A Case Report of Inflammatory Myofibroblastic Tumor: A Rare Benign Lung Tumor.

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors (IMTs) of the lung are a rare type of mesenchymal tumors that tend to occur more in the lungs of children. They are extremely rare in adults. IMTs require extensive pulmonary resection because they are commonly locally invasive. The key to preventing recurrence is complete resection, and the prognosis is excellent after surgery. We report a case of a patient with an inflammatory pseudotumor of the lung. The patient is a 27-year-old female who presented with a dry cough. A chest radiograph and computed tomography showed a lesion in the left main bronchus and near-total left lung collapse. As surgery was necessary to establish the diagnosis, left pneumonectomy was performed followed by a histological examination of the surgical specimen which confirmed inflammatory pseudotumor.

Pleural and serum markers for diagnosis of malignant pleural effusion.

BACKGROUND: Differentiation between benign and malignant exudative pleural effusion remains a clinical challenge. Recently, several markers have been reported to increase the diagnostic accuracy of malignant pleural effusion, with controversial results. METHODS: Patients with exudative pleural effusion were divided into 2 groups: a malignant pleural effusion group (39 patients) diagnosed by malignant cells in pleural fluid cytology or by malignant infiltration of the pleura on pleural biopsy, and a benign pleural effusion group (51 patients) with neither malignant cells in pleural fluid cytology nor malignant infiltration of the pleura on pleural biopsy. Matrix metalloproteinase-9 and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 were determined in both serum and pleural fluid samples, using commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. RESULTS: The etiology of malignant pleural effusion in the malignant group was breast cancer in 43.6% and bronchogenic carcinoma in 25.6%. There was a statistically significant difference between the 2 groups regarding sex, with more males in the benign group. There was no significant difference between groups regarding age. The median levels of matrix metalloproteinase-9 and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 were higher in the malignant group than in the benign group, and the differences were highly significant in both pleural fluid (p < 0.001) and serum (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Matrix metaloproteinase-9 and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 in serum and pleural fluid samples might be valuable markers for differentiating benign from malignant pleural effusions.

Temporary Epicardial Pacing After Valve Replacement: Incidence And Predictors.

Temporary pacemaker wires are usually inserted in patients after valve replacement and may be beneficial for optimizing myocardial function in patients that develop postoperative hemodynamically significant arrhythmias [Elmi 2002]. Indications for temporary cardiac pacing (TCP) are atrial, ventricular or atrioventricular pacing for bradyarrhythmias and for management of both atrial and ventricular tachyarrhythmias [De Belder 1990; Liebold 1998].Pacemaker wires have two ends - one end has a small needle, which is passed into the myocardial surface, then is cut off. The needles may be coiled or clipped for better fixation. On the other end, the larger needle is used to penetrate the body wall, to pass the wire through to the body surface. There is debate about the ideal site for wire insertion, with agreement that the most common site of insertion is in the right ventricle [Hurle 2002]. The complications of PMWs include: bleeding, tamponade, arrhythmias, and even retention with its serious hazards [Kapoor 2011; Smith 2013]. During removal of PMWs, there may be atrial or ventricular lacerations which lead to bleeding and to developing tamponade. This may prolong the hospital stay of patients, especially patients on anticoagulant medications. This study was done on patients who received pacing wires during cardiac surgery. The purpose of the study was to predict risk factors that could lead to cardiac pacing after valve surgery.

Indicators for surgical intervention in thoracic empyema in children.

OBJECTIVES: To determine predictors for surgical intervention of thoracic empyema in children, and its associated morbidity. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective review of medical records of children with empyema thoracis admitted in the Maternity and Children Hospital, Al Madinah Al Munawwarah, Saudi Arabia between January 2007 and January 2012. The data extracted included: socio-demographic data, clinical data, method of treatment, and follow up data. According to the introduced therapeutic methods, a total of 62 patients were divided into 2 groups; patients treated with chest tube (CT) insertion (51 cases), and 11 cases that required thoracotomy (TH); groups were compared to determine predictors for thoracotomy. RESULTS: Of 62 patients, 37 were females and 25 were males. In terms of age, side of lesion, presence of cough, or dyspnea, both groups were homogenous. Both groups had significant differences for duration of complaint (TH and CT) (13.5±6.5 days versus 10±3.6, p=0.005), presence of fever (90.2% versus 36.4%, p less than 0.001), history of recurrent chest infections (90.9% versus 37.3%, p=0.001), and radiological findings. However, it was not evident that any of these variables influenced treatment decision except absence of fever, which was significantly less in patients treated with thoracotomy. CONCLUSION: No specific indicator was found to increase expectancy for surgical intervention as a treatment choice, except the absence of fever, which may reflect the delayed referral and prolonged use of antibiotics and cannot be interpreted truly without caution as an indicator for surgical intervention.

