Current Issue : April-June Volume : 2022 Issue Number : 2 Articles : 6 Articles
Background: Lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) are among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among children during early childhood. Lung ultrasound is a relatively simple bedside method helping early diagnosis of these conditions. Purpose: To compare the findings of chest X-ray (CXR) and of lung ultrasound (LUS) among children with lower respiratory tract infections. Subjects and Methods: A comparative cross-sectional study that included 100 children aged 6 months to 6 years with lower respiratory tract infections and 100 healthy age- and sex-matched children (controls). Included children were recruited from Mansoura University children hospital during the period from September 2020 to June 2021. Detailed findings of chest X-ray and lung ultrasound were compared. Results: Among 100 patients with LRTIs, the diagnosis of pneumonia, bronchiolitis and bronchitis were reported in 41%, 36% and 23% of cases respectively. Lung ultrasound was more sensitive than chest X-ray for diagnosing pneumonia (97.6% for LUS vs. 92.7% for CXR) and bronchiolitis (91.7% for LUS vs. 77.8% for CXR). Conclusion: Lung ultrasound is a sensitive tool for the assessment of lower respiratory tract infections. Further steps for application and validation are recommended....
Background: In rare cases, intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma can present as a pyogenic liver abscess and are often misdiagnosed. This study aimed to analyze the imaging features of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma mimicking a pyogenic liver abscess. Methods: The clinical data and imaging results of eight patients with pathologically confirmed intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma mimicking a liver abscess were retrospectively collected. Results: The mean age was 58 years with a range of 46–68 years. Fever and leukocytosis were present in six patients. All the eight lesions were a single mass. Air–liquid levels were present in two patients. Only one patient showed hepatic lobar atrophy and hepatic capsule retraction. The double target sign of liver abscess was not noticed in the CT/MRI images of all eight patients. The inner wall of the lesion was rough and irregular, with multiple dot/patchy and wall nodule enhancements. The abscess wall and the marginal parenchyma were supplied by the hepatic artery in four patients, and the intralesional arteries were rough and disrupted. Bile duct dilatation was seen adjacent to the lesion. In seven patients, diffusion-weighted images showed irregular patchy restricted diffusion in the marginal parenchyma of the necrotic area in addition to the prominent restricted diffusion in the necrotic area. Two patients with cholangiolithiasis showed patchy slight CT hypodensity, slight T1 hypointensity, slight T2 hyperintensity, and patchy delayed enhancement. Multiple lymph nodes enlargement in the hepatic hilar area and the retroperitoneal space were seen in five patients. Conclusion: Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma mimicking a pyogenic liver abscess have unique imaging features and require careful image examination to avoid misdiagnosis....
Background: In addition to nerve conduction studies (NCSs), ultrasonography has been widely used as an alternative tool for diagnosing carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). Although the results of NCSs are influenced by local skin temperature, few studies have explored the effects of skin temperature on ultrasonography of the median nerve. Since swelling and intraneural blood flow of the median nerve might be influenced by local temperature changes, the aim of this study was to evaluate the cross-sectional area (CSA) and intraneural blood flow of the median nerve under three skin temperatures (30 °C, 32 °C, 34 °C). Methods: Fifty patients with CTS and 50 healthy volunteers were consecutively recruited from a community hospital. Each participant received physical examinations and NCSs and underwent ultrasonography, including power Doppler, to evaluate intraneural vascularity. Results: The CSA of the median nerve in the CTS patients was significantly larger than that in the healthy controls at all three temperatures. However, significant differences in the power Doppler signals of the median nerve between the two studied groups were observed only at 30 and 32 °C, not at 34 °C. Conclusion: The significant difference in the intraneural vascularity of the median nerve between the patients with CTS and the healthy subjects was lost at higher temperatures (34 °C). Therefore, the results of power Doppler ultrasonography in diagnosing CTS should be cautiously interpreted in patients with a high skin temperature or those who reside in warm environments....
