Heterotopic ossification at the level of a laparotomy scar

Abstract

We report the cases of two patients referred to our radiology department for a thoracoabdominal computed tomography (CT) scan as part of their routine postoperative follow-up as both the patients were asymptomatic. The first patient is a 60-year-old female who underwent a laparotomy for gastric gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) 11 months ago, and checked into our radiology department for a thoracoabdominal CT scan as part of her follow-up assessment. The patient had no complaints. The CT scan revealed a 7 cm long vertical linear calcified lesion in the anterior abdominal wall at the anterior aspect of the xiphoid process corresponding to a heterotopic ossification of the laparotomy scar (Figure 1). The second patient is a 33-year-old male who had undergone laparotomy for total gastrectomy one month earlier due to a gastric adenocarcinoma. The patient was received in our department for his first check-up after surgery and concomitant radiochemotherapy. Furthermore, the patient presented no complaints. The thoracoabdominal CT scan performed revealed a vertical calcified lesion at the level of the laparotomy scar extending about 11 cm from the xiphoid region to about 5 cm above the umbilicus, also corresponding to a heterotopic ossification of the laparotomy scar (Figure 2).