Effect of body mass index on early clinical outcomes after cardiac surgery.

BACKGROUND: there are several reports on the outcomes of cardiac surgery in relation to body mass index. Some concluded that obesity did not increase morbidity or mortality after cardiac surgery, whereas others demonstrated that obesity was a predictor of both morbidity and mortality. METHODS: this was a retrospective study of 3370 adult patients undergoing cardiac surgery. The patients were divided into 4 groups according to body mass index. The 4 groups were compared in terms of preoperative, operative, and postoperative characteristics. RESULTS: obese patients had a significantly younger mean age. Diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia were significantly more common in obese patients. The crossclamp time was significantly longer in the underweight group. Reoperation for bleeding, and pulmonary, gastrointestinal, and renal complications were significantly more common in the underweight group. Wound complications were significantly more frequent in the obese group. Mortality was inversely proportional to body mass index. The adjusted odds ratios of the early clinical outcomes demonstrated a higher risk of wound complications in overweight and obese patients CONCLUSION: body mass index has no effect on early clinical outcomes after cardiac surgery, except for a higher risk of wound complications in overweight and obese patients.

Pleural tent for decreasing air leak following upper lobectomy: a prospective randomised trial.

OBJECTIVE: Prolonged air leak is still one of the most frequent complications after pulmonary resections, particularly upper lobectomy. This study aimed at evaluating the efficacy of pleural tenting in decreasing air leak after upper lobectomy. METHODS: This was a prospective randomised study of 48 patients who had upper lobectomy. They were divided into two groups: the first group included 23 patients in whom the pleural tent was done, and the other group included 25 patients in whom no tenting was performed. These two groups were compared regarding the preoperative, operative and postoperative characteristics. RESULTS: The incidence of air leak was significantly lower in the tent group at postoperative day 3 and thereafter. The intensity of air leak at postoperative day 2 was significantly lower in the tent group (p=0.028), and the duration of air leak was significantly shorter in the tent group (2.96±1.43 days vs 4.68±2.95 days, p=0.015). The total amount of pleural drainage was significantly larger in the tent group (1278±407 ml vs 1054±266 ml, p=0.027). The chest tube duration and the total hospital stay showed no significant difference between both groups. The incidence of development of postoperative apical dead space was lower in the tent group but it did not reach a significant level. The incidence of prolonged air leak was significantly lower in the tent group and regression analysis for its risk factors showed that pleural tenting was significantly associated with decreasing the incidence of prolonged air leak while chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) was significantly associated with increasing it. CONCLUSION: Pleural tenting is a simple, short, safe and effective procedure for decreasing air leak following upper lobectomy and may be used especially in those patients, who have increased risk of prolonged air leak.

Intercostal muscle flap for decreasing pain after thoracotomy: a prospective randomized trial.

BACKGROUND: Intercostal nerve damage is often suggested to be the cause of pain after thoracotomy. METHODS: This was a prospective randomized study of 120 patients who had posterolateral thoracotomy. They were equally divided into two groups, the first in which intercostal muscle flap and intracostal sutures were used, and the other group in which the usual pericostal sutures were used. These two groups were compared regarding operative time, rib fracture, postoperative pulmonary functions, time to ambulation, pain score in the first week, doses of analgesics injected in the epidural catheter, postoperative complications, chest tube drainage, hospital stay, return to daily activities, and pain score and use of analgesics at 1, 3, and 6 months. RESULTS: Postoperative pain score throughout the first week was significantly lower in the patients in the intercostal muscle flap group, who had also a significantly earlier postoperative ambulation and return to normal daily activities, and received significantly lower doses of postoperative analgesics. After 1 month, patients in the intercostal muscle flap group had a significantly lower pain score and use of analgesics. After 3 months, pain score was not significantly different between both groups, but the use of analgesics was significantly lower in the intercostal muscle flap group. After 6 months, no significant difference was present between both groups with regard to pain score or the use of analgesics. CONCLUSIONS: Intercostals muscle flap and intracostal sutures are rapid, safe, and effective procedures in decreasing early pain after thoracotomy with subsequent earlier return to normal daily activities and lesser use of analgesics.