No abstract

We encountered a rare case of spontaneous rupture of the omental artery. A 25-year-old man without any episode of abdominal trauma or bleeding disorders came to the emergency unit with left upper abdominal pain. Hematoma with extravasation of the greater omentum and a hemoperitoneum was confirmed on abdominal contrast-enhanced computed tomography. Bleeding from the omental artery was suspected based on these findings. Transcatheter arterial embolization was successfully performed after extravasation of the omental artery, which arises from the left gastroepiploic artery, was confirmed on arteriography. Partial ometectomy was performed 10 days after transcatheter arterial embolization, revealing that the hematoma measured 10 cm in diameter in the greater omentum. Pathological examination showed rupture of the branch of an omental artery without abnormal findings, such as an aneurysm or neoplasm. Thus, we diagnosed him with spontaneous rupture of the omental artery. The patient recovered and was discharged from the hospital 10 days after the surgery, with a favorable postoperative course.

Structural examination of human heart specimens at the microscopic level is a prerequisite for understanding congenital heart diseases. It is desirable not to destroy or alter the properties of such specimens because of their scarcity. However, many of the currently available imaging techniques either destroy the specimen through sectioning or alter the chemical and mechanical properties of the specimen through staining and contrast agent injection. As a result, subsequent studies may not be possible. X-ray phase-contrast tomography is an imaging modality for biological soft tissues that does not destroy or alter the properties of the specimen. The feasibility of X-ray phase-contrast tomography for the structural examination of heart specimens was tested using infantile and fetal heart specimens without congenital diseases. X-ray phase-contrast tomography was carried out at the SPring-8 synchrotron radiation facility using the Talbot grating interferometer at the bending magnet beamline BL20B2 to visualize the structure of five non-pretreated whole heart specimens obtained by autopsy. High-resolution, three-dimensional images were obtained for all specimens. The images clearly showed the myocardial structure, coronary vessels, and conduction bundle. X-ray phase-contrast tomography allows high-resolution, three-dimensional imaging of human heart specimens. Intact imaging using X-ray phase-contrast tomography can contribute to further structural investigation of heart specimens with congenital heart diseases.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00246-016-1527-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

This is the first demonstration that visualization of the AV conduction axis within human whole heart specimens is feasible with PCCT.

We reviewed histological and clinical findings of six cases of borderline chondrosarcoma and examined the expression of collagen types I, II, III, V, and VI by immunohistochemical analysis of these tumors. Borderline chondrosarcoma is defined as a cartilaginous tumor of bone resembling enchondroma on the basis of histomorphology. Clinically the tumor causes intermittent vague pain unrelated to physical activities. On radiographs borderline chondrosarcoma is characterized by evidence of endosteal erosion. We observed local recurrences in two cases treated by intralesional excision and marginal excision, and one of those cases died of inoperable local tumor recurrence. In our histological analysis based on tissue patterns, there were enchondromatous patterns in five cases, and chondrosarcomatous patterns in four cases. In the second recurrent tumor in one case, a chondrosarcomatous pattern was newly observed, and the recurrent tumor was found to be a low-grade chondrosarcoma cytologically in the other case. In the tumor matrix immunoreactivity for collagen types II and VI was predominant, with collagen types I, III, and V showing heterogeneous expression in some cases. In all cases rimming of tumor lobules with collagen types I and V was absent. Immunoreactivity for collagen type II in the cytoplasm of tumor cells was found in four cases and all three recurrent tumors. Borderline chondrosarcoma, as defined by histology, clinical symptoms and radiological appearance, shows a collagen distribution pattern similar to that of low-grade chondrosarcoma. These findings are in accordance with the clinical outcome of borderline chondrosarcoma which parallels that of low-grade chondrosarcoma. Thus borderline chondrosarcoma may be best treated by wide en-bloc excision rather than curettage.