Facial nerve Schwannoma resembling a parotid tumor. Case report Facial nerve Schwannomas are benign tumors that originate from Schwann cells, with a slow and predictable growth, and that are generally asymptomatic. Only 9% of these tumors are located in the intraparotid segment of the facial nerve. We report a 26 years old female presenting with a mass in the left parotid region lasting four months. The patient was subjected to a parotidectomy. During surgery, an encapsulated tumor whose origin was in the seventh cranial nerve and associated to a lymph node was found. The tumor was excised, trying to preserve the integrity of the nerve. The pathological diagnosis of the surgical piece disclosed a benign Schwannoma. The patient had a facial paralysis in the postoperative period.

La fisura labiopalatina (FLP) es la malformación facial más común, afectando a 1,8/1000 nacimientos. En sus inicios, la ultrasonografía 2D (US2D) diagnosticaba FLP en 5,3% de los casos, siendo actualmente el 71,5-95%. Se ha reportado la utilidad de la ultrasonografía 3D (US3D) y del doppler color (DC) para evaluar el compromiso palatino. Objetivo: Reportar la utilidad de US3D y del DC en el estudio de FLP durante el control fetal prenatal. Pacientes: Estudio de serie de casos de labio leporino pesquisados prenatalmente por US2D, que concurrieron a ecografía rutinaria del segundo trimestre del embarazo a la Clínica de la Mujer de Viña del Mar, entre enero de 1997 y abril de 2009. A todos se les realizó US3D por un operador. Se realizó consejo genético, apoyo psicológico y educación prenatal. Resultados: Se detectaron 7 casos de fetos con labio leporino, siendo confirmados al nacer. Uno presentó compromiso palatino. En un caso se realizó imagen DC, que permitió descartar la presencia de compromiso palatino, lo cual se correspondió con la US3D, siendo comprobado al nacimiento. Conclusión: La US3D permite estudiar la región facial, complementando la US2D en la observación del defecto labial y compromiso palatino. La detección prenatal de FLP disminuye el impacto psicológico que provoca en los padres.

Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma. review of six patients Background: Anaplastic Thyroid Carcinoma corresponds 2 to 5% of all thyroid cancers. It affects mainly women in the sixth or seventh decade of life, appearing as a hard, fast growing cervical mass that is adhered to surrounding structures. Treatment includes surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Aim: to report a series of patients with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma. Patients and Methods: Review of medical records of patients with anaplastic thyroid cancer operated between 2002 and 2008. Results: The records of six patients aged 46 to 82 years (four males), were retrieved. A bilateral total thyroidectomy was performed in four patients. Two patients required tracheostomy during the postoperative period. Mean hospital stay was six days. None received neoadjuvant or adjuvant radio-chemotherapy. Three patients died within one month of the operation. The rest died at 115, 184 and 283 days after surgery. Conclusions: All these patients were diagnosed in advanced stages of the disease, a fact that can explain the dismal evolution observed.