Pulmonary metastases in children: are we operating unnecessarily?

ABSTRACT Objective: to determine, in pediatric patients with malignant neoplasms, the characteristics of pulmonary nodules identified on computed tomography, as well as the possibility of differentiating benign lesions from metastases. Methods: we conducted a retrospective study of patients submitted to pulmonary resections of nodules diagnosed as metastases in a period of seven years. We compared computed tomography and surgery findings, as well as results of anatomopathological examinations. Results: we studied nine patients submitted to 11 surgical interventions. Among the studied variables, only nodule size greater than 12.5mm proved to be statistically significant to predict malignancy. Conclusion: among the tomographic characteristics of pulmonary nodules in children with malignant neoplasms, only the size of the lesion was a predictor of malignancy.摘要 目的：明确恶性肿瘤儿科患者计算机断层扫描（computed tomography，CT）检出的肺结节特征，以及区分良性病变与肺转移灶的可能性。 方法：本研究为回顾性研究，纳入7年内被确诊为肺转移结节并接受肺结节切除术的患者，对比CT结果、手术所见及解剖病理学检查结果。 结果：本研究共纳入9例患者，实施11次手术操作。在所有研究变量中，仅结节直径大于12.5mm这一指标在预测恶性病变时具有统计学意义。 结论：在恶性肿瘤儿科患者的肺结节影像学特征中，仅病灶直径可作为恶性病变的预测因子。