The Journal of Bucharest College of Physicians and the Romanian Academy of Medical Sciences

Monica Mihaela Cirstoiu

Monica Mihaela Cirstoiu

Investigational Management for a Positive NIPT Result - Case Report

becoming widely used globally and replacing traditional screening methods in developed countries. The accuracy of NIPT in detecting aneuploidies is extremely high and there has been a recent trend towards improving NIPT for detecting microdeletion and microduplication syndromes, monogenic diseases, fetal sex determination, and RH genotyping. Significant progress has been made in molecular analysis techniques of fetal DNA, including methods such as massively parallel sequencing, RNA-based testing, digital PCR, and single nucleotide polymorphism analysis. We present the case of a 32-year-old patient who, at 12 weeks of gestation, had a non-invasive prenatal test result showing a maternal 22q11.2 deletion. Following genetic consultation, further investigations were conducted to stratify the fetal risk of inheriting the microdeletion syndrome. As a result, microarray CGH cytoarray from amniotic fluid was performed, and no 22q11.2 deletion was detected. In this case, complete elucidation of the origin of the deletion found in NIPT could not be achieved, as it would require arrayCGH testing for the mother, a test that was not performed due to financial reasons. Given the high rate of genetic syndromes with potential impact on fetal development and familial psychological impact, we wish to emphasize the necessity of financial support from the state to introduce non-invasive prenatal testing into the list of reimbursed analyses covered by health insurance. This would enable superior testing and, implicitly, genetic prevention of all pregnancies, facilitating appropriate risk stratification of pregnancies in our country.

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Uterovesical Abscess as Late Cesarean Complication - a Case Report and Review of the Literature

Pelvic abscesses located in the uterovesical space usually appear postpartum after cesarean delivery. Late presentation after months or years following surgery is rarely reported, especially in immunocompetent patients. We report the case of a young patient presenting an abscess of the uterovesical pouch, infiltrated in the myometrium, posterior wall of the bladder and parametrium. The case particularities include limited identifiable predisposing risk factors, acute onset of symptoms and belated diagnosis eight years after her second cesarean. The abscess removal by laparotomy required extensive debridement, total hysterectomy, bilateral salpingectomy and partial cystectomy, with good outcome after surgical treatment. We highlight the importance of a mixt urogynecology team for individualized case management and we discuss similitudes with other late cesarean complications.

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The Multidisciplinary Approach to Vaginal Leiomyosarcoma, an Extremely Rare Diagnosis - Case Report

Primary vaginal sarcoma is an extremely rare malignant condition within the field of gynecological pathologies. We present the case of a 53-year-old patient with no history of gynecological issues or associated comorbidities who presented to our clinic with recurrent vaginal bleeding during menopause. We want to emphasize the importance of diagnostic management, going through all the necessary steps from local gynecological examination to vaginal biopsy, optimizing results with advanced imaging techniques. Once the histopathological diagnosis of vaginal leiomyosarcoma was established, the therapeutic approach was discussed within a multidisciplinary committee consisting of a gynecologist, surgeon, and oncologist. As a result, the patient underwent tailored surgical intervention relatively quickly after presentation, followed by referral to the oncology department, where she is currently undergoing her third course of adjuvant chemotherapy. Our current objective is the long-term follow-up of the patient and the acquisition of data regarding her survival and quality of life. These facts may contribute in the future to the implementation of standardized therapeutic guidelines for such a rare condition. Keywords: vaginal sarcoma, malignant condition, vaginal leiomyosarcoma, surgical intervention, chemotherapy.

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Uterine Artery Embolization for Uncontrollable Hemorrhage after Vaginal Hysterectomy

Hysterectomy is the most common gynecologic procedure performed all over the world and various complications may appear depending on the surgical route. Delayed postoperative hemorrhage is a rare, life threatening complication. It requires timely management and recently the surgical reinterventions tend to be replaced by minimally invasive techniques. Transcatheter arterial embolization shows good results as a treatment strategy for massive vaginal bleeding post hysterectomy, when vaginal vault suturing fails to achieve hemostasis. We report a case of right uterine artery bleeding occurring 30 days after vaginal hysterectomy that was successfully treated by transcatheter arterial embolization.

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Ultrasound in Obstetrical and Gynecologic Emergencies

In Bucharest University Emergency Hospital every day we deal with difficult cases either presented per primam in our setting or, even more difficult situations, cases that were intended to be treated in other hospitals but due to lack of infrastructure are sent towards our multidisciplinary hospital, as a final stop. Conditions that our teams have to deal in a very restricted amount of time in the Emergency Room are: submucous myoma with heavy bleeding acquired uterine arteriovenous fistulae, ovarian ruptured cyst , ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, adnexal torsion, tuboovarian abscess, classical tubal ectopic pregnancy, Cesarean scar ectopic pregnancy, molar pregnancy, incomplete abortion, ruptured uterus post minimally invasive procedures performed before pregnancy, placental abruption, placenta praevia with heavy bleeding, and the PAS – Placenta Accreta Spectrum. All these conditions recquire a rapid differential diagnosis where ultrasonography is useful in adopting a tailored management either conservative or radical, in avoidance of haemorhagic accidents or even death and, when needed, in fertility sparing.

