Blunt chest trauma: classification and management.

Blunt chest wall injuries are a significant cause of mortality and morbidity in trauma patients. Accurate identification and description of chest wall injuries by the radiologist can aid in guiding proper patient management. The American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST) has devised a classification system based on severity. This article describes the features of each injury grade according to the AAST injury scale and discusses the implications for management. Additionally, common mechanisms of blunt chest trauma and multimodal imaging techniques are discussed.

Simulated impact of pelvic MRI in treatment planning for pediatric adnexal masses.

BACKGROUND: There are no studies on utility of MRI in management of pediatric adnexal masses. OBJECTIVE: To determine the diagnostic and therapeutic impact of pelvic MRI in adnexal masses in children and adolescents. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We included 32 females age 18 years and younger who had adnexal masses and who underwent both pelvic ultrasound (US) and MRI. A radiologist retrospectively reviewed US and MR images and created a standard radiologic report for each patient. In a prospective theoretical fashion, two pediatric gynecologists reviewed the clinical data and US report for each patient and indicated conservative versus surgical management; in surgical cases the options were laparoscopy versus laparotomy, midline versus Pfannenstiel incision, and oophorectomy versus cystectomy. Subsequently, the gynecologists were presented the MRI report and were asked to indicate their treatment options again. A binomial test was conducted to determine the effect of adding MRI findings to the management plan. RESULTS: The addition of MRI significantly changed management in 10 of 32 patients (P=0.0322), with a change in surgical versus conservative treatment in 5, a change in laparotomy vs. laparoscopy in 2, and a change from oophorectomy to cystectomy along with change in incision in 3 cases. This was based on additional information provided by MRI regarding the nature of the mass in 8 cases and origin of the mass in 2 cases. CONCLUSION: Preoperative pelvic MRI findings might change the surgical management of pediatric patients with adnexal masses, so it is a valuable addition to the conventional workup in the clinical management.

Effectiveness of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy on bone metastases in non-small-cell lung cancer.

Background: Bone metastases (BoMs) are prevalent in patients with metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) however, there are limited data detailing how BoMs respond to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). The purpose of this study was to compare the imaging response to ICIs of BoMs against visceral metastases and to evaluate the effect of BoMs on survival. Materials and methods: A retrospective, multicentre cohort study was conducted in patients with NSCLC treated with nivolumab or pembrolizumab in Alberta, Canada from 2015 to 2020. The primary endpoint was the real-world organ specific progression free survival (osPFS) of bone versus visceral metastases. Visceral metastases were categorized as adrenal, brain, liver, lung, lymph node, or other intra-abdominal lesions. The secondary outcome was overall survival (OS) amongst patients with and without BoMs. Results: A total of 573 patients were included of which all patients had visceral metastases and 243 patients (42.4%) had BoMs. High PD-L1 expression was identified in 268 patients (46.8%). No significant difference in osPFS was observed between bone, liver, and intra-abdominal metastases (p=0.20 and p=0.76, respectively), with all showing shorter osPFS than other disease sites. There was no difference in the osPFS of extra-thoracic sites of disease in patients with high PD-L1 expression. There was significant discordance between visceral disease response and bone disease response to ICI (p=0.047). The presence of BoMs was an independent poor prognostic factor for OS (HR 1.26, 95%CI: 1.05-1.53, p=0.01). Conclusion: Metastatic bone, liver, and intra-abdominal lesions demonstrated inferior clinical responses to ICI relative to other sites of disease. Additionally, the presence of bone and liver metastases were independent poor prognostic factors for overall survival. This real-world data suggests that BoMs respond poorly to ICI and may require treatment adjuncts for disease control.

Intraventricular atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumour in an adult: a case report and literature review.

We report a case of atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumour (AT/RT) in an adult patient in the deep grey matter with extension into the lateral ventricle. To our knowledge, this is the first example of AT/RT involving the lateral ventricle in an adult. The patient presented with headache and confusion, and subsequently required emergent surgery. His postoperative course was complicated by hemorrhage into the surgical site. The location and vascularity of the tumour affected the extent of resection achieved and likely contributed to postoperative complications. We discuss radiological features of AT/RT in adults and implications for investigations and management.

Determination of dynamic instability in lumbar spondylolisthesis using flexion and extension standing radiographs versus neutral standing radiograph and supine MRI.

