supplying pulmonary sequestration: successful combined approach.

A 62-year-old man was diagnosed with an asymptomatic intralobar pulmonary sequestration supplied by a short-neck proximal 57×25 mm aneurysmal artery originating from the mid-descending aorta. The patient underwent thoracic endovascular aneurysm repair; an aortic endograft was released to entirely restore the aberrant vessel. Then, pulmonary resection was performed. A triportal video-assisted left lower lobectomy was carried out. The thoracic endovascular aneurysm repair minimized the risk of bleeding and allowed a safe pulmonary resection with a minimally invasive approach.

Phrenoplasty Techniques for the Reconstruction of Basal Chest Wall Defects.

BACKGROUND: Primary and secondary tumors of the abdominal lower third of the bony thorax are relatively rare. Therefore, indications and techniques for chest wall reconstructions in this area are not well defined. METHODS: The techniques for reconstructing basal chest wall defects using the diaphragm are described. Indications for phrenoplasty are limited to reconstruction after full-thickness resection of at least two of the last four ribs in the midaxillary line. The diaphragm can be used for reconstructive purposes both if it is intact and if it is partially involved in the resection of the chest wall. RESULTS: At our institution, the abovementioned reconstructive technique was successfully performed in five patients with an uneventful post-operative course. CONCLUSIONS: The main advantages of these methods are the use of promptly available, high-quality autologous tissue and the exclusion of the pleural space from the defect area, thus transforming a thoracic defect into an abdominal one. The disadvantage is a variable reduction in the volume of the hemithorax. These techniques could be compared with other reconstruction techniques using pre-/post-operative respiratory functional tests.

Giant intrathoracic cystic schwannoma resected by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery.

Schwannoma is a benign tumour originating from the Schwann cells. Patients can remain asymptomatic, as the onset of symptoms usually depends on the compressive effect on adjacent organs; dimensional and morphological variability increase the time for the diagnosis. We report the case of a successful surgical resection, performed by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery, on a patient with radiological evidence of a massive cystic intrathoracic neoformation, histologically revealed to be a peculiar Schwannoma.

Massive, life-threatening hemoptysis due to localized granulomatosis with polyangiitis.

Massive hemoptysis may be related to a wide spectrum of diseases whose differential diagnosis can be challenging, also due to the medical emergency condition.We present a case of a 33-year-old woman presented to our department with sudden, life-threatening hemoptysis from unknown etiology, which required a rescue pulmonary lobectomy after resuscitation maneuvers. Histology proved to be a localized Wegener granulomatosis. Our case shows that granulomatosis should always be considered among the possible, although rarer, causes of massive hemoptysis.

Atypical parathyroid tumor: clinical and parathyroid hormone response to surgical treatment.

Purpose: Primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) is caused by typical adenoma (TA), multiglandular disease (MD), or parathyroid carcinoma (PC), and in a smaller percentage of cases by atypical parathyroid tumor (APT). The objective of this study is the retrospective analysis of clinical features and parathyroid hormone (PTH)/calcium response to surgery in patients who underwent parathyroidectomy for symptomatic PHPT with histological evidence of APT. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed our institutional experience in the management of PHPT from January 2016 to December 2021 focusing on those patients presenting APTs. We analyzed the clinical features of this disease and PTH/calcium response to surgical treatment in APTs compared to the other pathological conditions causing PHPT. Results: In a cohort of 125 patients with PHPT we found 112 TAs (89.6%), 6 APTs (4.8%), 6 PCs (4.8%), and only 1 MD (0.8%). APTs in comparison to other parathyroid diseases showed peculiar features such as adhesion to the surrounding structures and a frequent intrathyroidal location, which may justify thyroid loboistmectomy adopted in most of the observed cases. APTs showed significantly higher preoperative PTH values compared to TA + MD and were relevant to PC. Conclusion: Due to its rarity, there is a lack of specific indications in the management of APTs. Biochemical features observed in APT and PC can be related to similar biological behavior. However, some specific features observed preoperatively in some cases of PHPT might suggest presence of an APT, which could be helpful mostly in surgical and postoperative management. Further studies are required to confirm the results of the present preliminary report.