The Role of Computerized Tomography in the Assessment of Perivesical Invasion in Bladder Cancer.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to identify the contrast patterns of a tumor, and to evaluate the possibility of assessing the invasion of the perivesical fatty tissue in bladder cancer. MATERIAL/METHODS: In this study, 26 patients with bladder cancer were included. Multiphasic CT examination was performed to determine the stage of the disease before radical cystectomy. RESULTS: There were statistically significant differences in tumor and perivesical fatty tissue densities between pre- and post-contrast phases (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Increases in focal density suspected of being invasion of the perivesical fatty tissue can show perivesical invasion with high specificity.

Comparison of Drug-Eluting Balloon and Standard Balloon Angioplasty for Infrapopliteal Arterial Diseases in Diabetic Patients.

OBJECTIVE: To consider the clinical outcomes and restenosis rates of drug-eluting balloons (DEBs) and percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) in diabetic patients with infrapopliteal (IP) arterial disease. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective, single-center study included 51 patients (37 males; mean age: 63.43 ± 9.81 years) with diabetes mellitus having IP arterial disease, from October 2012 to September 2014. Twenty-two patients were treated with PTA, and 29 patients were treated with DEBs. After intervention, the patients were evaluated in the first week and every 3 months, clinically and radiologically. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to evaluate the clinical outcomes of diabetic patients with IP arterial disease who were treated with either DEBs or PTA. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences between the groups in terms of age and gender, risk factors, characteristics of lesions, or the diameters or length of the balloons ( P > .05). Primary patency was higher in the DEB group than in the PTA group (97.8% vs 81.1%, P = .020) in the first 3 months. However, there was no statistically significant difference at 1-year follow-up (68.2% vs 48.5%, P = .131). At the 12-month follow-up, there was no difference in clinical improvement between the groups ( P = .193). CONCLUSION: The findings of this study reveal that DEB is a safe alternative treatment method for IP arterial disease in diabetic patients.