Kidney outcomes in early adolescence following perinatal asphyxia and hypothermia-treated hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy.

BACKGROUND: Acute kidney injury (AKI) remains common among infants with hypothermia-treated hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE). Little is known about long-term kidney outcomes following hypothermia treatment. We recently reported that 21% of survivors of hypothermia-treated HIE had decreased estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) based on plasma creatinine in early adolescence. Here, we assessed kidney functions more comprehensively in our population-based cohort of children born in Stockholm 2007-2009 with a history of hypothermia-treated HIE. METHODS: At 10-12 years of age, we measured cystatin C (cyst C) to estimate GFR. Children with decreased cyst C eGFR also underwent iohexol clearance examination. We measured urine-albumin/creatinine ratio, blood pressure (BP) and kidney volume on magnetic resonance imaging. Fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF 23) levels in plasma were assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Outcomes were compared between children with and without a history of neonatal AKI. RESULTS: Forty-seven children participated in the assessment. Two children (2/42) had decreased cyst C eGFR, for one of whom iohexol clearance confirmed mildly decreased GFR. One child (1/43) had Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) category A2 albuminuria, and three (3/45) had elevated office BP. Subsequent ambulatory 24-h BP measurement confirmed high normal BP in one case only. No child had hypertension. Kidney volume and FGF 23 levels were normal in all children. There was no difference in any of the parameters between children with and without a history of neonatal AKI. CONCLUSION: Renal sequelae were rare in early adolescence following hypothermia-treated HIE regardless of presence or absence of neonatal AKI. A higher resolution version of the Graphical abstract is available as Supplementary information.

Ultrasound Contrast Agent Needle Priming: Impact on Sonographic Biopsy Needle Visibility in a Porcine Liver Model.

PURPOSE: The visibility of biopsy needles in contrast-specific imaging mode can be improved by priming them with an ultrasound contrast agent (previously demonstrated in a phantom model/ex vivo). The purpose of this study was to validate this priming method in a porcine in vivo model. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using a small syringe, full-core biopsy needles were primed with sulfur hexafluoride, an ultrasound contrast agent, with non-primed needles serving as controls (n = 30 + 30). Liver punctures were performed in a porcine model following intravenous administration of the same ultrasound contrast agent. Needle visibility, both in their entirety and at the tips, was evaluated in split-screen mode using contrast-specific imaging and B-mode (low mechanical index). The assessment included quantitative analysis, calculating the contrast-to-noise ratio, and qualitative evaluation through structured grading by three radiologists. RESULTS: After needle priming, the contrast-to-noise ratio was superior for the needle in its entirety in contrast-specific imaging mode (p < 0.001) and slightly inferior in B-mode (p = 0.008). No differences were observed for the needle tips in either imaging mode. Qualitatively, the needle visibility was deemed clinically superior after needle priming throughout in contrast-specific imaging mode (p < 0.001), whereas no clinically relevant differences in B-mode for either the needle in its entirety (p = 0.11) or the needle tip (p = 1) were observed. CONCLUSION: In this in vivo porcine liver model experiment, priming biopsy needles with ultrasound contrast agent improved needle visibility in contrast-specific imaging mode but slightly reduced it in B-mode. These findings support the method's use for biopsies requiring target visualization in contrast-specific imaging mode.

Women with abdominal aortic aneurysms have more extensive aortic neck pathology.

BACKGROUND: The proportion of women with abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) treated with endovascular aortic repair (EVAR) is lower than for open repair (OR). Unfavorable morphologic features for EVAR in women with AAA may explain this disproportion. The objective of this study was to identify morphologic features in AAA patients undergoing elective repair with special emphasis on gender differences. METHODS: Patients undergoing elective repair from January 1, 2006 to December 31, 2008 at our university's vascular unit were included in this study. Computed tomography (CT) angiograms were analyzed. Morphologic features considered unfavorable for EVAR rather than open repair (OR) included: infrarenal aortic neck <15 mm; angulation >60°; circumferential neck thrombus; neck width >32 mm; iliac arteries <7.5 mm; or presence of bi-iliac aneurysms. Complex aortic neck was defined as a neck length of <15 mm and one or more of the other aortic neck exclusion criteria. RESULTS: One hundred seventy-two patients, including 140 men and 32 women, were treated during the study period, which included 99 with OR (21 women, 78 men) and 73 with EVAR (11 women, 62 men). Morphologic unsuitability for EVAR was 44% (75 of 172) and was not statistically different between women and men [47% (15 of 32) vs. 43% (60 of 140), P = 0.70]. Aortic neck pathology was the dominating feature for unsuitability for EVAR (69 of 75, 92%), and 85 of 172 patients had an unsuitable aortic neck. This rate was not different between women and men [19 of 32 (59%) vs. 66 of 140 (47%), P = 0.24]. Iliac unsuitability rates were 11% (19 of 172) and were not different between women and men [4 of 32 (12%) vs. 15 of 140 (11%), P = 0.76]. In patients unsuitable for EVAR, the proximal aortic necks showed more extensive aortic neck pathology in women than in men [8 of 15 (53%) vs. 13 of 60 (22%), P = 0.02]. More men had only short neck pathology [22 of 60 (37%) vs. 1 of 15 (7%), P = 0.03]. CONCLUSIONS: Aortic neck pathology is the dominating cause of EVAR exclusion in both genders. A higher proportion of women have more pathologic neck anatomy. Future development of EVAR devices should focus on the complexity of the aortic neck, which will benefit all AAA patients, but especially women.

Detection of myocarditis using T1 and ECV mapping is not improved by early compared to late post-contrast imaging.

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) of myocarditis may include early gadolinium enhancement (EGE) and global relative enhancement (GRE) by T1 -weighted images acquired before and early after contrast administration. However, the importance of timing for post-contrast imaging has not been evaluated using T1 mapping. We aimed to improve the understanding of the contrast mechanisms by evaluating whether early or late post-contrast T1 mapping was better at detecting myocarditis. METHODS: Controls and patients referred to evaluate myocarditis underwent 1·5T CMR. T1 mapping was performed before, and 3 min (early) and 21 min (late) after intravenous contrast (0·2 mmol kg-1 ). Extracellular volume fraction (ECV) and the GRE and EGE equivalents by T1 mapping were calculated. Focally affected myocardium in myocarditis was defined as increased native T1 compared to remote myocardium. RESULTS: The GRE equivalent by T1 mapping was higher in myocarditis (n = 19) compared to controls (n = 19) both early (P<0·001) and late (P<0·001). While remote myocardium in myocarditis had higher enhancement relative to skeletal muscle compared to controls early (P = 0·002) and late (P<0·001), ECV of skeletal muscle was lower compared to controls both early (P = 0·03) and late (P = 0·004), and remote myocardial ECV did not differ from controls early (P = 0·37) or late (P = 0·52). The difference in ECV between affected and remote myocardium was higher late compared to early by 5·3 ± 0·7 versus 4·0 ± 0·6%-points (P = 0·002). CONCLUSION: Quantitative evaluation by T1 mapping shows that early post-contrast imaging does not improve the detection of myocarditis compared to late post-contrast imaging. Focal myocardial abnormalities were more conspicuous late post-contrast.