Lack of prognostic significance of intratumoral angiogenesis in nonmetastatic osteosarcoma.

BACKGROUND: A need exists to stratify patients with nonmetastatic osteosarcoma into risk subcategories to administer risk-adapted therapy. Intratumoral angiogenesis determined at diagnosis may have a prognostic significance in this malignancy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The authors performed a retrospective immunohistochemical study on archival pathologic material from patients with nonmetastatic osteosarcoma, excluding patients with purely chondroblastic tumors associated with hypovascularity of the cartilaginous stroma. Representative sections from the diagnostic biopsies were stained with a murine monoclonal antibody directed against CD34, an endothelial cell marker. Two pathologists unaware of the patients' long-term outcome counted microvessels in 10 microscopic fields from the most active areas of neovascularization. RESULTS: Between March 1988 and December 1996, 15 girls and 14 boys (median age 12.6 y, range 4.3-18.3) were identified. Seven patients had died of metastatic disease at a median of 3.4 years (range 0.8-7.4) after diagnosis; 22 were alive with no evidence of disease at a median follow-up of 6.8 years (range 2.7-11.4). There was no significant difference in the number of microvessels per field (pathologist 1, median 19 vs. 18.5; pathologist 2, median 15 vs. 10) between survivors or patients who died of metastatic disease. The correlation between the measurements of the two pathologists was excellent (correlation coefficient 0.87). CONCLUSIONS: Intratumoral neovascularization determined at diagnosis does not correlate with long-term outcome in patients with nonmetastatic osteosarcoma. A prospective study is necessary to confirm these results.

Recurrent anomalies of 6q25 in chondromyxoid fibroma.

Chondromyxoid fibroma is a rare benign bone tumor most commonly arising in the metaphysis of long bones in young adults. Histopathologically, chondromyxoid fibroma may be difficult to distinguish from other cartilaginous neoplasms. Recently, a pericentric inversion of chromosome 6 [inv(6)(p25q13)] has been proposed as a specific genetic marker for chondromyxoid fibroma. In this study, cytogenetic and spectral karyotypic analyses of 2 chondromyxoid fibroma cases showed clonal abnormalities of chromosome 6 but at a breakpoint on the long arm (q25) distal to that described in the pericentric inversion. These findings suggest that several distinct breakpoints on chromosome 6 are nonrandomly involved in chondromyxoid fibroma.

Trisomies 8 and 20 characterize a subgroup of benign fibrous lesions arising in both soft tissue and bone.

Trisomy 8 and trisomy 20 are nonrandom aberrations in desmoid tumors. The presence of these trisomies in related benign fibrous lesions of bone has not been previously addressed. In this study, 22 specimens from 19 patients diagnosed with desmoid tumor, desmoplastic fibroma, periosteal desmoid tumor, osteofibrous dysplasia, or fibrous dysplasia were examined by cytogenetic analysis of short-term cultures and bi-color fluorescence in situ hybridization of cytological touch preparations or paraffin-embedded tissue with centromeric probes for chromosomes 8 and 20. Trisomy 8 and trisomy 20 were detected by molecular cytogenetic methodologies in 15 specimens, including 10 primary bone lesions. Traditional cytogenetic analysis revealed trisomy 8 in two cases of osteofibrous dysplasia. Our findings demonstrate that trisomy 8 and trisomy 20 are also nonrandom aberrations in histologically similar, but clinically distinct, benign fibrous lesions of bone.

Cytogenetic findings in 73 osteosarcoma specimens and a review of the literature.

Tumor-specific chromosomal abnormalities have been identified in several histologic subtypes of sarcomas. Characterization of recurrent chromosomal abnormalities has provided direction for molecular investigations of pathogenetically important genes. Cytogenetic reports of osteosarcoma, the most common primary malignant bone tumor, are relatively rare. In this study, 73 osteosarcoma specimens from 51 patients were cytogenetically analyzed following short-term culture. Clonal chromosomal abnormalities were detected in 47 and included one haploid specimen, 18 near-diploid specimens, 17 near-triploid, 8 near-tetraploid, 1 near-hexaploid, and 2 specimens with multiple clones of different ploidy levels. Examination of the present data and previously published data (111 clonally abnormal osteosarcoma specimens) reveals that chromosomal bands or regions 1p11-13, 1q10-12, 1q21-22, 11p15, 12p13, 17p12-13, 19q13, and 22q11-13 are most frequently rearranged and the most common numerical abnormalities are +1, -9, -10, -13, and -17. Partial or complete loss of the long arm of chromosome 6 also was seen in all cases of the present study and all previously published cases describing structural abnormalities of 6q. Parosteal osteosarcoma, a prognostically favorable osteosarcoma subtype, was characterized by the presence of a ring chromosome accompanied by no or few other abnormalities. Complex karyotypes were seen nearly exclusively in the high-grade lesions. These findings indicate that specific chromosomal bands and/or regions are nonrandomly involved in osteosarcoma and may provide useful clinical information.

