Surgical Management of Pulmonary Hydatid Cysts: Is Size an Important Prognostic Indicator?

Giant hydatid cysts of the lung (diameter, ≥10 cm) are considered more difficult to treat surgically than are smaller cysts. We reviewed our experience with giant pulmonary hydatid cysts, focusing on clinical symptoms, cystic location, extent of surgery, and postoperative complications, according to age, long-term results, and comparison with non-giant cysts. From January 1988 to January 2008, 537 patients underwent surgery for pulmonary hydatid cysts. We separated patients into 2 groups: patients who had cysts <10 cm (group A) and those who had giant cysts (group B). Group B comprised 75 patients (14%). Giant cysts were more common in younger patients (mean age, 30 vs 32 yr; P=0.014). The most frequent complaints were cough, chest pain, and dyspnea. Patients with giant cysts were more often symptomatic at presentation (96% vs 88%; P=0.04). In both groups, lower-lobe locations predominated. Parenchyma-saving operations were almost uniformly performed for each group; however, a higher percentage of patients in group B required anatomic resection (4% vs 1%; P=0.038). Fifty-seven patients (10%) also underwent resection of concomitant liver cysts. Cystic rupture occurred more frequently in group B than in group A (27% vs 15%; P=0.01). There were no deaths in either group, nor were there significant differences in morbidity between groups.In summary, giant hydatid cysts of the lung occurred more often in younger patients and were more often symptomatic at presentation. Regardless of size, the cysts could usually be surgically treated without lung resection, and size did not appear to influence short-term perioperative outcomes.Key words: Adolescent, adult, age distribution, age factors, aged, child, albendazole/therapeutic use, echinococcosis, hepatic/surgery, echinococcosis, pulmonary/surgery, Horner syndrome/etiology, hydatid cyst, middle age, retrospective studies, treatment outcomeHydatid cysts are the most common parasitic disease of the lungs. They are a major health problem in agricultural countries that lack satisfactory preventive medicine, environmental health, and veterinarian services. Hydatid disease is endemic in the eastern and southeastern regions of Turkey.¹ Hydatid cysts of 10 cm or greater in diameter are called “giant” cysts and traditionally have been considered to be more difficult to treat surgically—often requiring pulmonary resection. We aimed to retrospectively evaluate our institutional experience with surgically treated hydatid cysts to investigate whether cystic size is really an important factor in terms of clinical outcome.     

Food Allergies Caused by Allergenic Lipid Transfer Proteins: What Is behind the Geographic Restriction?

Purpose of Review

To critically examine evidence suggesting that food allergy induced by lipid transfer proteins (LTPs) follows a geographic pattern.

Recent Findings

LTP syndrome remains most common in the Mediterranean basin, with a clear gradient seen in prevalence of LTP sensitization between northern and southern Europe. We hypothesize that high levels of birch pollen seem to protect against LTP allergy, as these higher levels correlate with a lower prevalence of LTP hypersensitivity. Nevertheless, LTP food allergy cases still appear in areas having a high environmental level of birch pollen.

Summary

Food allergy caused by LTP may be related to (1) primary sensitization to a food LTP allergen in the absence of pollinosis, (2) primary sensitization to LTP from a pollen source, and (3) co-sensitization to LTP from pollen and food.

     

Management of acromegaly: Is there a role for primary medical therapy?

Acromegaly is a chronic, debilitating disease caused by chronic growth hormone (GH) hypersecretion which results in chronic medical comorbidities, poor quality of life and high mortality rates. Successful treatment can improve clinical signs and symptoms and normalize mortality rates. Over 95% of acromegaly is caused by a somatotroph adenoma of the pituitary, and the first-line treatment is generally transsphenoidal surgery, which can be curative in 50–60% of patients. Nonetheless, high rates of persistent acromegaly following surgery and the limited efficacy of radiation therapy necessitate chronic medical treatment for many patients. Somatostatin analogues have become the preferred first-line medical therapy for many practitioners, as they achieve better biochemical and direct tumor control than the dopamine agonists, and long-acting preparations make once monthly administration possible. Cabergoline, a dopamine agonist, offers a lower-cost option and may be effective in patients with a pituitary tumor that co-secretes GH and prolactin. Pegvisomant is a GH receptor antagonist that produces exceptional biochemical response rates but lacks any direct effects on the tumor, which may limit its effectiveness as life-long monotherapy. Combinations of these three drug classes have not been rigorously studied, and preliminary trials do not suggest improved clinical outcomes. While medical treatment options for acromegaly have significantly improved over the last 30 years, limitations remain, and a multi-specialty team approach is necessary for the effective long-term management of patients with acromegaly.     

