Surgical resection of a huge ruptured mature mediastinal teratoma

Abstract

Usually slow-growing and benign, mature mediastinal teratomas are rare clinical entities. They may be complicated by rupture into the pleural or pericardial spaces, lungs, or bronchi. Complete surgical resection is the treatment of choice and is usually curative. We report the unusual case of a 24-year-old woman presenting 15 weeks postpartum with a huge ruptured mature mediastinal teratoma superinfected with Mycobacterium avium. Catastrophic bleeding from the superior vena cava was encountered on mobilization of adhesions attached to it, requiring extracorporeal membrane oxygenator support for control. Histopathological examination confirmed a 12.0 × 7.8 × 4.5-cm differentiated teratoma without malignant transformation.