Fast Morphological Gallbladder Changes Triggered by a Hypercholesterolemic Diet.

INTRODUCTION AND AIM: Obesity is a worldwide epidemic problem, described as a risk factor for hepatic diseases, such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and other pathologies related to development of cholesterol crystals and cholesterol gallbladder stones. It has been reported that cholesterol overload may cause hepatic damage; however, little is known about the effects of an acute hypercholesterolemic diet on the gallbladder. The aim of this manuscript was to evaluate the impact of a cholesterol-rich diet on the gallbladder. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study included ten eight-week-old C57BL6 male mice, which were divided into two study groups and fed different diets for 48 h: a hypercholesterolemic diet and a balanced Chow diet. After 48 h, the mice were analyzed by US with a Siemens Acuson Antares equipment. Mice were subsequently sacrificed to carry out a cholesterol analysis with a Refloton System (Roche), a crystal analysis with a Carl Zeiss microscope with polarized light, and a histological analysis with Hematoxylin-eosin staining. RESULTS: The hypercholesterolemic diet induced an increase in gallbladder size and total cholesterol content in the bile, along with important histological changes. CONCLUSION: Cholesterol overloads not only trigger hepatic damage, but also affect the gallbladder significantly.

Dual quantitative coronary angiography: a novel approach to quantify intracoronary thrombotic burden.

AIMS: To validate and test in vivo a new modality of quantitative coronary angiography (QCA), dual QCA (D-QCA), developed to quantify intracoronary thrombotic burden (ITB). METHODS AND RESULTS: Calculation of ITB with D-QCA is based on the discrepancy of luminal areas assessed with edge detection (ED) and video-densitometry (VD), measured with Cardiovascular Angiography Analysis System II. Experimental validation was first performed in phantoms with known obstructive volumes. In vivo assessment of thrombotic burden changes was performed in angiograms from 19 patients with large ITB, obtained before and after antithrombotic treatment, and compared with semi-quantitative assessment (TIMI thrombus grade (TTG)). A good correlation between D-QCA and true occlusive volumes was found (y = 9.21+0.99x, r = 0.996). Intra- and inter-observer variability was 2.77 +/- 10.97 mm3 (p = 0.50) and -1.28 +/- 6.99 mm3 (p = 0.62) respectively. In vivo, D-QCA demonstrated a significant reduction in ITB resulting from treatment (137.22 +/- 120.13 mm3 before and 104.72 +/- 99.19 mm3 after treatment, p = 0.001). Overall, TTG also decreased (3.63 +/- 0.68 before and 3.11 +/- 1.20 after, p = 0.008), but in those nine (47%) patients in which remained unchanged D-QCA detected a reduction in ITB (pre 148.17 +/- 154.03 mm3, post 112.86 +/- 117.82 mm3, p = 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: D-QCA appears as a useful approach to quantify IC thrombus volume, being more sensitive than TTG in assessing changes in ITB resulting from treatment strategies.