Publications by authors named "H C Chiam"

Summary: A 48-year-old Asian male, presented to the hospital for an elective total thyroidectomy in the context of 6.3 cm thyroid nodule. The fine needle aspiration cytology of the nodule confirmed papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) with some atypical histiocytes.

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We describe a previously fit and well 54-year-old woman who presented with 3 weeks of right-sided lower abdominal pain with CT showing a non-specific thickening of the caecal/appendiceal wall. Although initially concerning for a neoplastic process, histology demonstrated yeast-like organisms colonising and invading into the appendiceal wall, confirming the diagnosis of fungal appendicitis. Fungal appendicitis is an important clinical entity that has previously been reported to affect immunocompromised individuals.

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Incarcerated diaphragmatic hernias are often challenging to diagnose. Patients often present with non-specific abdominal symptoms, and barring an imaging modality that confirms herniation of intra-abdominal contents, there is no investigation sensitive or specific enough to identify it. It is a rare cause of mechanical bowel obstruction that clinicians should be aware of.

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A 30-year-old woman was referred for a surgical review with abdominal pain and distension 2 days post-caesearean section. Abdominal X-ray showed dilated bowel loops. CT of her abdomen however showed fat stranding around a thickened appendix, suggesting a differential diagnosis of acute appendicitis on top of a postoperative ileus.

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Traumatic diaphragmatic injuries (TDI) are often challenging to diagnose. Research suggests that no single diagnostic study is sensitive or specific enough to identify such an injury, unless there is established herniation of intrabdominal contents. It is a rare cause of small bowel obstruction, which carries a substantial mortality rate.

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