Síndrome de Boerhaave: manejo diagnóstico y terapéutico en el Hospital Regional de Talca / Boerhaave Syndrome: diagnostic and therapeutic management at the Hospital Regional de Talca

Introduction: Boerhaave syndrome is a spontaneous rupture of the esophageal wall caused by a sudden increase in intraesophageal pressure. It represents an incidence of approximately 15% of all esophageal perforations, which do not exceed 3.1 per 1 million inhabitants per year. Objectives: To communicate the clinical presentation and management of patients with this syndrome, as well as to reveal the different options available in our service for its treatment. Methods: Search in the statistical data of the regional Hospital of Talca for patients with a diagnosis of Boerhaave syndrome. Five patients were found. Information was obtained from their clinical records and is presented as a clinical case report with a descriptive analysis of their management. Results: Of the 5 clinical cases presented, a classic clinical presentation can be observed, most of the patients presented with vomiting that later evolved with thoracic and/or epigastric pain, associated with imaging studies suggesting esophageal perforation. Management was surgical in 100% of the cases, applying different techniques described in the literature. Discussion and Conclusion: Boerhaave syndrome is a medical-surgical emergency that requires timely management. In spite of the variety of management and the consequences of each one of them, all the patients had an evolution that allowed them to preserve their lives until nowadays. Keeping a high index of suspicion and choosing the best management will have an impact on morbidity and mortality.

La video mediastinoscopía en el oncotórax / The video mediastinoscopy in oncological thorax

RESUMEN Fundamento: el avance exponencial de la cirugía torácica tiene un desarrollo paralelo a las técnicas anestésicas e imagenológicas, desde la antigüedad se recogen en diferentes manuscritos los intentos de abordar este espacio corporal. Objetivo: describir la técnica de videomediastinoscopía así como las referencias anatómicas para su realización. Métodos: se realizó una descripción de la técnica de la videomediastinoscopía para la exéresis y biopsia de alteraciones mediastinales, basado en la experiencia personal y consulta bibliográfica. Se consultaron los repositorios internacionales: Ebsco, Medline y Cochrane para la obtención de las referencias relacionadas con el tema. Conclusiones: la videomediastinoscopía es una vía segura y útil para la estadificación del cáncer pulmonar la cual brinda además una clasificación patológica más exacta que las toracotomías convencionales al permitir el acceso a las zonas ganglionares superiores, aórticas y subcarinal según corresponda.

ABSTRACT Background: the exponential progress of thoracic surgery has a parallel development to anesthetic and imaging techniques; since ancient times, attempts to address this body space are collected in different manuscripts. Objective: to describe the technique of video-mediastinoscopy, as well as the anatomical references for its performance. Methods: a description of the technique of video-mediastinoscopy for the excision and biopsy of mediastinal alterations was made, based on personal experience and bibliographic consultation. The international repositories Ebsco, Medline and Cochrane were consulted to obtain references related to the subject. Conclusions: video-mediastinoscopy is a safe and useful route for lung cancer staging which also provides a more accurate pathological classification than conventional thoracotomies by allowing access to the upper, aortic and subcarinal ganglionic areas as appropriate.

The value of radiomics based on chest CT plain scan in the differential diagnosis of thymoma and other anterior mediastinal lesions / 肿瘤研究与临床

Objective:To explore the diagnostic value of radiomics features based on chest CT plain scan in differentiating thymoma from other anterior mediastinal lesions.Methods:The data of 128 patients with anterior mediastinal lesions from January 2018 to January 2021 in the Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University were retrospectively analyzed. According to the pathological criteria, all patients were divided into thymoma group (67 cases) and non-thymoma group (61 cases). The radiomics analysis module based on MATLAB platform was used to analyze images of CT plain scan, and then radiomics features of the whole lesions were extracted. The radiomics features were screened by using group difference analysis, Boruta algorithm and collinearity detection stepwise. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves for the single diagnosis and the combined diagnosis of thymoma were plotted with the selected features, and the area under the curve (AUC) was calculated to analyze the diagnostic performance of the selected features.Results:A total of 851 radiomics features were extracted, and 4 radiomics features with statistically significant differences were finally selected after multi-step dimensionality reduction, including robust mean absolute deviation, gray level non-uniformity, wavelet-LLH run variance and wavelet-HLL dependence non-uniformity. ROC curves analysis showed that the AUC of 4 radiomics features was 0.712, 0.634, 0.660 and 0.699, respectively in the single diagnosis; the specificity was 70.2%, 61.2%, and 61.2%, respectively; and the sensitivity was 60.7%, 60.6%, 68.8% and 70.5%, respectively. AUC value of the four combined detection was 0.881, the sensitivity and specificity was 75.4% and 89.6%, respectively; and the diagnostic efficiency was significantly improved.Conclusion:The radiomics features based on CT plain sans have a certain value and application potential in the differential diagnosis of thymoma and other anterior mediastinal lesions.

