Cotard and Capgras syndrome after ischemic stroke.

Capgras and Cotard are delusional misidentification syndromes characterized by delusions about oneself, others, places, and objects. To date, there are few cases of comorbidity of both syndromes. We describe a case of aphasic stroke patient affected by cerebral ischemia localized in right temporoparietal region.

Presurgical evaluation of hemifacial spasm and spasmodic torticollis caused by a neurovascular conflict from AICA with 3T MRI integrated by 3D drive and 3D TOF image fusion: A case report and review of the literature.

Background: Hemifacial spasm (HS) and spasmodic torticollis (ST) are well-known disorders that are caused by a neurovascular conflict. HS is characterized by irregular, involuntary muscle contractions on one side of the face due to spasms of orbicularis oris and orbicularis oculi muscles, and is usually caused by vascular compression of the VII cranial nerve. ST is an extremely painful chronic movement disorder causing the neck to involuntary turn to the side, upward and/or downward.

Left ventricular pseudoaneurysm after left ventricular remodeling: port access approach.

Cases of left ventricular pseudoaneurysm caused by patch leakage after left ventricular remodeling are quite rare. We describe the case of a 66-year-old man operated on through a left thoracotomy using the Port Access platform to treat patch detachment after left ventricular remodeling.

Partial aortic root remodeling in case of ascending aortic aneurysms.

Objective: In degenerative ascending aortic aneurysms (AAAs), the pathological process may extend into the aortic root, causing aortic regurgitation (AR). As often one or two sinuses are involved, ascending aorta replacement should be associated with selected sinus replacement.

Methods: Thirty patients (21 men and 9 women; mean ± SD age, 70.

Two cases of right atrial myxoma in redo patients. A mere coincidence?

We describe two cases of right atrial myxoma in redo patients who had previously undergone to coronary artery by-pass grafting (CABGs) and mitral valve replacement respectively. Both of patients experienced effort dyspnea and were assessed by trans-thoracic echocardiography, revealing the right atrial masses. They were operated on for myxoma resection and postoperative course was uneventful.

Role of preoperative femoral artery color Doppler echocardiography in minimally invasive cardiac surgery.

Objective: Minimally invasive cardiac surgery (MICS) through a right thoracotomy has been developed in the past decades, leading to a significant improvement of postoperative outcome. The risk for complications during peripheral cannulation should be considered. We report our experience of preoperative evaluation by color Doppler echocardiography for patients scheduled for MICS.

Budd-Chiari syndrome complicating the surgical closure of patent foramen ovale in right minithoracotomy.

We present the case of a 45-year old female operated on for minimally invasive closure of patent foramen ovale, who suffered in the postoperative course of the Budd-Chiari syndrome caused by the thrombotic occlusion of the inferior vena cava. Medical treatment with oral anticoagulants and heparin was promptly established, avoiding a further increase of the thrombus that completely disappeared 3 months later.

Minimally invasive implantation of the myopore sutureless myocardial pacing lead.

Cardiac resynchronization therapy improves symptoms and survival of patients with congestive heart failure. Usually, the transvenous placement of the left ventricular lead is feasible, but in case of anatomic abnormalities of the coronary sinus, an unintended left phrenic nerve stimulation, a dislodgement of the percutaneous electrode, or a loss of capture of the electrode, surgical treatment should be considered. From January 2010 to September 2011, 15 patients underwent surgical implantation of the left ventricular lead after failure of transvenous placement.

Aortic valve replacement through the upper ministernotomy: preliminary experience with modified technique.

Minimally invasive approach for aortic valve surgery has been developed since 1995, reducing the complications related to the full sternotomy. We have introduced a new method for central cannulation that reduces the length of surgical incision for the aortic valve replacement through upper mini-sternotomy. To improve the surgical view without enlargement of the incision, two small additional incisions are performed for both arterial and atrial cannulation.

Contrast-enhanced ultrasound evaluation of hepatic microvascular changes in liver diseases.

Aim: To assess if software assisted-contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) provides reproducible perfusion parameters of hepatic parenchyma in patients affected by chronic liver disease.

