[Acute mediastinitis except in a context of cardiac surgery].

Acute mediastinitis is a life-threatening complication (20 to 40 % of mortality) secondary to oropharyngeal abscesses, neck infections or oesophageal leak spreading into the mediastium. Early diagnosis and optimal therapeutic approach are crucial for patient survival. CT scanning of the cervical and thoracic area is a useful tool for diagnosis and follow-up.

Is malignant pleural mesothelioma a surgical disease? A review of 83 consecutive extra-pleural pneumonectomies.

Objective: To report on the experience with radical surgery, with emphasis on the long-term outcome, for malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) at a single institution.

Methods: From our prospective database over a 17-year period, we reviewed 83 consecutive patients undergoing radical surgery for MPM in a multimodality programme. The long-term overall survival was analysed using the Kaplan-Meier method.

Colon interposition for oesophageal replacement.

The choice of the colon as an oesophageal substitute results primarily from the unavailability of the stomach. However, given its durability and function, colon interposition keeps elective indications in patients with benign or malignant oesophageal disease who are potential candidates for long survival. The choice of the colonic portion used for oesophageal reconstruction depends on the required length of the graft, and the encountered colonic vascular anatomy, the last being characterised by the near-invariability of the left colonic vessels, in contrast to the vascular pattern of the right side of the colon.

[Respiratory complications after oesophagectomy for cancer].

Surgery is the cornerstone of treatment for resectable tumours of the oesophagus. Recent advances of surgical techniques and anaesthesiology have led to a substantial decrease in mortality and morbidity. Respiratory complications affect about 30% of patients after oesophagectomy and 80% of these complications occur within the first five days.

Indications and outcome of salvage surgery for oesophageal cancer.

Objective: Some patients with localised oesophageal cancer are treated with definitive chemoradiotherapy (CRT) rather than surgery. A subset of these patients experiences local failure, relapse or treatment-related complication without distant metastases, with no other curative treatment option but salvage oesophagectomy. The aim of this study was to assess the benefit/risk ratio of surgery in such context.