Value of endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) in the diagnosis of lung and mediastinal lesions

SUMMARY OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the value of EBUS-TBNA in the diagnosis of lung and mediastinal lesions. METHODS: Prospective cohort study that included 52 patients during a 2-year period (2016 to 2018) who underwent EBUS-TBNA. RESULTS: Among the 52 individuals submitted to the procedure, 22 (42.31%) patients were diagnosed with locally advanced lung cancer (N2 or N3 lymph node involvement). EBUS-TBNA confirmed the diagnosis of metastases from other extrathoracic tumors in the mediastinum or lung in 5 patients (9.61%), confirmed small cell lung cancer in 3 patients (5.76%), mediastinal sarcoidosis in 1 patient (1.92%), and reactive mediastinal lymph node in 8 patients (15.38%); insufficient results were found for 3 patients (5.76%). Based on these results, EBUS-TBNA avoided further subsequent surgical procedures in 39 of 52 patients (75%). The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy were 86%, 100%, 100%, 77%, and 90%, respectively. No major complications were observed. CONCLUSIONS: EBUS-TBNA is a safe, effective, and valuable method. This technique can significantly reduce the rate of subsequent surgical procedures required for the diagnosis of lung and mediastinal lesions.

RESUMO OBJETIVO: Avaliar a importância da ecoendoscopia endobrônquica com punção por agulha fina (Ebus-TBNA) no diagnóstico das lesões pulmonares e mediastinais. MÉTODOS: Estudo prospectivo e do tipo coorte, no qual foram incluídos 52 pacientes, durante o período de dois anos (2016 a 2018), submetidos ao procedimento de Ebus-TBNA. RESULTADOS: Do total de 52 indivíduos submetidos ao procedimento, 22 (42,31%) pacientes foram diagnosticados com neoplasia pulmonar localmente avançada (N2 ou N3). O método confirmou o diagnóstico de metástases de outros tumores extratorácicos no mediastino ou pulmão em cinco pacientes (9,61%), três pacientes (5,76%) com carcinoma de pequenas células, um paciente (1,92%) com sarcoidose, oito pacientes (15,38%) com linfonodomegalias reacionais/inflamatórias e resultado insuficiente em três pacientes (5,76%). O Ebus-TBNA evitou a realização de outros procedimentos cirúrgicos subsequentes em 39 de 52 (75%) pacientes. Foram calculados os valores de sensibilidade de 86%, especificidade de 100%, valor preditivo positivo de 100%, valor preditivo negativo de 77% e acurácia de 90%. Não foram observadas complicações maiores pelo método neste estudo. CONCLUSÃO: O Ebus-TBNA é um método seguro, eficaz e de relevante importância. Este exame pode reduzir significativamente o número de procedimentos invasivos subsequentes necessários para o diagnóstico das lesões pulmonares e mediastinais.

Endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration combined with either endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration or endoscopic ultrasound using the EBUS scope-guided fine-needle aspiration for diagnosing and staging mediastinal diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis

The present systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the available evidence base on endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) combined with either endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) or endoscopic ultrasound using the EBUS scope-guided fine-needle aspiration (EUS-B-FNA) for diagnosing and staging mediastinal diseases. PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase were searched to identify suitable studies up to June 30, 2019. Two investigators independently reviewed articles and extracted relevant data. Data were pooled using random effect models to calculate diagnostic indices that included sensitivity and specificity. Summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curves were used to summarize the overall test performance. Data pooled from up to 16 eligible studies (including 10 studies of 963 patients about EBUS-TBNA with EUS-FNA and six studies of 815 patients with EUS-B-FNA) indicated that combining EBUS-TBNA with EUS-FNA was associated with slightly better diagnostic accuracy than combining it with EUS-B-FNA, in terms of sensitivity (0.87, 95%CI 0.83 to 0.90 vs. 0.84, 95%CI 0.80 to 0.88), specificity (1.00, 95%CI 0.99 to 1.00 vs. 0.96, 95%CI 0.93 to 0.97), diagnostic odds ratio (413.39, 95%CI 179.99 to 949.48 vs. 256.38, 95%CI 45.48 to 1445.32), and area under the SROC curve (0.99, 95%CI 0.97 to 1.00 vs. 0.97, 95%CI 0.92 to 1.00). The current evidence suggests that the combination of EBUS-TBNA with either EUS-FNA or EUS-B-FNA provides relatively high accuracy for diagnosing mediastinal diseases. The combination with EUS-FNA may be slightly better.

Evaluation of trans thoracic invasive diagnostic procedures in 50 adult patients of mediastinal diseases

Introduction: Mediastinum is a “Pandora’s box” with many neoplastic and nonneoplastic lesions. Clinico-radiological pattern of mediastinal diseases depends on the size, location and etiology. Hence, non-invasive approach to these cases sometimes leads to diagnostic dilemma. Aims: A prospective study was performed over a 1-year period with the objective of evaluation of diagnostic yields and risk of trans thoracic ultra sound (TTUS) and computed tomography (CT) guided fine‑needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) and Tru-cut biopsy along with comparison of cost-effectiveness among mediastinal diseases where clinical and non-invasive imaging could not conclude the diagnosis. Materials and Methods: A prospective study of mediastinal diseases of the adult population without having any diagnosis admitted in a tertiary care hospital in Eastern India was performed after clearance of the ethical committee of the institute. Fifty cases of mediastinal diseases were seen during the study period. One patient sometimes had undergone more than one procedure. The choice of a procedure depended upon the location of the lesion, nature of disease and complication and cost effectiveness ofthe procedures. During the calculation of diagnostic yield of procedure, conclusive results and concordant results to more invasive procedures were considered. Results: Among 50 patients diagnostic yield of TTUS guided FNA and Tru-cut biopsy were 60% and 63.6% respectively. Diagnostic yield of Thoracic CT guided FNA and Tru-cut biopsy were 85% and 92.3% respectively. As a whole TTUS guided invasive procedure and Thoracic CT guided invasive procedure had a diagnostic yield of 61.5% and 87.9% respectively. Complication is less in CT guided invasive procedures (9.1%) compared to Transthoracic USG guided invasive procedures (11.5%) and complication is more common in Tru-Cut biopsy (16.7%) than fine needle aspiration (5.7%). Conclusion: Tru-cut biopsy if applicable is much superior to FNAC for a definite diagnosis of the mediastinal diseases. TTUS guided invasive procedures are very much cost-effective and have added advantage of real time guidance and is comparable with CT guided invasive procedures in respect to risk and diagnostic yields.

Síndrome de Klinefelter diagnosticado en un adulto a raíz del estudio de infección respiratoria recurrente y masa mediastínica: caso clínico / Thymoma in a patient with klinefelter syndrome: case report

Klinefelter syndrome (47, XXY in most cases) is a frequently underdiagnosed chromosomal anomaly associated with multiple comorbidities in adult life. Patients with Klinefelter syndrome have a higher risk of cancer. Specifically, these patients have a higher risk for mediastinal germ cell tumors. It is estimated that 8% of male patients with mediastinal tumors have Klinefelter. We report a 42-years-old male who suffered recurrent respiratory infections. During the study, a mediastinal mass was found, whose pathological study disclosed a type B thymoma. The patient had a history of infertility, high stature, gynecomastia, obesity with gynecoid distribution of body fat and testicular atrophy. A karyotype was requested (47, XXY), confirming the diagnosis of Klinefelter syndrome.