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Metaplastic Breast Cancer – a Rare, Aggressive Condition with a Poor Prognosis

Metaplastic breast cancer (MBC) is a rare, aggressive form of breast cancer first described by pathologists in 2000. It is usually discovered in advanced stages and has a low survival rate. It is divided into various subtypes: lowgrade adenosquamous, fibromatosis-like metaplastic, squamous cell, spindle cell, metaplastic with mesenchymal differentiation (including chondroid, osseous, or other types), mixed metaplastic, and myoepithelial carcinomas. Surgery is the treatment of choice, followed by adjuvant chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. We present the case of a 44-year-old woman with metaplastic breast cancer, reviewing the characteristics of this condition, the particularities of the case, and the treatment chosen in this particular situation.

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Correlation Between Early Diagnosis of Ovarian Neoplasm and Long-Term Prognosis

Ovarian cancer is the seventh most commonly diagnosed cancer in women, with the highest mortality rate among female genital cancers. Due to the nonspecific symptoms and the lack of effective screening strategies, ovarian cancer is often diagnosed in an advanced stage of the disease, with a 5-year survival rate of 25%. The efforts of specialists are aimed at identifying screening methods, with the lowest possible rates of false positive or false negative results in order to diagnose the disease at an early stage, when the 5-year survival rate is 92%. In this study we analyzed the incidence of ovarian cancer in the last five years in the Bucharest University Emergency Hospital, being registered 153 cases of ovarian cancer. The aim of this paper is to analyze the correlation between the early diagnosis of ovarian cancer and the long-term prognosis.

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Obstetrical and Neonatal Outcome of Pregnancies Complicated with SARS-CoV-2 Infection

COVID-19 pandemic had an impact without precedent. Pregnant women are part of the vulnerable population and the extent of SARS-CoV-2 infection consequences on obstetrical and neonatal outcome are still studied. It’s been speculated, based on what is known about other pathogenic viruses, SARS-CoV-2 virus can interfere with placental defense mechanisms and increase the miscarriage and preterm birth rate. Often, pregnant women infected with SARS-CoV-2 virus develop mild pneumonia. Severe pneumonia occurs very rarely and is statistically significant related to neonatal death. Our study has been conducted in a multidisciplinary hospital unit and included 184 pregnant women with SARS-COV-2 infection who gave birth in our hospital, diagnosed through polymerase chain reaction. There have been analyzed data regarding the maternal symptomatology, the gestational age, the method of giving birth, complications that have occurred during birth, the newborns weight and neonatal outcome through Apgar score. There have been three cases of severe infection with maternal death and one case with neonatal death.
Overall, 20% of patients had mild symptomatology, 2% had severe form and the rest of the patients were asymptomatic. We found a high rate of preterm birth and intrauterine growth restriction and an increase incidence of acute fetal distress followed by caesarean section. SARS-CoV-2 virus affects both the mother and the fetus as a whole and, subsequently, individually. Our results show the adverse obstetrical and neonatal outcome in peripartum period complicated with SARS-CoV-2 infection even in asymptomatic and mild-symptomatic cases.

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Pandora’s Box: Autoimmune Hypothyroidism Treatment During Pregnancy

There are international protocols for the management of hypothyroidism induced by autoimmune thyroid disease during pregnancy. In this descriptive study, we analyzed the implementation of international protocols regarding these pathologies, in local clinical practice. Analyzing the cases admitted to the Obstetrics and Gynecology department of Bucharest University Emergency Hospital on a period of 55 months, we identified the pregnancies with autoimmune hypothyroidism treated with Levothyroxine (LT4). We determined the prevalence of specific immunological markers for autoimmune hypothyroidism in pregnant women, we analyzed whether they are associated with distinct clinical phenotypes and ultrasound characteristics, and also, we evaluated the treatment of choice. Measurement of thyroglobulin antibodies, thyroid peroxidase antibodies, Thyroid-Stimulating Hormone, free fractions of Triiodothyronine and Thyroxine with substitute treatment instituted early (in the first 2 weeks postnatal) determine the normalization of cognitive development, especially in areas known for iodine deficiency, including Romania.

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Comparative Analysis of Vertical Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Vaccinated and Non-Vaccinated Pregnant Women

Pregnancy is a risk factor for developing a severe, complicated form of COVID-19. Medical reports have revealed that pregnancy increases three times the risk of ICU admission and 1.7 times the risk of death in patients with COVID-19. The crossing of the placenta by the antibodies generated through vaccination offer a level of protection that should not be ignored. We aimed to comparatively analyze the levels of SARS-CoV-2 IgG and IgM antibodies in pregnant women who have had this infection during pregnancy or have undergone a complete vaccination cycle during pregnancy, as well as antibody levels in newborns. The inclusion criterion was history of SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy or COVID-19 complete vaccination. For each case the peri-partum values of IgG and IgM SARSCoV- 2 antibodies were analyzed in the same laboratory along with those of their newborns. The vaccination rate in our study group was about 6%. All cases had a significant value of protective IgG SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and the level of protective antibodies of the newborns closely followed maternal values. From the cases with SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy, only 16.6% had a protective level of antibodies and 75% of the newborns from these cases had protective levels of IgG SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. Our results clearly plead in favor of vaccination in pregnancy
which provides significant benefits for both mothers and infants.

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