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Cervicothoracic cellulitis is a very serious, potentially life-threatening infection of the cervical and thoracic soft tissue. It is a genuine medical and surgical emergency with substantial mortality, and its surgical therapy has not yet been standardized. It spreads through the layers of the cervical fascia and can then disseminate to the mediastinum and the pleural cavities, requiring specific management that includes the thoracic surgeon. We present reports of 3 patients with cervicothoracic cellulitis, all complicated by mediastinitis, with pericardial effusion in 1 case and unilateral or bilateral pyothorax in 2 cases. Combining these cases with a review of the literature enables us to describe the management of these complicated cases as seen by a thoracic surgeon.

Posttraumatic diaphragmatic hernias have long been known, but the variety of their clinical expression can lead to diagnostic delay and difficulties in treatment. An intrathoracic hernia of hollow abdominal viscera with subsequent necrosis and perforation is an uncommon late complication with poor prognosis. Surgical treatment is mandatory. Laparotomy is an excellent approach, making it possible to achieve therapeutic objectives for the abdomen and thorax with a short operative time and minimal complications in these patients whose hemodynamic status is often precarious. We report 2 cases of posttraumatic left diaphragmatic hernias with intrathoracic necrosis of the digestive tract, treated by laparotomy.