Video-assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery for the Treatment of Mediastinal Lymph Node Tuberculous Abscesses / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

The mediastinal lymph node tuberculous abscesses (MLNTAs) are secondary to mediastinal tuberculous lymphadenitis.Surgical excision is often required when cold abscesses form.This study was aimed to examine video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for the treatment of MLNTA.Clinical data of 16 MLNTA patients who were treated in our hospital between December 1,2013 and December 1,2015 were retrospectively analyzed.All of the patients underwent the radical debridement and drainage of abscesses,and intrathoracic lesions were removed by VATS.They were also administered the intensified anti-tuberculosis treatment (ATT),and engaged in normal physical activity and follow-up for 3 to 6 months.The results showed that VATS was successfully attempted in all of the 16 MLNTA patients and they all had good recovery.Two patients developed complications after surgery,with one patient developing recurrent laryngeal nerve injury,and the other reporting poor wound healing.It was concluded that VATS is easy to perform,and safe,and has high rates of success and relatively few side-effects when used to treat MLNTA.

The diagnostic value of radial echoendoscopy combined with micro-probe for differentiation of mediastinal disease and esophageal submucosal lesion / 中华消化内镜杂志

Objective To study the diagnostic value of radial echoendoscopy combined with ultrasonic micro-probe for differentiating mediastinal disease from esophageal submucosal lesion.Methods Data of 53 patients with esophageal eminence with unknown origin detected by gastroscopy or CT in China-Japan Union Hospital were reviewed.Ultrasonic micro-probe was performed first and followed with radial echoendoscopy.The diagnosis was compared with the results of CT.Results The diagnostic sensitivities of EUS and CT for esophageal submucosal lesion were 90.9％ (20/22) and 50.0％ (11/22),and the specificities were 93.5％ (29/31)and 83.9％ (26/31).The sensitivities for the benign mediastinal disease were 91.7％ (22/24) and 70.8％ (17/24),and the specificities for the benign disease were 93.1％ (27/29)and 62.1％ (18/29).The sensitivity and specificity for malignant mediastinal disease were both 100.0％.Conclusion Radial echoendoscopy combined with ultrasonic micro-probe shows prominent advantage in the diagnosis of the esophageal submucosal lesion and mediastinal disease over CT,especially in the specificity and sensitivity for esophageal submucosal lesion and benign mediastinal disease.

Quistes tímicos, una patología infrecuente del mediastino / Thymic cysts, an unusual disease of the mediastinum

Los quistes tímicos representan el 1 - 5 por ciento de las masas del mediastino anterior. Por su relativa frecuencia, constituyen un grupo importante entre los quistes mediastínicos. Generalmente son asintomáticos, pero pueden presentarse con disnea, dolor torácico y tos. PRESENTACIÓN DE CASOS: Se presentan tres casos de quiste tímico en pacientes de género femenino de 54, 59 y 70 años. Todas refirieron historia de más de un año de evolución de síntomas como dolor torácico, tos, disnea y disfagia. Se estudiaron con radiografía y tomografía computada de tórax que demostró imagen de tumor mediastínico de aspecto quístico. Por tratarse de lesiones sintomáticas, en todas se realizó tratamiento quirúrgico. En el intraoperatorio se observaron quistes tímicos de gran tamaño, los cuales fueron resecados en su totalidad, sin incidentes. Estudio histopatológico concluyó quiste tímico en los tres casos. Las pacientes no presentaron complicaciones postoperatorias y en el seguimiento se encontraron asintomáticas. DISCUSIÓN: Los quistes del mediastino son lesiones poco comunes. Su origen histológico es variado. Se describen los quistes broncogénicos y tímicos como los más frecuentes, sin embargo, también se cuentan los de origen pleural, pericárdico y esofágico. En particular, los quistes tímicos generalmente se localizan en el mediastino anterior. Se describen los de origen congénito y los adquiridos, cada uno con características propias. El tratamiento quirúrgico es indicación en pacientes sintomáticos, y se considera un método seguro con baja morbilidad. El diagnóstico se confirma con la resección de la lesión y el estudio histopatológico...

