Project description:Introduction and importanceForeign bodies in paranasal sinuses are rarely encountered and most commonly present in the maxillary sinus. Guidelines for managing paranasal sinus object removal are limited due to its rarity. However, there are three major management options: open surgery, endoscopic sinus surgery, and observation.Case presentationWe report a rare case of an 18-year-old boy who underwent extended frontal sinus surgery to retrieve a retained air gun pellet in the right frontal sinus and repair the skull base defect resulting from the air gun pellet.Clinical discussionPhysicians commonly use endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) for improving sinus drainage in recurrent chronic and acute infective sinusitis. Extended sinus surgery aims to maximize the communication between the paranasal sinuses and the nasal cavity. This extended communication helps improve access to the sinus, enhance drainage, and improve the delivery of topical medications. In addition, the use of ESS with the modified Lothrop procedure allows for better exposure of the skull base, which can help with the repair of a CSF leak.ConclusionBased on our experience with this patient and similar literature, ESS should be considered a treatment option for patients with retained foreign objects in the frontal sinus.
Project description:IntroductionTraditionally promoted as "toy guns," air guns have long been used by children and lack many regulatory guidelines compared to conventional firearms. However these weapons possess serious lethal potential and have led to numerous injuries and deaths.Presentation of caseWe describe a 21 year old man who sustained a penetrating cardiac wound from a pellet gun that led to cardiac tamponade and death. Post-mortem examination showed the pellet had penetrated the left ventricle and anterior esophagus with subsequent intraluminal migration into the stomach.DiscussionReview of the literature identified 39 other cases of penetrating cardiac injuries from air guns. Sternotomy was the most frequently used surgical approach and the right and left ventricles were the most commonly affected chambers. Bullet embolization was the most frequently reported complication. Including our case, five deaths related to penetrating cardiac injury from air guns were identified.ConclusionsThis report highlights the seriousness of air guns and demonstrates a unique intra-thoracic injury.
Project description:Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is a rare, life-threatening autoimmune blistering disease with pruritus and tension blisters/bullous as the main clinical manifestations. Glucocorticosteroids are the main therapeutic agents for it, but their efficacy is poor in some patients. Tofacitinib, a small molecule agent that inhibits JAK1/3, has shown incredible efficacy in a wide range of autoimmune diseases and maybe a new valuable treatment option for refractory BP. To report a case of refractory BP successfully treated with tofacitinib, then explore the underlying mechanism behind the treatment, and finally review similarities to other cases reported in the literature. Case report and literature review of published cases of successful BP treatment with JAK inhibitors. The case report describes a 73-year-old male with refractory BP that was successfully managed with the combination therapy of tofacitinib and low-dose glucocorticoids for 28 weeks. Immunohistochemistry and RNA sequencing were performed to analyze the underlying mechanism of tofacitinib therapy. A systematic literature search was conducted to identify other cases of treatment with JAK inhibitors. Throughout the 28-week treatment period, the patient experienced clinical, autoantibody and histologic resolution. Immunohistochemical analysis showed tofacitinib significantly decreased the pSTAT3 and pSTAT6 levels in the skin lesions of this patient. RNA sequencing and immunohistochemical testing of lesion samples from other BP patients identified activation of the JAK-STAT signaling pathway. Literature review revealed 17 previously reported cases of BP treated with four kinds of JAK inhibitors successfully, including tofacitinib (10), baricitinib (1), upadacitinib (3) and abrocitinib (3). Our findings support the potential of tofacitinib as a safe and effective treatment option for BP. Larger studies are underway to better understand this efficacy and safety.
Project description:The diagnosis and management of injuries of the heart or the great vessels continues to be a major surgical challenge in the past and now. This case study introduces the conservative management of a patient who developed a venous bullet embolus after being shot in the lower extremities. In this case report, we aim to review some of the literature on bullet emboli and to raise awareness of its existence. It was concluded that for bullets left in the limbs, bullet position in relation with peripheral vessels should be evaluated carefully to treat and avoid the bullets moving along with the bloodstream.
Project description:Abnormal communication between the ascending aorta and the cardiac chambers is rare, diverse in origin, and can be congenital or acquired. We report a case of a 10-year-old boy with acquired aorta-to-left atrial fistula associated with an air gun pellet injury and his successful treatment.
Project description:Literature review suggests that surgery is the only option for dealing with intraperitoneal foreign bodies (laparoscopy and laparotomy). We showed that an interventional method using ultrasound guidance could be considered alongside surgical options.
Project description:Background: One of the most serious complications of cranial radiotherapy is the development of radiation-induced glioma, which is estimated to occur in 1 to 4% of patients who have received cranial irradiation and has a worse prognosis than sporadic glioblastoma. To date, owing to its rarity, no standard of care has been established for radiation-induced glioma. Although comprehensive genetic analysis has recently uncovered the molecular characteristics of radiation-induced glioma, the full picture remains unclear, and the molecular features associated with treatment response and prognosis are poorly understood. Case presentation: A 45-year-old man presented with generalized seizures caused by multiple brain tumors involving the right frontal lobe, thalamus, and brainstem. The patient had a history of whole-brain radiotherapy for the recurrence of Burkitt's lymphoma at the age of 12. He underwent craniotomy, and the histological diagnosis was a high-grade glioma with isocitrate dehydrogenase-wildtype, which was presumed to be a radiation-induced glioma that developed 33 years after whole-brain irradiation. The Heidelberg DNA-methylation brain classifier most closely matched diffuse pediatric-type high-grade glioma, receptor tyrosine kinase-1 subtype, which is a typical methylation class of radiation-induced glioma. Methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction showed that the O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase gene promoter was unmethylated. Next-generation sequencing identified CDKN2A/B deletion as well as co-amplification of several receptor tyrosine kinase-encoding genes including PDGFRA, KIT, and KDR, which are all located on chromosome 4q12. Amplification of this region is present broadly across cancers and is associated with a poor prognosis in sporadic glioblastoma. Nevertheless, the patient received conventional chemoradiotherapy with temozolomide. Subsequent multimodal imaging with magnetic resonance imaging and 11C-methionine positron emission tomography revealed complete remission of all lesions. Two years later, the patient is currently alive with a favorable performance status. Conclusions: Despite radiation-induced glioma with molecular features suggestive of an aggressive phenotype, our patient unexpectedly responded well to conventional chemoradiotherapy, resulting in complete remission that is exceptional in sporadic glioblastoma. Our case indicates that some of the radiation-induced gliomas may have distinct molecular characteristics involved in the therapeutic response that differ from those of sporadic glioblastomas.
Project description:BACKGROUND:Cardiac air bullet injuries are rare but can be associated with significant morbidity and mortality. CASE PRESENTATION:We are presenting a young male child who sustained an accidental injury to the chest by an air rifle. Bullet entered the right ventricle from the anterior part of the chest and was identified in the RV side of the interventricular septum by echocardiography and chest CT scan. There was mild pericardial effusion but no valvular injury. The bullet was removed in the cath lab, and the patient was discharged home on the second day. CONCLUSIONS:It is reasonable to try foreign body removal in the cath lab, for certain cases, and avoid cardiac surgery.
Project description:We report a case of a 55 years old women who present a ALK associated renal cell carcinoma, with 3p deletion and measling of TFE3 expression. With CGH analysis and FISH we identify the rearrangment of ALK with TPM3