Objective To summarize the preliminary effectiveness of surgical treatment of Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD), so as to improve the understanding of the disease by orthopedic surgeons. Methods The clinical data of 9 patients with ECD between December 2012 and October 2017 were retrospectively analysed. There were 6 males and 3 females with an median age of 42 years (range, 8-61 years). The disease duration was 4-59 months (mean, 39 months). There were 2 cases of multiple lesions, including 1 case involving soft tissue of the buttocks and bilateral tibia, 1 case involving the sinus, skull base, and proximal right tibia; 7 cases with single lesion, including 3 cases of right femoral neck, 1 case of proximal right tibia, 1 case of right humerus, and 2 cases of ribs. Nine patients were diagnosed according to clinical manifestations, imaging examination, and pathological diagnosis. Four patients underwent needle biopsy before operation and 5 patients were diagnosed by postoperative pathology examination. Five cases underwent lesional scraping and internal fixation, 1 case underwent bone scraping and bone grafting, and 3 cases underwent lesion resection. One of the multiple lesions was treated with interferon and hormone. Results Nine patients underwent the surgery safely. There was no fever, wound exudation, infection, etc., and the incisions healed by first intention. All the patients were followed up 4-59 months with an average of 31.4 months. One patient with bilateral tibia and hip soft tissue involvement continued to receive medical treatment, and the tumor was controlled without significant increasing. The remaining 8 patients were examined for X-ray films at 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery, the bone has been fused and the steel plate and intramedullary nail were firmly fixed, and no tumor recurrence was observed. At 1 year after surgery, the pain symptoms of the patients improved and returned to normal life; 3 of them who involving the right femoral neck walked freely, and the quality of life improved significantly. Conclusion ECD patients can achieve the purpose of eliminating lesions and relieving pain after surgical treatment, and the surgical treatment has the advantages of quick relief of pain, improved quality of life, small side effects, and low economic cost when compared with medical treatment.
Objective To explore the clinical features and diagnostic procedure of atypical asthma characteristic of chest pain.Methods The patients with unexplained chest pain were screened by lung function test and bronchial provocation test.The diagnosis of asthma was established by therapeutic test and exclusive procedure.The clinical manifestations were analyzed.Results In 56 cases of unexplained chest pain 20 cases were diagnosed as asthma.While all patients referred to clinic with chest pain as chief complaint，a majority of patients (11 cases，85%) showed obscure chest tightness，breath shortness and cough..Some cases reported the same trigger factors as asthma.Chest pain was relieved in all cases after regular antiasthma treatments.Conclusions Chest pain could be a specific presentation of asthma which may be misdiagnosed as other diseases.Bronchial provocation tests and antiasthma therapy should be considered to screen and diagnose this atypical asthma.
Objective To summarize our treatment experience for patients with chest injuries in “4•20” Lushan earthquake. Methods Medical records of 17 patients with chest injuries after 2013 Lushan earthquake who were admittedto the Department of Thoracic Surgery，West China Hospital were analyzed retrospectively. The diagnosis of chest injuries was mainly confirmed by medical history，physical examination，X-ray and CT scan of the chest. Clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes were analyzed. Among the 17 patients，there were 14 men and 3 women with their age of 57.3±16.1 years. Results There were 12 patients （70.6%）with crash injury of heavy objects，4 patients （23.5%） with fall injury and 1 patient with road traffic injury. Chest injuries were skin and soft tissue contusion in 17 patients （100%），rib fracturein 15 patients （88.2%） including 1 patient with abnormal respiratory movements，pulmonary contusion in 15 patients （88.2%），hemopneumothorax in 11 patients （64.7%），sternal fracture in 1 patient （5.9%） and bilateral pneumothorax with widespread subcutaneous emphysema in 1 patient （5.9%）. Thirteen patients （76.5%） had concomitant brain，abdominal，orthopedic or nerve injuries. One patient underwent left thoracotomy，clot removal and internal fixation of rib fractures for left coagulated hemothorax and left lower lobe atelectasis. All the 17 patients received timely and effective treatment and there was noin-hospital mortality. Conclusions Mechanisms of earthquake injuries are often complex，and patients often have multipleinjuries. The main types of chest injury are rib fractures and pulmonary contusion. Tube thoracostomy is a simple andeffective treatment strategy for them. Satisfactory pain management and bronchoscopy procedure can effectively help patientswith removal of respiratory secretions and maintenance of airway patency.
