Ectopic Ureter: Spectrum of Magnetic Resonance Imaging Findings.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to describe the MRI findings of six patients with ectopic ureters in a tertiary care institute. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on six patients presenting to the Department of Radiodiagnosis at Sawai Man Singh (SMS) Hospital, Jaipur, India, with ectopic ureters. Data were collected from the 3 Tesla (3T) Philips MRI scanner (Koninklijke Philips N.V., Amsterdam, Netherlands) from 2021 to 2023. RESULTS: The mean age was 21.6 years, with an equal male-to-female ratio (1:1). Most patients presented with urinary incontinence (50%, n = 3), followed by abdominal pain. Only 16.6% (n = 1) were associated with a duplex collecting system. In males, the most common site was the seminal vesicle, observed in 66.6% (n = 2), followed by the urethra in 33.4% (n = 1) of cases. One patient with an ectopic opening into the seminal vesicle had Zinner syndrome. In females, the ectopic site was found to be the vagina in all three patients. CONCLUSION: Ectopic ureter is a rare anomaly of the urinary system, often associated with other urinary system anomalies and a few syndromes. Clinical presentations range from the patient being asymptomatic to renal failure; therefore, a high index of suspicion and appropriate imaging are necessary for early diagnosis and timely treatment.

Can imaging be the new yardstick for diagnosing peripheral neuropathy?-a comparison between high resolution ultrasound and MR neurography with an approach to diagnosis.

PURPOSE: Peripheral neuropathies are a group of disorders which affect the peripheral nervous system which have been conventionally diagnosed using electrodiagnostic studies. This study was carried out to assess the role of imaging in diagnosing peripheral mononeuropathy as exact anatomical localisation of the pathology is possible using high-resolution ultrasound and MR neurography, the modalities assessed in this study. METHOD: A hospital-based prospective analytical study was carried out in a resource-limited setting on 180 peripheral nerves in 131 patients with symptoms of peripheral mononeuropathy after taking IRB approval. Each patient underwent high-resolution ultrasound examination and MR neurography, findings of which were then compared and statistically analysed assuming electrodiagnostic findings as the gold standard. RESULTS: Overall, the diagnostic accuracy was highest for the proton density fat-saturated MR sequence (93.89%) followed by high-resolution ultrasound (80%). The sensitivity was highest for proton density fat-saturated sequence while the T1 MR sequence had the highest specificity. Combined diagnostic accuracy of both modalities was calculated to be 93.33% with a negative predictive value of 80%. High-resolution ultrasound and MRI equally detected the cases with nerve discontinuity, while neuromas were better identified on MRI. CONCLUSION: With the advent of higher frequency probes and improved MR field strength, imaging of peripheral nerves is possible with better accuracy. Imaging assessment of nerves allows anatomical delineation with identification of exact site of involvement. This comparative study demonstrates the role of imaging in diagnosing peripheral nerve pathologies with the accuracy of MRI as high as 93.89% which may serve as an imaging gold standard. High-resolution ultrasound, being quicker, cost effective and a comparable accuracy of 80% can serve as a reliable screening tool. This study incorporates a larger study group and compares HRUS with MRI, taking NCV as gold standard, which has not been done in the preceding studies. With this study, we conclude that these two imaging modalities are not mutually exclusive. Rather, they complement each other and can be used in conjunction as an imaging yardstick for diagnosing peripheral neuropathies.

Imaging in the diagnosis of ulnar nerve pathologies-a neoteric approach.

The ulnar nerve is a branch of the C8 and T1 nerve roots and arises from the medial cord of the brachial plexus. It supplies the intrinsic muscles of the hand and assists the median nerve in functioning of the flexors. Also known as the musician's nerve, it is the second most common nerve involved in compressive neuropathy following the median nerve. Common sites of entrapment include cubital tunnel at the elbow, the ulnar groove in the humerus and the Guyon's canal at the wrist. Patients present with altered sensation in the ulnar fourth and the fifth digit and the medial side of arm with loss of function of intrinsic muscles of the hand, the flexor carpi ulnaris and ulnar fibres of flexor digitorum superficialis in more severe cases. Diagnosis relies on clinical examination, electrodiagnostic studies and imaging findings. Plain radiographs are used to identify fracture sites, callus, or tumours as cause of compression. Technological advances in ultrasonography have allowed direct visualisation of the involved nerve with assessment of exact site, extent and type of injury. It yields unmatched information about anatomical details of the nerve. MR imaging adds to soft tissue details and helps in characterising the lesion. This pictorial review aims to illustrate a wide spectrum of causes of ulnar neuropathies as seen on ultrasound and MRI and emphasises upon the importance of imaging modalities in the diagnosis of neuropathies.

Correction to: A panorama of radial nerve pathologies- an imaging diagnosis: a step ahead.

The original article [1] contained an omission in authorship detail; authors Aakanksha Agarwal and Abhishek Chandra are instead joint first authors.

A panorama of radial nerve pathologies- an imaging diagnosis: a step ahead.