Thymic cysts account for 1-5 percent of masses of anterior mediastinum. For its frequency, are described as an important group of mediastinal cysts. Usually are asymptomatic, but they may present as chest pain, dyspnea and cough. CASEREPORT: Three cases of thymic cyst in female patients of 54,59 and 70 years old are presented. All of three patients reported history of over a year of evolution with symptoms like chest pain, cough, dyspnea and dysphagia. They were studied with thorax radiography and with chest computed tomography which showed a mediastinal cystic tumor. Because they had symptomatic lesions, surgical treatment was performed. During surgery large thymic cysts were observed. The lesions were totally resected without incidents. Histopathological study concluded thymic cyst in all three cases. The patients did not have postoperative complications and were asymptomatic in the follow-up. DISCUSSION: Mediastinal cysts are uncommon lesions. Histological origin is varied. Bronchogenic and thymic cysts are most common, however, pleural, pericardic and esophagic cysts are also observed. Particularly, thymic cysts are often located in anterior mediastinum. Congenital or acquired origin are described, each one with specific characteristics. Surgical treatment is indicated in symptomatic patients, and is considered a safe approach with low morbidity. The diagnosis is confirmed with the surgical resection and histopathological study...

Application of EBUS-TBNA and PET/CT in diagnosing enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes caused by unknown reasons / 第二军医大学学报

Objective To compare the values of endobronchial ultrasound guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) and positron-emission tomography and computed tomography (PET/CT) in diagnosis of enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes caused by unknown reasons, and to study the diagnostic value of the combination of EBUS-TBNA and PET/CT. Methods A retrospective study was carried out in our hospital. From December 2010 to August 2011, a total of 45 patients with enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes received EBUS-TBNA following PET/CT examination. Conventional bronchoscopy was performed before EBUS-TBNA. The patients with endobronchial lesions were excluded from this study. Patients with negative EBUS-TBNA results underwent surgical biopsies or a minimum of 6 months ' clinical and radiological follow-up. Results Sensitivities of EBUS-TBNA and PET/CT in diagnosis of enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes were 81.48% (22/27) and 92.59% (25/27), the specificities were 100% (18/18) and 55.56% (10/18), the positive predictive values (PPV) were 100% (22/22) and 75.76% (25/33), the negative predictive values (NPV) were 78.26% (18/23) and 83.33% (10/12), the accuracies were 88.89% (40/45) and 77.78% (34/45), respectively. EBUS-TBNA had a significantly better specificity (P = 0. 003) and PPV (P = 0. 016) than PET/CT for diagnosis of enlarge mediastinal lymph nodes. Conclusion EBUS-TBNA is valuable for diagnosing enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes caused by unknown reasons. EBUS-TBNA combined with PET/CT can reduce the false negative results in diagnosis of malignant mediastinal lymph nodes.

Multilocular Thymic Cyst with Prominent Lymphoid Follicular Hyperplasia: A Case Report

We present herein an unusual case of multilocular thymic cyst, with prominent lymphoid follicular hyperplasia, in a 64-year-old man. It was incidentally founded as a mediastinal mass on chest radiography, during a routine health check-up. Computed tomography revealed a cystic lesion, which contains thick septa involving the thymus. The resected mass, 8x4 cm in diameter, involved the thymus and there is no adhesion or invasion into the adjacent tissue. The cut surface showed cystic spaces with thick white-tan firm wall, which cysts contained gelatinous material. Microscopically, the lesion was characterized by multiple cysts, lined by flattened cuboidal epithelium that was separated by thick walls, having a dense lymphoid tissue with lymphoid follicles. The patient was discharged without any complication and is well without evidence of recurrence for sixteen months.

The clinical application of endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) for staging of lung cancer / 中华胸心血管外科杂志

Objective To evaluated the role of endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) in the diagnosis of mediastinal lesions around the trachea.MethodsThe study was retrospective, between September 2009 to July 2010, 34 consecutive patients with enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes or mediastinal masses of unknown origin underwent EBUS-TBNA.Patients in whom EBUS-TBNA was nondiagnostic subsequently underwent surgical biopsy or a minimum of 6 months clinical and radiologic follow-up.ResultsOf the 34 patients, EBUS-TBNA achieved definitive diagnosis in 28 patients (82.4％), 10 were diagnosed as malignancies, 18 were diagnosed as benign.The sensitivity, specificity,and accuracy of EBUS-TBNA in distinguishing benign from malignant mediastinal lesions were 90.9％, 100％, and 97.1％,respectively.EBUS was well tolerated by all of the patients with no complications.ConclusionEBUS-TBNA of mediastinal lesions around the trachea is a minimally invasive safe diagnostic technique with high yield.