OBJECTIVEIn this study the authors sought to compare the proportion of patients with lumbar spondylolisthesis detected to have dynamic instability based on flexion and extension standing radiographs versus neutral standing radiograph and supine MRI.METHODSThis was a single-center retrospective study of all consecutive adult patients diagnosed with spondylolisthesis from January 1, 2013, to July 31, 2018, for whom the required imaging was available for analysis. Two independent observers measured the amount of translation, in millimeters, on supine MRI and flexion, extension, and neutral standing radiographs using the Meyerding technique. Interobserver and intraobserver correlation coefficients were calculated. The difference in amount of translation was compared between 1) flexion and extension standing radiographs and 2) neutral standing radiograph and supine MRI. The proportion of patients with dynamic instability, defined as a ≥ 3 mm difference in the amount of translation measured on different imaging modalities, was reported. Correlation between amount of dynamic instability and change in back pain and leg pain 1 year after decompression and instrumented fusion was analyzed using multivariate regression analysis.RESULTSFifty-six patients were included in this study. The mean patient age was 57.1 years, and 55.4% of patients were female. The most commonly affected levels were L4-5 (60.7%) and L5-S1 (30.4%). The average translations measured on flexion standing radiograph, extension standing radiograph, neutral standing radiograph, and supine MRI were 12.5 mm, 11.9 mm, 10.1 mm, and 7.2 mm, respectively. The average difference between flexion and extension standing radiographs was 0.58 mm, with dynamic instability detected in 21.4% of patients. The average difference between neutral standing radiograph and supine MRI was 3.77 mm, with dynamic instability detected in 60.7% of patients. The intraobserver correlation coefficient ranged from 0.77 to 0.90 mm. The interobserver correlation coefficient ranged from 0.79 to 0.86 mm. In 44 patients who underwent decompression and instrumented fusion, the amount of dynamic instability between standing and supine imaging was significantly correlated with change in back pain (p < 0.001) and leg pain (p = 0.05) at the 12-month postoperative follow-up. There was no correlation between amount of dynamic instability between flexion and extension standing radiographs and postoperative back pain and leg pain.CONCLUSIONSMore patients were found to have dynamic instability by using neutral standing radiograph and supine MRI. In patients who received decompression and instrumented fusion, there was a significant correlation between dynamic instability on neutral standing radiograph and supine MRI and change in back pain and leg pain at 12 months.

A Systematic Review of Atypical Teratoid Rhabdoid Tumor in Adults.

Background: Atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor in adults is a relatively rare malignant neoplasm. It is characterized by the presence of rhabdoid cells in combination with loss of either the INI1 or BRG1protein from the tumor cells. Methods: A systematic review was conducted using MEDLINE using the terms "atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor" AND "adult." The systematic review was supplemented with relevant articles from the references. Cases were included if the pathology was confirmed by loss of INI1 or BRG1. We included a case from our institution. The dataset was analyzed using descriptive statistics and log-rank test. Results: A total of 50 cases from 29 articles were included in this study. The average age at diagnosis was 36.7 years. The most common locations reported are the sellar region and cerebral hemispheres (without deep gray matter involvement). Of the 50 cases, 14 were reported to show evidence of dissemination. The average overall survival was 20 months. There was a significant difference in survival between the adjuvant therapy groups (p = < 0.0001). Conclusion: Atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor of the central nervous system in adults is a rare neoplasm associated with a poor prognosis in a majority of patients. The treatment and clinical course are highly variable, and it remains unclear which factors impact prognosis.

Three-Dimensional Printing and Medical Imaging: A Review of the Methods and Applications.

The purpose of this article is to review recent innovations on the process and application of 3-dimensional (3D) printed objects from medical imaging data. Data for 3D printed medical models can be obtained from computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and ultrasound using the Data Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) software. The data images are processed using segmentation and mesh generation tools and converted to a standard tessellation language (STL) file for printing. 3D printing technologies include stereolithography, selective laser sintering, inkjet, and fused-deposition modeling . 3D printed models have been used for preoperative planning of complex surgeries, the creation of custom prosthesis, and in the education and training of physicians. The application of medical imaging and 3D printers has been successful in providing solutions to many complex medical problems. As technology advances, its applications continue to grow in the future.