Methods: Forty patients with chronic viral liver disease, with (n = 20) or without (n = 20) cirrhosis, and 10 healthy subjects underwent CEUS and video recordings of each examination were then analysed with Esaote's Qontrast software. CEUS dedicated software Qontrast was used to determine peak (the maximum signal intensity), time to peak (TTP), region of blood value (RBV) proportional to the area under the time-intensity curve, mean transit time (MTT) measured in seconds and region of blood flow (RBF).

Right atrial lipoma in patient with Cowden syndrome.

Primary cardiac tumors are rarest form of cancer and the lipoma represent about 8% of these tumors. Cowden disease is a rare autosomal dominant disorder, associated to a germline mutation of the PTEN gene, characterized by multiple hamartomas and an increased risk of breast, thyroid and endometrial carcinomas. For the first time, we describe a right atrial lipoma in a patient affected by Cowden syndrome.

Left atrial paraganglioma: diagnosis and surgical management.

Cardiac paragangliomas are rare entities, that often remain asymptomatic. Complete surgical resection is the mainstay of treatment even if it can be difficult for the infiltration of the near mediastinal structures. We describe the case of a young man with hypertensive crisis, headache and diabetes, affected by cardiac paraganglioma, infiltrating the left atrial roof.

Radiolucencies and cavitation in bronchioloalveolar carcinoma: CT-pathologic correlation.

Bronchioloalveolar carcinoma (BAC) is a polymorphic lung cancer the incidence of which is rising. The presence of intratumoral radiolucencies is an important feature of bronchioloalveolar carcinoma. The aim of this study was to present pictorially the spectrum of intratumoral radiolucencies visible in BAC.

Air-space pattern in lung metastasis from adenocarcinoma of the GI tract.

Purpose: We retrospectively reviewed a series of proven lung metastasis to evaluate the frequency and CT features of metastases showing an air-space (lepidic) pattern of growth.

Method: CT examinations of 65 patients with proven lung metastasis from GI carcinomas were reviewed by three observers. Four CT features were used to classify lesions as air-space metastases: (a) air-space nodules; (b) parenchymal consolidation containing air bronchogram and/or showing angiogram sign; (c) focal or extensive ground-glass opacities; and (d) nodules(s) with a "halo" sign.

CT-pathologic correlation in nodular bronchioloalveolar carcinoma.

Objective: We retrospectively reviewed CT and pathologic examinations in resected nodular bronchioloalveolar carcinomas (BACs) to correlate the histology with the appearance of the nodules on preoperative thin section CT images.

Materials And Methods: Thin section CT scans of 11 patients with nodular BAC were reviewed by two observers. In each case, size, tumor-lung interface, and internal characteristics of the nodule were recorded and correlated with histopathologic examinations.

Carcinomatous solitary pulmonary nodules: evaluation of the tumor-bronchi relationship with thin-section CT.

To investigate the value of computed tomography (CT) for depicting the relationship between carcinomatous solitary pulmonary nodules and the bronchial tree and predicting the results of various bronchoscopic biopsy techniques, the authors retrospectively reviewed CT scans from 27 consecutive patients with solitary pulmonary nodules associated with a positive bronchus sign. All patients underwent bronchoscopy and transbronchial biopsy. Macroscopic demonstration of the tumor-bronchi relationship was obtained in 18 patients.

CT "halo sign" in pulmonary tuberculoma.

The CT halo sign has been described as the CT finding of a low-attenuation zone surrounding a pulmonary nodule. It is an early clue to the diagnosis of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis. We describe a case of CT halo sign associated with a pulmonary tuberculoma.

Bronchus sign on CT in peripheral carcinoma of the lung: value in predicting results of transbronchial biopsy.

The bronchus sign on CT represents the presence of a bronchus leading directly to a peripheral pulmonary lesion. We investigated the value of this sign in predicting the results of transbronchial biopsy and brushing in 33 consecutive cases of proved peripheral bronchogenic carcinoma studied with thin-slice CT (2-mm-thick sections). The bronchus sign was seen on CT in 22 patients and was absent in 11.

Delayed enhancement of ascites following high-dose contrast CT for liver metastases.

Enhanced ascites has been described as a pathognomonic CT sign of urinary-peritoneal fistula. We have seen two cases of slowly enhancing ascites demonstrated with delayed contrast CT in the absence of urinary-peritoneal fistula. Knowledge of this phenomenon is important because hyperdense enhanced ascites can simulate urinary-peritoneal fistula or intraperitoneal hemorrhage.