Trans-sternal titanium fixation bars: an initial experience with 28 patients.

A clinical experience is described with the use of titanium trans-sternal fixation bars to achieve either primary or secondary sternal closure and stability using the principle of rigid fixation in high-risk and wound salvage sternotomy patients. The purpose of rigid fixation in those situations is not only to achieve rapid strong bone healing, but to improve respiratory function by restoring compliance and thoracic support for the lungs, especially in patients with severe pulmonary compromise. The system may be difficult and expensive to apply, but the positive results in most if not all the initial 28 patients appear to justify its use.

Sternal wound reconstruction: 252 consecutive cases. The Lenox Hill experience.

The authors report on a personal experience of 252 consecutive secondary sternal wound closures resulting from a series of 11,601 median sternotomies at a single institution performed over a 14-year period. Protocols for treatment are described from the time of initial consultation with the plastic surgeon through the period of postoperative care. The patients and wounds were diverse and complex, with each factor requiring careful analysis before a treatment course was selected.

Assessment of tumor burden and treatment response by 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose injection and positron emission tomography in patients with cutaneous T- and B-cell lymphomas.

18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET) is a unique functional/metabolic imaging modality that is efficacious in nodal staging and detection of extranodal involvement for a variety of lymphomas. We report its novel use in evaluating tumor burden and response to therapy in two patients with cutaneous lymphomas. A 24-year-old woman with aggressive subcutaneous panniculitic T-cell lymphoma associated with fever, arthralgias, lymphadenopathy, mild anemia, and widespread painful lesions refractory to multiple treatment strategies exhibited intense uptake of a glucose analogue at sites of clinically apparent (and clinically imperceptible) disease.