The radial nerve has a long and tortuous course in the upper limb. Injury to the nerve can occur due to a multitude of causes at many potential sites along its course. The most common site of involvement is in the proximal forearm affecting the posterior interosseous branch while the main branch of the radial nerve is injured in fractures of the humeral shaft. Signs and symptoms of radial neuropathy depend upon the site of injury. Injury to the nerve distal to innervation of triceps brachii results in loss of extensor function with sparing of function of the triceps resulting in the characteristic 'wrist drop'. Injury in the mid-arm is associated with loss of sensation in the dorsolateral aspect of the hand, the dorsal aspect of the radial three-and-a-half digits and in the first web space. Involvement of only the posterior interosseous nerve (PIN) results in weakness of the wrist and digit extensors. Diagnosis relies on clinical examination, electrodiagnostic studies and imaging findings. Plain radiographs are used to identify fracture sites, callus or tumours as cause of compression. Technological advances in ultrasonography have allowed direct visualisation of the involved nerve with assessment of the exact site, extent and type of injury. It yields unmatched information about anatomical details of the nerve. MR imaging adds to soft-tissue details and helps in characterising the lesion. This pictorial review aims to illustrate a wide spectrum of causes of radial neuropathy and emphasises the importance of imaging modalities in diagnosis of neuropathies. TEACHING POINTS: • Radial nerve injuries are assessed by clinical examination and diagnosed using electrodiagnostic and imaging studies. • Knowledge of anatomical relations and course of the nerve is necessary to identify the nerve at pre-determined anatomical locations. • Altered echogenicity and signal intensity, discontinuity of the nerve, focal thickening and cause of compression can be assessed by imaging modalities. • MR imaging helps in confirmation of the ultrasound findings, differentiating similar appearing lesions and provides additional soft-tissue details.

Diagnostic accuracy of multidetector computed tomography scan in mediastinal masses assuming histopathological findings as gold standard.

PURPOSE: Aim of the study was to: 1) present MDCT characteristics of different mediastinal mass lesions, 2) estimate proportion of benign and malignant mediastinal mass lesions based on MDCT findings, and 3) find out the diagnostic accuracy with sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of MDCT in mediastinal mass lesions assuming histopathology as gold standard. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This study was an analysis of 60 patients who underwent MDCT scan for characterisation of mediastinal mass lesion, and subsequently imaging findings were verified with pathological diagnosis. RESULTS: Out of 60 patients 65% were malignant and 35% were benign. Metastatic carcinoma was the leading diagnosis. Sensitivity of MDCT in this study came out to be 94%, specificity is 90%, with a positive predictive value of 94% and negative predictive value of 90% with diagnostic accuracy of 93%. CONCLUSIONS: Mediastinal mass lesion can be accurately diagnosed with MDCT which is a non-invasive and easily available modality requiring clinical data for accurate diagnosis and management. Co-relation of MDCT findings with other imaging findings is complex and requires adequate clinical data for optimum diagnostic confidence.

Comparison of sonoelastography with sonourethrography and retrograde urethrography in the evaluation of male anterior urethral strictures.

OBJECTIVE: Retrograde urethrography (RUG) is the most common and preferred imaging modality for imaging of the anterior urethral strictures despite its well-known limitations and disadvantages. Sonourethrography (SUG) was introduced in 1988 to overcome the limitations of RUG and to provide more accurate results. As proper selection of imaging modality is very important for planning the treatment, various advances in this area are required. One of the major factors for recurrence of stricture disease is spongiofibrosis. Sonoelastography (SE) is a newer technique, tried in various other pathologies. In this study, we have used this technique for the first time to assess its efficacy in the evaluation of anterior urethral stricture disease by comparison with RUG and SUG. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Between August 2014 and May 2015, 77 patients with clinical features of anterior urethral stricture disease were included in the study and evaluated by RUG followed by SUG and SE for stricture location, length, depth of spongiofibrosis and periurethral pathologies. The results were then correlated with operative and histopathological findings. RESULTS: Overall diagnostic accuracy of SE, SUG, and RGU for the estimation of stricture location, and length were estimated 92.68% vs. 91.54%, 79% vs. 78.87% and 80.48% vs. 43.66%, respectively, while for depth of spongiofibrosis SE, and SUG had accuracy rates of 87.3%, 48%, respectively. The mean length measured on SE was nearest to the mean intra-operative stricture length (21.34+11.8 mm). SE findings significantly correlated with the colour of bladder mucosa on cystoscopic examination (p=0.003) whereas the association was non-significant (p=0.127) for difficulty in incision. While a nonsignificant correlation existed between SUG findings related both to the colour of the bladder mucosa and difficulty in incision on cystoscopy, SE findings had a significant association (p<0.001) with histopathology findings for severe degree of fibrosis. CONCLUSION: Sonoelastography estimates stricture site and length better in comparison with RUG and SUG. It estimates degree of spongiofibrosis which serves as an important prognostic factor for stricture recurrence more accurately than SUG.

'Real-time sonoelastography' in anterior urethral strictures: A novel technique for assessment of spongiofibrosis.

INTRODUCTION: Spongiofibrosis assessment is critically important in the evaluation of anterior urethral strictures as its severity is directly proportional to stricture recurrence and thus affects management. Retrograde urethrography (RGU) is ineffective in the evaluation of spongiofibrosis. Sonourethrography (SUG) delineates it but does not accurately estimate its depth. Real-time elastography (RTE), a newer technique that not only attempts a qualitative but also quantitative estimation of spongiofibrosis (tissue stiffness) which results due to underlying pathological processes. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In the present study, various elastographic patterns and strain ratios in anterior urethral stricture patients were studied and compared to operative and histopathological findings. Sixty-three RGU diagnosed anterior urethral stricture cases were taken and re-evaluated by SUG and SE by another radiologist who was blinded to the findings of the RGU. Strain patterns and ratios of spongiofibrotic segments were documented and compared with operative findings as gold standard. RESULTS: Blue pattern on RTE showed 100% concordance with severe fibrosis as evaluated against histopathological findings whereas green pattern showed 87.5% concordance with moderate degree of fibrosis. Severe degree of fibrosis cases, confirmed on histopathology had a significantly higher mean strain ratio (10.51 ±2.297) as compared to moderate degree (6.33 ±2.353) (p <0.001 S). CONCLUSIONS: Real time sonoelastography in the evaluation of spongiofibrosis not only assesses it qualitatively but also quantifies it. Strain ratios are statistically better indicators for estimating spongiofibrosis.