The role of inflammation in cardiovascular pathophysiology has gained a lot of research interest in recent years. Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance has been a powerful tool in the non-invasive assessment of inflammation in several conditions. More recently, Ultrasmall superparamagnetic particles of iron oxide have been successfully used to evaluate macrophage activity and subsequently inflammation on a cellular level. Current evidence from research studies provides encouraging data and confirms that this evolving method can potentially have a huge impact on clinical practice as it can be used in the diagnosis and management of very common conditions such as coronary artery disease, ischaemic and non-ischaemic cardiomyopathy, myocarditis and atherosclerosis. Another important emerging concept is that of myocardial energetics. With the use of phosphorus magnetic resonance spectroscopy, myocardial energetic compromise has been proved to be an important feature in the pathophysiological process of several conditions including diabetic cardiomyopathy, inherited cardiomyopathies, valvular heart disease and cardiac transplant rejection. This unique tool is therefore being utilized to assess metabolic alterations in a wide range of cardiovascular diseases. This review systematically examines these state-of-the-art methods in detail and provides an insight into the mechanisms of action and the clinical implications of their use....
Background: Accurate measurement of left atrial (LA) volumes is needed in cardiac diagnostics and the follow up of heart and valvular diseases. Geometrical assumptions with 2D methods for LA volume estimation contribute to volume misestimation. In this study, we test agreement of 3D and 2D methods of LA volume detection and explore contribution of 3D LA axis orientation and LA shape in introducing error in 2D methods by cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging. Methods: 30 patients with prior first-ever ischemic stroke and no known heart disease, and 30 healthy controls were enrolled (age 18–49) in a substudy of a prospective case–control study. All study subjects underwent cardiac magnetic resonance imaging and were pooled for this methodological study. LA volumes were calculated by biplane area-length method from both conventional long axis ( LAVAL-LV) and LA long axis-oriented images ( LAVAL-LA) and were compared to 3D segmented LA volume ( LAVSAX) to assess accuracy of volume detection. 3D orientation of LA long axis to left ventricular (LV) long axis and to four-chamber plane were determined, and LA 3D sphericity indices were calculated to assess sources of error in LA volume calculation. Shapiro–Wilk test, Bland–Altman analysis, intraclass and Pearson correlation, and Spearman’s rho were used for statistical analysis. Results: Biases were − 9.9 mL (− 12.5 to − 7.2) for LAVAL- LV and 13.4 (10.0–16.9) for LAVAL- LA [mean difference to LAVSAX (95% confidence interval)]. End-diastolic LA long axis 3D deviation angle to LV long axis was 28.3 ± 6.2° [mean ± SD] and LA long axis 3D rotation angle to four-chamber plane 20.5 ± 18.0°. 3D orientation of LA axis or 3D sphericity were not correlated to error in LA volume calculation. Conclusions: Calculated LA volume accuracy did not improve by using LA long axis-oriented images for volume calculation in comparison to conventional method. We present novel data on LA axis orientation and a novel metric of LA sphericity and conclude that these measures cannot be utilized to assess error in LA volume calculation....
Introduction: Bladder tumours are frequent, have a poor prognosis and are the second most common genitourinary tumour in men. In Mali, recent statistical data on the prevalence of bladder tumours show a progression with 6.71% in 2006. The euro scanner is used in the diagnostic workup. The work was initiated in order to specify the role of the scanner in the diagnosis of these tumors. Patients and Methods: Prospective descriptive study was carried out in the medical imaging department of Mali Hospital from February to November 2018. Were included any patient with a bladder tumour on euro scanner. The patients had benefited from a preliminary preparation and a renal biological assessment in order to eliminate renal insufficiency. Our examinations were performed with a Siemens 16-slice scanner. These were axial slices performed without, with iodine injection from the pulmonary base to the pubic bones. Results: We had collected 17 patients out of 541 scans i.e. a frequency of 3.76%. The age range of 21 to 40 years was 58.8% with an average age of 25 years. The antecedents (ATCD) found were urinary bilharzia (47%) and smoking (17%). The clinic was dominated by haematuria. It was associated with a bladder mass (52%) and dysuria (23.52%). The CT scan showed a budding appearance, a size greater than 3 cm (82%), infiltration of peri-vesical fat (47.05%), and adenopathy (94%). Associated lesions were: utero-hydronephrosis (58.82%) and metastases (bone and liver in 11.76% of cases each). Conclusion: They are frequent and the history of urinary bilharziasis remains..........................
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