Hürthle cell carcinoma in an autonomous thyroid nodule in an adolescent.

A 16-year-old girl presented with a palpable thyroid nodule which was found to be functioning autonomously by radioiodine (123I) scintigraphy. After needle biopsy proved non-diagnostic, surgical excision showed the nodule to be Hürthle cell carcinoma. Functional thyroid nodules are rarely malignant, thyroid carcinoma is rare in childhood, and Hürthle cell carcinoma is a rare thyroid neoplasm, so the presence of these three rare conditions in one patient makes it a very unusual case.

Heterotopic Tc-99m MDP uptake secondary to phlebitis.

A patient with blastomycosis complained of pain in his lower back after the administration of amphotericin B and parenteral alimentation via a femoral venous catheter. A bone scan that was performed to exclude bony involvement with blastomycosis showed abnormal tracer accumulation in the right paravertebral region. Computed tomography revealed the venous catheter to lie in the right ascending lumbar vein. There was calcification of a portion of the right psoas muscle. In addition, the epidural venous plexus was calcified from L2 to L4. It was this dystrophic calcification that caused the heterotopic accumulation of bone tracer.