Chondroblastoma: classic and confusing appearance at MR imaging.

PURPOSE: To define the characteristics of chondroblastoma at magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and the combination of findings that are diagnostic for chondroblastoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From January 1987 through December 1992, 22 patients with histologically confirmed chondroblastoma and prior MR imaging examinations were seen. Patients included 16 men and six women, aged 10-58 years (median, 17 years). Retrospective analysis of findings at MR imaging, plain radiography, computed tomography, and bone scanning was performed. RESULTS: Low to intermediate heterogeneous signal intensity, lobular internal architecture, and fine lobular margins were well defined with high-resolution T2-weighted (repetition time > or = 1,500 msec, echo time > or = 70 msec) MR imaging. Adjacent bone-marrow and soft-tissue edema and periosteal reactions were more dramatically demonstrated on MR images than on radiographs. Bone marrow edema was prominent in all but five cases. Obvious periosteal reaction and adjacent soft-tissue edema were visible in 17 cases. CONCLUSION: Knowledge of the MR imaging findings of chondroblastoma will allow accurate diagnosis and help avoid confusion with infection and aggressive neoplasms.

Audiologic threshold monitoring of patients receiving ototoxic drugs. Preliminary report.

An effort was made to determine the efficacy of auditory threshold monitoring of patients receiving ototoxic drugs. Forty-four patients treated with either tobramycin or vancomycin for osteomyelitis were tested at the beginning of treatment, following treatment, and twice weekly during treatment when possible. All patients had renal function carefully monitored. Peak and trough drug levels were kept out of the toxic range throughout the study. In no patient did indisputable ototoxicity occur, and therefore, no conclusion about the most efficacious schedule for auditory monitoring of patients receiving ototoxic drugs was made, and what constitutes a significant intratherapeutic threshold shift is still in question. Until further data are collected, monitoring of renal function and peak and trough drug levels, as well as patient counseling, is recommended. Pretherapy and posttherapy auditory monitoring and intratherapeutic monitoring of high-risk patients and those who develop aural symptoms may prove beneficial.

The effect of inadvertent tumor contamination of wounds during the surgical resection of musculoskeletal neoplasms.

The effect of inadvertent tumor violation with visually evident wound contamination during the surgical resection of musculoskeletal neoplasms is unknown. In an attempt to assess the significance of wound contamination by tumor tissue, the incidence of local recurrence in 28 cases of known wound contamination was determined. The influence of immediate lavage, re-excision, subsequent surgical margin, and the use of adjuvant chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy upon local recurrence was assessed. Achieving a wide surgical margin by immediate re-excision after contamination gave a significantly lower incidence of recurrence than those with lesser final margins (P less than 0.01). The use of postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy or irradiation resulted in a lower recurrence rate, but the difference between those with and without adjuvant treatment had statistically less significance than the surgical margin on the incidence of local recurrence (P less than 0.2). The risk of local recurrence after contamination was not influenced by the histologic grade of the tumor.

Scoliosis secondary to osteoblastoma of the rib.

An 8-year-old girl with a progressive, painless spinal deformity is presented. She was found to have an atypical scoliosis secondary to a stage 3 benign osteoblastoma of the rib. This case is presented to emphasize that atypical scoliosis in skeletally immature individuals requires a thorough investigation for an underlying cause.

Fractures through the distal weight-bearing surface of the tibia.

Fractures of the distal tibial plafond have been associated with an usually high incidence of morbidity and both early and late complications. Fractures through the distal tibial plafond can be divided into three basic groups: (1) distal tibial compression fractures; (2) external rotatory trimalleolar fractures with large posterior fragments; and (3) spiral extension fractures. Loss of length and alignment at the ankle joints, with concomitant loss of congruity of the articular surface, requires innovative intervention to prevent disability. The prognosis for these fractures depends not only on the amount of articular involvement of the ankle joint, but also on the accuracy of the reduction and the details of postoperative care.

Diagnosis of osteoarthritis: the value of laboratory tests.

Osteoarthritis by definition involves a progressive degeneration in one or many synovial joints and has a multifaceted etiology. The limitation of pathologic responses to an initial insult minimizes the value of microscopic examination of the tissues long after the original injury. The cornerstone of diagnosis has been the plane film x-ray examination, which allows the study and comparison of macroscopic changes that are common to osteoarthritis and aids in diagnosing other causes of arthritis. Synovial fluid analysis in doubtful diagnoses is useful in ruling out specific arthritides such as infection or crystal induced arthritis, or in pinpointing inflammation as a factor in the individual case. Synovial fluid studies are especially important in allowing recognition of conditions in which appropriate treatment can prevent secondary osteoarthritis, e.g., sepsis. This technique may also be necessary to rule out sepsis before implant joint reconstitution.