Pulmonary Langerhans cell histiocytosis: a comparative study of computed tomography in children and adults.

Purpose: Langerhans cell histiocytosis is a rare idiopathic disorder, characterized by the infiltration of 1 or more organs by large mononuclear cells. It can develop at any age. Pulmonary Langerhans cell histiocytosis (PLCH) is found more frequently and is better described in adults than in children.

Unusual presentation of a complication after pulmonary wedge resection for coccidioma.

We report an unusual presentation of a complication after pulmonary wedge resection. A patient with a history of pulmonary wedge resection for coccidioma presented postoperatively with dyspnea and severe hypoxemia. Cerebral infarctions were diagnosed less than 1 year later.

An unusual case of hypertensive diastolic heart failure with bilateral subclavian artery stenosis.

Severe stenosis or occlusion of the subclavian artery is a rare clinical finding, even more so for bilateral existence of the condition. Subclavian artery stenosis and occlusion leads to erroneously low blood pressure values when measured at the brachial artery on the ipsilateral side. Widespread clinical reliance on a sole brachial measurement of blood pressure, particularly in the emergency room setting, may result in inappropriate clinical management in patients with conditions that alter brachial blood pressure.

Pleural mesothelioma: sensitivity and incidence of needle track seeding after image-guided biopsy versus surgical biopsy.

Purpose: To retrospectively compare the sensitivity of image-guided core-needle biopsy, thoracoscopy, and thoracotomy in the diagnosis of malignant pleural mesothelioma and to retrospectively determine the incidence of needle track seeding after these procedures.

Materials And Methods: Institutional review board approval was obtained, and informed consent was not required. The study included 100 consecutive patients (81 men, 19 women; average age, 65.

Pulmonary alveolar proteinosis and end-stage pulmonary fibrosis: a rare association.

We present the high resolution CT features of marked pulmonary fibrosis in a patient known to have pulmonary alveolar proteinosis (PAP) confirmed on open lung biopsy. Significant fibrosis in PAP is an extremely rare occurrence with only a few case reports. Our case demonstrated a predominantly central distribution, which has not been described previously.

Chronic thromboembolic pulmonary arterial hypertension: correlation of postoperative results of thromboendarterectomy with preoperative helical contrast-enhanced computed tomography.

Introduction: Pulmonary thromboendarterectomy is the treatment of choice for patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary arterial hypertension (CTEPH). Some patients do poorly after this procedure and may be better candidates for heart-lung transplant. The purpose of this study was to correlate preoperative findings on helical contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) with surgical outcome.

How far is the sternal angle from the mid-right atrium?

Background: The central venous pressure (CVP) is commonly estimated at the bedside by measuring the height of the jugular venous pressure (JVP) relative to the sternal angle. Determining the CVP from this measure requires that the distance from the sternal angle to the level of the mid-right atrium be known. Classical clinical teaching quotes this distance as 5 cm, invariable between patients, and invariable with changes in the elevation of the patient's head.