Congenital Cystic Lung Lesions: Is Surgical Resection Essential?

Can all congenital cystic lung lesions be treated conservatively, without the need for surgery? Our purpose here is to present the morbidity associated with symptomatic cystic lung lesions which have failed to respond to medical treatment. In the past 8 years, 22 consecutive cystic thoracic lesions were retrospectively assessed for clinical presentation, diagnostic modalities, operative findings, technical tribulations, and outcome. The endpoint was complete cessation of recurrent pneumonia and dysphagia. Age at presentation was 7.7 ± 2.2 years, with 4 ± 2 episodes per year of lower respiratory tract infection, which had been treated for the past 2.6 ± 0.3 years. Cough and dyspnea (100%) were the common symptoms, with episodes of cyanosis occurring in 58%. Other significant clinical presentations were dysphagia (55%), failure to thrive (55%), chest pain (46%), haemoptysis (18%), and pleuritic pain (18%). Definitive growth was seen in 91% of the excised specimens. Preoperative morbidity resulted from intractable pneumonia, dysphagia, and failure to thrive. Surgical excision was curative. All 22 children after resection are thriving, with an absence of pneumonia and dysphagia, with normal ventilation/perfusion scans, at 48 ± 6 months of follow‐up. In conclusion, surgical excision of a symptomatic cystic lung lesion that has not responded to medical treatment is recommended. Pediatr Pulmonol. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Mediastinal lymphadenopathy: an extrahepatic manifestation of chronic hepatitis C?

Normal and enlarged perihepatic and mediastinal lymph nodes are detectable by ultrasonography. Aim of the present study is to determine the detection rate, size, and correlation of mediastinal and perihepatic lymphadenopathy in patients with chronic hepatitis C, healthy controls, and patients with inflammatory or neoplastic mediastinal lymphadenopathy. The mediastinum and liver hilus of 89 patients with chronic hepatitis C as well as of 34 healthy volunteers and 20 patients with mediastinal lymphadenopathy of different origin with adequate sonographic visualization were screened for the number and size of lymph nodes by high resolution ultrasonography. Lymph nodes were detectable in the mediastinum of 75/89 (84%) patients with chronic hepatitis C and 22/34 (65%) healthy volunteers (total lymph node volume [LNV]: 1.0 +/- 0.8 mL versus 0.3 +/- 0.4 mL, p < 0.001). In all patients with mediastinal lymphadenopathy, the mediastinal lymph node volume was above 15 mL. In patients with chronic hepatitis C a trend could be observed, that patients with larger perihepatic lymph nodes reveal also larger mediastinal lymph nodes. High resolution ultrasonography is able to detect enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes in patients with chronic hepatitis C. Mediastinal lymphadenopathy is considered as an extrahepatic manifestation of chronic hepatitis C. In general, the mediastinal lymph node volume differs in size to patients with lymphadenopathy related to neoplasia or sarcoidosis. The mechanism of lymphadenopathy in the liver hilus and mediastinum in patients with chronic hepatitis C is yet unknown.     

Modern Management of Community-Acquired Pneumonia: Is It Cost-Effective and are Outcomes Acceptable?

Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is the most important cause of death from infectious diseases in the developed world and is associated with a high economic burden. Researchers have therefore sought ways to improve CAP outcomes while reducing costs. In this review, we highlight the current evidence supporting modern approaches to CAP management, including the use of severity indices to safely increase the proportion of patients treated at home, the use of procalcitonin to decrease antibiotic use, early intravenous to oral switch of antibiotic therapy, streamlining antimicrobials, and approaches to shorten antibiotic treatment duration. Although promising evidence exists for these modern strategies, there is still a considerable lack of high-quality evidence proving noninferiority of clinical outcomes and cost-effectiveness.     

Management of Crohn’s disease in smokers: Is an alternative approach necessary?

Inflammatory bowel disease(IBD) is a chronic condition with a pathogenic background that involves both genetic and environmental factors.Although important progress has been made regarding the former in the last decade,scarce knowledge is available for the latter.In this sense,smoking remains the most important environmental factor in IBD.Active smoking increases the risk of developing Crohn's disease(CD).Moreover,CD patients who start or continue smoking after disease diagnosis are at risk for poorer outco...