Doença de Castleman associada a sarcoma de células dendríticas foliculares e miastenia gravis / Castleman's disease associated with follicular dendritic cell sarcoma and myasthenia gravis

A doença de Castleman é um distúrbio linfoproliferativo atípico, de etiologia desconhecida, que pode estar associada a uma série de condições clínicas, inclusive doenças de caráter autoimune e neoplasias malignas. No presente relato, uma paciente de 72 anos foi encaminhada ao serviço de cirurgia torácica do Hospital Universitário Getúlio Vargas, localizado na cidade de Manaus (AM) para a ressecção de um tumor de mediastino posterior. Três meses antes, havia sido internada em UTI com um quadro de dispneia intensa, ocasião na qual foi diagnosticada miastenia gravis. Após a ressecção da massa mediastinal, a análise histopatológica revelou doença de Castleman hialino-vascular complicada por sarcoma de células dendríticas foliculares. Até o momento da redação deste estudo, a paciente utilizava um anticolinesterásico e corticoides para o controle da miastenia gravis.

Castleman's disease is an atypical lymphoproliferative disorder of unknown etiology, which might be associated with various clinical conditions, including autoimmune diseases and malignant neoplasms. We report the case of a 72-year-old female patient who was referred to the thoracic surgery department of Getúlio Vargas University Hospital, in the city of Manaus, Brazil, for the resection of a posterior mediastinal tumor. Three months prior, the patient had been admitted to the ICU with signs of severe dyspnea, at which time she was diagnosed with myasthenia gravis. After the resection of the mediastinal tumor, the histopathological examination revealed hyaline vascular-type Castleman's disease, complicated by follicular dendritic cell sarcoma. At this writing, the patient was being treated with an anticholinesterase agent and corticosteroids for the control of myasthenia gravis.

Clinical application progress of video mediastinoscopy / 国际肿瘤学杂志

Modiastinoscopy is an invasive method with very high sensitivity and specificity, which has an unreplaceble role in diagnosis of indeterminate mediastinal masses and staging of lung neoplasms. Video me-diastinoscopy provides optimal visualization of mediasfinal structure and the possibility for the surgeon to operatewith both hands. And more operation can be performed by video mediastinoscopy. Now video mediastinoscopy has been replacing traditional mediastinoscopy gradually.

Enfermedad de hddgkin primitiva de mediastino: reporte de un caso / Primitive Hodgkin´s disease of mediastinum: Acase report

Se presenta el caso de una paciente blanca de 62 años de edad con hipertensión arterial que acude al hospital por presentar desde hace tres meses disfonía, dolor interno al levantar el brazo derecho y disfagia ligera. Se le realizaron estudios hematológicos, radiológicos e histológicos que permitieron arribar al diagnóstico de enfermedad de Hodgkin celularidad mixta primitiva del mediastino. Los estudios radiológicos e histológicos fueron los más utilizados. El tratamiento de radioterapia y quimioterapia combinado resultó favorable. Se comenta el cuadro clínico, su diagnóstico, tratamiento y se revisa la literatura.

A case of a white 62-years-old patient with arterial hypertension is presented that come up to the hospital by presenting dysphonia since three months ago, internal pain at raising the right arm and mild dysphagia. Hematologic, radiologic, and histological studies were perfomed, that permitted diagnose Hodgkin´s disease primitive mixed cellularity of the mediastinum. The radiological and histological studies were the most utilized. Combined treatment of radiation therapy and chemotherapy turned out to be favorable. Clinical picture, its diagnosis, and treatment are commented also the literature is reviewed.

