ABSTRACT
CONTEXT: Invasive sinonasal aspergillosis is a silently progressive disease that, left untreated, may invade the adjacent intracranial and intra-orbital compartments incurring serious morbidity. AIM: To evaluate our results of a collaborative surgical management plans for patients with invasive sinonasal aspergillosis with orbitocranial extension. SETTING AND DESIGN: Retrospective study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between the years 2000 and 2012, 12 patients with Aspergillus sinusitis with orbitocranial extension were treated at our institution. Preoperative CT and MRI scans were done in all cases and cerebral angiography in two patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Surgical combined transcranial and endonasal approaches to the skull base were considered in all patients. Adjuvant antifungals were administered postoperatively with regular clinical and radiologic follow up. RESULTS: All cases had a long history of headache and nasal obstruction (n = 12). Five presented with unilateral proptosis, one with meningitis, one with epilepsy, two with SAH, and one patient presented with trigeminal neuralgia. Craniotomy alone was chosen for the patients with isolated sphenoiditis (n = 2) while a combined cranial and endonasal approach was elected for the other patients (n = 10). Adjuvant antifungal therapy was used for 3-12 months. Patients were followed up clinically and radiologically for an average 36-month period (range = 12-50 months) with disease eradication achieved in eight patients (67%). Two died as consequence to SAH. Follow up also showed that three patients (25%) had sinunasal recurrence requiring evacuation through an endonasal approach. CONCLUSIONS: Surgical intervention, with adjuvant antifungal therapy, aiming for safe total removal of the fungal burden, whenever feasible, has a major role in the management of invasive sinonasal aspergillosis with orbitocranial extension with minimal morbidity and good outcomes.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Carcinosarcomas, also known as spindle cell carcinomas, are rare and highly aggressive tumors characterized by dual histologic differentiation of squamous cell and mesenchymal cell tumors. Occurrence of carcinosarcoma in maxillary sinus is very rare, with only 11 cases reported since 1957. The small number of reported cases creates an obstacle to the increased understanding of the behavior, prognosis, and therapeutic management of this tumor. CASE REPORT: A 52-year-old man presented with a 2-month history of right nasal obstruction. Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed opacified right frontal, sphenoid, ethmoid, and maxillary sinuses with soft tissue density and expansion of the mass with erosion of the right lateral maxillary wall. Functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) was done and histopathology revealed multiple fragments of nasal mucosa lined by stratified hyperplastic squamous epithelium with an increased degree of dysplasia and pleomorphism and a second spindle cell high-grade neoplastic growth with bizarre giant cells and abnormal mitotic figures. Consistent with carcinosarcoma, immunohistochemistry showed strong positive staining for vimentin in the spindle cell component and strong positive staining for cytokeratin markers in the epithelial cell component. The patient underwent right total maxillectomy with postoperative chemoradiation therapy and survived for 1 year. CONCLUSIONS: Carcinosarcoma of the maxillary sinus is a rare disease with non-specific symptoms; it usually presents in the advance stage and is associated with poor patient prognosis. This case indicates that surgical intervention with postoperative chemoradiotherapy improves patient prognosis and should be considered as the standard therapeutic modality.
