Ultrasound-Assisted Diagnosis and Efficacy of Microscopic Lateral Subperiosteal Approach for Subungual Soft Tissue Tumors

Abstract

　We evaluated the clinical outcomes of the microscopic lateral subperiosteal approach for subungual soft tissue tumors in seven patients. Symptom duration ranged from 6 months to 30 years (median 6 years) . Preoperatively, all patients presented with spontaneous pain and tenderness. Four had cold sensitivity, two had blue spots, and two had nail deformities. Ultrasonography and MRI detected subungual tumors in six cases. The surgical procedure was performed under a microscope from skin incision to closure. Dissection of the tumor was performed under maximum magnification. The tumor size ranged from 0.8 to 6.5 mm. The histopathological diagnoses were glomus tumor for six cases and angioleiomyoma for one case. The postoperative follow-up period ranged from 1 to 5 years (median 2 years) . At the final follow-up, all patients had no tenderness. No recurrence of the tumor was observed, and no new nail deformities occurred during follow-up. Our findings suggest that this technique is a minimally invasive and effective treatment option for small subungual soft tissue tumors.