Contribution of magnetic resonance imaging in the diagnosis of talus skip metastases of Ewing's sarcoma of the calcaneus in a child: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Ewing's sarcoma of the calcaneus is rare. About thirty cases with calcaneus involvement have been reported in the literature. Talus skip metastases have rarely been described in the available literature</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We report a case of a 14-year-old Moroccan boy, who presented with Ewing's sarcoma of his right calcaneus, diagnosed by swelling of the calcaneus evolving over a year. Radiography, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging showed an important tumoral process of the calcaneus and talus skip metastases. The diagnosis was confirmed with histology after a biopsy. In spite of amputation and postoperative chemotherapy, our patient died six months later due to secondary respiratory distress after lung metastasis.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Imaging, especially magnetic resonance, is important in the diagnosis of Ewing sarcoma and skeletal skip metastases. Treatment of Ewing's sarcoma consists of chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgical resection depending on the stage and extent of the disease. With the exception of lesions in the calcaneus, the prognosis for disease-free survival of Ewing's sarcoma of the foot is excellent.</p

Understanding the impact of desert stressors factors on standard PV panel performance: Case study of Algeria's desert

Compared to moderate climate conditions, hot and dry environment, as known desert, present the most difficult environment that affects negatively PV panels performance. In the present paper, the root causes that have the major contribution in PV panel performance degradation in desert climates and the direct relationship between desert climate factors and accelerate degradation mechanism are analyzed. Algeria's desert is chosen as a case to study, an overview of Algeria's desert climate has been presented. High solar irradiation accompanied by high ambient temperature has been considered as the most responsible for accelerated discoloration and initiating damage of EVA encapsulant material which can create a challenge for long-term reliability of c-Si PV panels. The declared 20–25 year PV panel lifetime is very optimistic in Algeria's desert climates. This research work can be beneficial in future studies on challenges related to the optimal performance and the expected operating lifetime of photovoltaic applications in desert climates