|
Posterior mediastinal angioleiomyoma: report of a case.J
Thorac Imaging. 2007
Nov;22(4):363-5.
We describe a
case of mediastinal angioleiomyoma in an asymptomatic 72-year-old man,
who was admitted to our hospital for a mediastinal tumor discovered
during an annual medical examination. The tumor was evaluated by
computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
Unenhanced CT scans demonstrated a tumor that was adjacent to the
descending aorta. The tumor was partially enhanced in the early phase
of contrast-enhanced CT, and in the late phase there was additional
tumor enhancement. With MRI, the tumor displayed a homogeneous low
signal intensity on the T1-weighted image and a homogeneous very high
signal intensity on the T2-weighted image. Contrast-enhanced MRI
demonstrated the same enhancement pattern as CT. The examination
results led to a preoperative diagnosis of posterior mediastinal
hemangioma, and the patient underwent surgery. The tumor originated
from the supreme intercostal vein, and was diagnosed as an
angioleiomyoma by histopathologic examination. Because mediastinal
angioleiomyomas are very rare, they are difficult to diagnose
preoperatively. However, we believe that CT and MRI can be of
significant help in the differential diagnosis. |
