Artificial Intelligence: Impact and Challenges to Authors, Journals and Medical Publishing.

Artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted technologies are here to stay and cannot be ignored. These tools are able to generate highly-realistic human-like text and perform a wide range of useful language tasks with a wide range of applications. They have the potential to expedite innovation in health care and can aid in promoting equity and diversity in research by overcoming language barriers. When using these AI tools, authors must take responsibility for the output and originality of their work, as publishers expect all content to be generated by human authors unless there is a declaration to the contrary. Authors must disclose how AI tools have been used, and ensure appropriate attribution of all the text, images, and audio-visual material. The responsible use of AI language models and transparent reporting of how these tools were used in the creation of information and publication are vital to promote and protect the credibility and integrity of medical research, and trust in medical knowledge. Educating postgraduate and undergraduate students, researchers and authors on the applications and best usage of AI-assisted technologies, together with the importance of critical thinking, integrity and strict adherence to ethical principles, are key steps that need to be undertaken.

N95 Filtering Facepiece Respirators during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Basics, Types, and Shortage Solutions.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is highly infectious, with the current pandemic causing significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. As large numbers of frontline healthcare workers (HCWs) have also been infected and several have died, there is much global concern about protective measures for them, particularly those performing surgery or other procedures with close patient contact. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there has been and there remains a shortage in the supply of personal protective equipment (PPE), including the N95 filtering facepiece (FFP) respirator, for HCWs. N95 respirators have filtration efficiency of 95% of aerosol particles. Surgical N95 respirators are used where fluid resistance is also required together with respiratory protection, e.g. during surgery or interventional procedures. The shortage of N95 respirators may be overcome by extended use and reuse - comprising rotation and decontamination by approved techniques. The additional role of powered air-purifying respirators (PAPR) is also discussed.

Image-guided facet joint injection.

Chronic spine pain poses a peculiar diagnostic and therapeutic challenge due to multiple pain sources, overlapping clinical features and nonspecific radiological findings. Facet joint injection is an interventional pain management tool for facet-related spinal pain that can be effectively administered by a radiologist. This technique is the gold standard for identifying facet joints as the source of spinal pain. The major indications for facet injections include strong clinical suspicion of the facet syndrome, focal tenderness over the facet joints, low back pain with normal radiological findings, post-laminectomy syndrome with no evidence of arachnoiditis or recurrent disc disease, and persistent low back pain after spinal fusion. The contraindications are more ancillary, with none being absolute. Like any synovial joint degeneration, inflammation and injury can lead to pain on motion, initiating a vicious cycle of physical deconditioning, irritation of facet innervations and muscle spasm. Image-guided injection of local anesthetic and steroid into or around the facet joint aims to break this vicious cycle and thereby provide pain relief. This outpatient procedure has high diagnostic accuracy, safety and reproducibility but the therapeutic outcome is variable.

Scientific writing and publishing: its importance to radiologists.

Scientific writing and publication marks the endpoint of research that has been performed, completed, peer reviewed and accepted, and complements teaching and training, clinical service and patient care. Writing has numerous benefits, one of the most important ones being the inherent training undertaken to better appreciate and evaluate the published work of others. Effective scientific writing is an important component of a radiologist's practice, and should be cultivated at an early stage of the career.

CT-guided percutaneous biopsy of spinal lesions.

Accurate diagnosis of spine lesions is important for its successful management. Imaging-guided percutaneous biopsy is gaining increasing acceptance as a means for obtaining tissue for diagnosis. Most biopsies can be rapidly performed under local anaesthesia, with little patient discomfort and improved safety. Spinal anatomy is, however, complex with many adjacent vital structures. Good knowledge of anatomy and precise needling technique is, therefore, important. Today, biopsy of spinal lesions is best performed under computed tomography (CT) fluoroscopic guidance. Indications for imaging-guided biopsy include confirming metastasis in a patient with a known primary tumour, determining the nature of a solitary bone lesion, excluding malignancy in vertebral body compression, and investigating for infection. Among the various issues to be considered are site of lesion, location of adjacent vital structures, approach, and type and size of needle. Complications are rare, particularly when a meticulous technique is applied. In summary, CT-guided percutaneous biopsy is a safe and an effective technique for the evaluation of spinal lesions and useful in planning therapy.

Provocative discography: Current status.

Low back pain is a common clinical problem that may be due to a variety of causes, including disc disease. Provocative discography is an imaging-guided procedure in which a contrast agent is injected into the nucleus pulposus of the disc. Despite its controversial history, it remains the only imaging technique that provides both anatomical and functional information about a diseased disc. Disc morphology is usually assessed on either radiographs or computed tomography (CT), or both. Functional evaluation of the disc consists of pain provocation and careful assessment of the patient's response to pain. As provocative discography is an invasive procedure, it should not be used as a screening study in patients with back pain. It should instead be reserved for carefully- selected patients whose painful symptoms cannot be explained by findings on non-invasive imaging modalities such as magnetic resonance imaging or CT, and who are not responsive to conservative measures. Discography is helpful in selection of patients and disc levels to be operated upon. Careful application of indications and meticulous technique are however required if a successful outcome is to be expected.