Radiological Findings of Pleural and Mediastinal Diseases / 결핵및호흡기질환

Radiological analysis of chest lesions detected on chest radiographs or CT scans begins with their classification into parenchymal, pleural, or extrapleural lesions according to their presumed origin. The mediastinum is divided anatomically into the anterior, middle, and posterior mediastinal compartments, and localizing a mediastinal mass to one of these divisions can locationfacilitate their differential diagnosis. A differential diagnosis of a mediastinal mass is usually based on a number of findings, including its ; the structure from which it is arising; whether it is single, multifocal (involving several different areas or lymph node groups), or diffuse; its size and shape; its attenuation (fatty, fluid, soft-tissue, or a combination of these); the presence of calcification along with its characteristics and amount; and its opacification following the administration of contrast agents.

The preliminary experience of intercostal video-mediastinoscopy in clinical application / 中华胸心血管外科杂志

Objective: To determine the value of intercostal video mediastinoscopy (VMS) in clinical application. Methods: The clinical data of 126 patients treated with intercostal VMS were summarized retrospectively. Of them, 8 patients with suspected malignant pleural effusion underwent intercostal VMS pleural biopsy and talc poudrage pleurodesis, 118 patients with palmar hyperhidrosis underwent bilateral intercostal VMS sympathectomy. Results: Definitive pathologic diagnosis has been made through VMS pleural biopsy in pleural effusion group, and the efficiency of talc pleurodesis was 100%(8/8). In 118 patients with palmar hyperhidrosis, the symptom of hands sweating disappeared completely after operation. Both hands became dry with an increasing skin temperature of 1 5℃～3 0℃ immediately after operation. No recurrence was recorded during the follow up. No mortality and morbidity were reported in this group. Conclusion: Comparing with VATS, intercostal VMS is easier to operate and less invasive. It is an effective and alternative procedure in the treatment of malignant pleural effusion and palmar hyperhidrosis.

A Case of Primary Pericardial Undifferentiated Sarcoma

Primary pericardial sarcomas are extremely rare. The authors report a case of a 46-yr-old woman in whom a large mediastinal mass was discovered. The patient presented with cough, dyspnea, and orthopnea. Diagnostic investigations, such as echocardiography, computed tomography, and exploratory thoracotomy provided the evidence of a large mass in the mediastinum, attached by a broad base to the superior portion of the pericardium. A excisional biopsy was performed, and histologic examination of a biopsy specimen showed undifferentiated sarcoma. However, the complete removal of the mass was impossible due to adhesion to the adjacent great vessels. After the completion of the chemotherapy the patient was completely asymptomatic. However, follow-up transesophageal echocardiography showed a residual 3x4 cm-sized mass. The patient received the radiotherapy with a total dose of 55 Gy over 6 weeks. At present, there is no evidence of disease progression.

Diagnóstico de los procesos pleuro - pulmonares y mediastinales por toracoscopia / Diagnosis of pleuro-pulmonary and mediastinal process for thoracoscopy

Analizamos los resultados obtenidos en 75 pacientes que se les realizó toracoscopia o pleuroscopia bajo visualización directa con la toma de la biopsia y otros procederes terapéuticos, en el Hospital Clínico Quirúrgico Docente Amalia Simoni de Camagüey desde junio 1997- julio 2000, todos los casos tenían el diagnóstico sugestivo por imagenología de proceso expansivo intratorácico con o sin derrames tabicados, además de otros como las neoplasias del esófago. Todos estos casos se evaluaron previamente por el grupo multidisciplinario creado al efecto en esta institución, que funciona bajo un protocolo investigativo, al lograr en el 100 % de los pacientes la tipificación, estadiación del proceso, además de la terapéutica adecuada.

We analized the results obtained from 78 patients who were performed thorascoscopy or pleuroscopy under direct visualization, taking biobsy and other therapeutic procedures an Amalia Simoni Clinical Hospital of Camagüey from June 1997 to July 200, all cases had th diganosis suggested by imaging of intratoracic expansive process, with or withoud septate overflows, together with others such as esophagus neoplasias. All these cases were previuosly evaluated by the multidisciplinary group created for this purpose in this institution which functions guided by a research protocol, archieving in 100 % of patients typification, process staging and adequate therapeuties.