Proper management of chest drainage after pulmonary lobectomy is a topic that every thoracic surgeon must face up to. Reasonable chest drainage plays a critical role in postoperative normal physiological recovery. However， there are still controversies and discrepancies in many aspects of chest drainage management after pulmonary lobectomy. In this review，we focus on five aspects of chest drainage management after pulmonary lobectomy，including the choice of chest drainage system，single or double chest tubes，suction or not，treatment of persistent air leak，and removal of chest tube.
Abstract： Objective To summarize the application experience of Gore-Tex patch in clinical chest wall reconstruction. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed in 33 patients who underwent chest wall reconstruction using Gore-Tex patch from January 2001 to December 2010 in Shanghai Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University. There were 19 men and 14 women, ranging in age from 20 to 73 years with a median age of 45.7 years. The surgical strategies included choosing different incisions according to tumor location and size, and preserving normal chest wall soft tissue as much as possible during surgery. Gore-Tex patch was used to reconstruct the huge chest wall defect, and covered by transferred muscle flaps. Results All the 33 patients underwent surgical reconstruction successfully and there was no perioperative death. Complete tumor resection was performed in all the patients, including 25 patients with malignant tumor and 8 patients with benign tumor. The diameter of the resected tumors ranged from 8 to 20 cm. All the patients were followed up from 5 to 60 months, except that 3 patients （9.09%） were lost during follow-up. There was no rejection response, abnormal breathing and foreign body sensation during follow-up. The infection incidence was 3%（1/33）. Conclusion Gore-Tex patch is a safe and effective material for chest wall reconstruction due to its excellent biocompatibility. Appropriate selection of muscle flap for covering Gore-Tex patch can reduce postoperative complications.
Objective To study the reconstruction method and effectiveness of titanium plate and Teflon patch for the chest wall after resection of sternal tumors. Methods Between October 2006 and November 2009, 4 patients with sternal tumors were treated and the thoracic cages were reconstructed. There were 2 males and 2 females, aged 30-55 years. The patientswere admitted because of chest lump or pain. The sizes of palpable lump ranged from 4 cm × 3 cm to 10 cm × 8 cm. CT examination showed bone destruction. After sternal tumor resection, defect size ranged from 10 cm × 8 cm to 18 cm × 14 cm, and titanium plate and Teflon patch were used to repair and reconstruct the chest wall defect. Results The operations of the tumor resection and reconstruction of chest wall defect were successfully performed in 4 cases. Incisions healed by first intention with no abnormal breath, subcutaneous emphysema, pneumothorax, and infection. One case failed to be followed up after 6 months; 1 case died of intracranial hemorrhage; and 2 cases were followed up 1 and 4 years respectively without tumor recurrence. The chest wall had good remodel ing. No loosening and exposure of titanium plate, difficulty in breathing, chest distress, and chest pain were observed during followup. Conclusion Surgical resection of sternal tumors will cause large chest wall defect which can be repaired by titanium plate and Teflon patch because it had the advantages of easy operation, satisfactory remodel ing, and less compl ication.
Objective To investigate the surgical techniques and effectiveness for reconstruction of severe full-thickness chest wall defects. Methods Between January 2006 and December 2010, 14 patients with full-thickness chest wall defects were treated, including 12 cases caused by giant chest wall mal ignant tumor excision, 1 case by thermocompression injury, and 1 case by radiation necrosis. There were 8 males and 6 females with an average age of 42 years (range，23-65 years). The size of chest wall defects ranged from 8 cm × 5 cm to 26 cm × 14 cm. All patients compl icated by rib defect (1-5 ribs), and 3 cases by sternum defect. Thoracic skeleton reconstruction was performed with Vicryl mesh or polytetrafluroethylene mesh in 10 patients. Other 4 patients did not undergo thoracic skeleton reconstruction. The bilobed skin flaps, pectoral is major myocutaneous flap, latissimus dorsi myocutaneous flap, and rectus abdominis myocutaneous flap were util ized for repairing soft tissue defects. The size of the dissected flaps ranged from 10 cm × 7 cm to 25 cm × 13 cm. The donor sites were sutured directly or were repaired by free skin graft. Results Poor heal ing of incision occurred in 2 cases, which was cured after debridement, myocutaneous flap transfer, and skin graft. The other wounds healed by first intention. All patients were followed up 6-36 months (mean, 8 months). No tumor recurrence during follow-up, except 1 patient with osteosarcoma who died of l iver matastasis at 6 months after operation. Transient sl ight paradoxical respiration occurred in 1 patient who did not undergo thoracic skeleton reconstruction at 5 days after operation. Integrity of chest wall in other patients was restored without paradoxical respiration and dyspnea. Conclusion Depending on the cause, the size, and the location of defect, single or combination flaps could be used to repair soft tissue defect, and thoracic skeleton reconstruction should be performed when defect is severe by means of syntheticmaterials.
