RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Postoperative infection of breast implants can lead to implant removal and other complications. This study aimed to investigate the presence of costal cartilage infection following breast implant surgery and the diagnostic role of PET/CT in identifying this rare complication. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective study included 16 patients with persistent infections after breast implant removal surgery. Patients underwent PET/CT scans before surgery, and surgical plans were made based on PET/CT findings. Surgical procedures were guided by PET/CT, and specimens were collected for pathological examination and microbiological culture. Follow-up assessments were performed at 1, 3, and 12 months postoperatively. RESULTS: Among the 16 patients, 11 were diagnosed with costal cartilage infection, whereas 5 had subcutaneous soft tissue infections. PET/CT accurately identified costal cartilage infection in all cases and localized the infected costal cartilage in the majority of cases. Microbiological culture results showed various pathogens. All patients were cured with one or staged surgery. CONCLUSION: Costal cartilage infection following breast implant surgery is a significant concern. PET/CT plays a crucial role in the accurate diagnosis and localization of infected costal cartilage, aiding in appropriate surgical management. Patients should be closely monitored for the possibility of costal cartilage infection when experiencing persistent symptoms after breast implant surgery.
Asunto(s)
Implantación de Mama , Implantes de Mama , Cartílago Costal , Tomografía Computarizada por Tomografía de Emisión de Positrones , Humanos , Femenino , Estudios Retrospectivos , Persona de Mediana Edad , Tomografía Computarizada por Tomografía de Emisión de Positrones/métodos , Adulto , Implantes de Mama/efectos adversos , Cartílago Costal/trasplante , Implantación de Mama/efectos adversos , Infecciones Relacionadas con Prótesis/diagnóstico , Infecciones Relacionadas con Prótesis/diagnóstico por imagen , Infecciones Relacionadas con Prótesis/etiología , Infección de la Herida Quirúrgica/diagnóstico , Infección de la Herida Quirúrgica/etiología , Infección de la Herida Quirúrgica/microbiología , Remoción de Dispositivos , AncianoRESUMEN
The excellent thermal performance of carbon nanotube (CNT) has been noticed long ago and attracted much attention. In the experiments, the electrical and thermal contact resistances remain the unsolved key problems causing undesirable measurement uncertainty. Recently, a micro-Raman spectroscopy technique has been applied to perform non-contact measurement for individual CNT, thus the contact resistances during the measurement process can be avoided. In this method, the temperature rise of CNT is a function of laser absorption probability and thermal properties, these parameters are coupled together. In this work, the thermal conductivity and optical absorption of the same CNT sample are decoupled and determined simultaneously. The thermal conductivity is obtained by measuring the temperature rise caused by a direct current heating, where the laser heating effect can be eliminated. Then the optical absorption is obtained by solving the heat transfer equation considering the thermal conductivity as a known parameter. The CNT sample is 24.8 µm in length and 3 nm in diameter. The measured thermal conductivity is 2630 Wm(-1)K(-1) and the optical absorption is 0.194%. The heat transfer coefficient is evaluated using a kinetic two-layer model, which has been proven by the previous experiment. Because the length of CNT is much larger than the size of the focused laser spot, the experimental result is insensitive to the contact resistances at the ends of CNT.