Objective To evaluate the biocompatibility and in vivo degradation of novel chest wall prosthesis materials and provide some data for their clinical application. MethodsAccording to the standard for the biological evaluation of the medical devices, several tests were performed to evaluate the tissue toxic effects induced by polydioxanone (Group A), chitosan (Group B), and hydroxyapitite/collagen (Group C),which were tested as component materials of the chest wall prosthesis. In the hemolysis test, 0.2 ml of the anticoagulant rabbit blood was added to the component materials and the normal saline (negative control) and to the distilled water(positive control). Five samples were made in each group. Absorbency was measured and the hemolysis rate was determined. In the acute systemic toxicity test, 20 mice were randomly divided into 4 groups (Groups A, B and C, and the normal saline group, n=5). The leaching liquid (50 ml/kg) was injected through the caudal vein, which was observed at 24, 48 and 72 hours. In the pyrogen test, 12 rabbits were randomly divided into 4 groups (Groups A, B, C and the normal saline group, n=3) the leaching liquid(10 ml/kg) was injected through the ear vein,and the body temperature was recorded within 3 hours. In the in vivo degradable test, the component materials (10 mm×10 mm) were implanted in 12 rabbits at 2, 4, 8, 12, 16 and 24 weeks, respectively, after operation. Two rabbitswere sacrificed for the macroscopic and the microscopic examinations. Results The chest wall component materials had no hemolytic reaction, no acute systemic toxicity, and no pyrogen reaction. The results demonstrated that the implanted materials had only a mild inflammatory reaction during the early days of the grafting, which subsided gradually. There was no tissue denaturation, necrosis or pathological hyperplasia when the prosthesis materials were degraded. Conclusion The degradable materials of the chest wall prosthesis have a good biocompatibility and agreat biological safety though their surgical application still requires a further clinical research.
Objective To improve the surgical procedure to correctpectus carinatum. Methods From 1990 to 2003, 9 patients with pectus carinatum were treated, whose ages ranged from 3 years and 6 months to 16 years. The conventional operation was performed on 4 patients, the modified procedure on 5 patients. The modified procedure included: ①the shortening rib periosteum was not sutured transversally；② the corrected position of the sternum was stabilized with the metal strut. Results In 4 patients corrected by the conventional procedure, the sternum depression as pectus excavatum occurred in 1 case five years postoperatively. The results were satisfactory in 5 patients corrected by the modified procedure. The reconstructed thorax was symmetrical, without bulging or dimpling of sternum and costal cartilage. Conclusion The improvement of operative method isreasonable and effective in correcting pectus carinatum.
Objective To evaluate the results of chest wallreconstruction (CWR) in patients who underwent chest wall tumor resection accompanying huge chest wall defect. Methods From Jan. 1998 to Mar. 2003, 31 patients underwent CWR. Among them, 20 were male and 11 female. The age ranged from 8 to 72 years.The indications for resection were primary chest wall tumor in 21 patients, lung cancer with invasion of chest wall 6, recurrence of breast cancer 2, radiationnecrosis 1 and skin cancer 1. The number of rib resected was 2~7 ribs (3.6 in average). The defect was 20~220 cm2 (97.1 cm2 in average). Concomitant resectionwas done in 13 patients, including lobectomy or wedge resection of lung 10, partial resection of diaphragm 2, and partial sternectomy 1. Seven patients underwent soft tissue reconstruction alone(latissimus dorsi+greater omentum, latissimusdorsi myocutaneous flap, latissimus dorsi muscle flap), 5 patients bony reconstruction alone(Prolen web), and simultaneous BR and STR were performed in 19 patients(latissimus dorsi, pectorails major, latissimus dorsi+fascia lata, and Prolene web). Results Three patients (9.7%) developed postoperative complications. Postoperative survival period was 6~57 months with a median of 22 months. Conclusion A favorable clinical outcome can be achieved by CWR for the patients with hugechest wall defects that result from resection of chest wall tumors.