Guidelines for magnetic resonance imaging in pediatric head and neck pathologies: a multicentre international consensus paper.

The use of standardized imaging protocols is paramount in order to facilitate comparable, reproducible images and, consequently, to optimize patient care. Standardized MR protocols are lacking when studying head and neck pathologies in the pediatric population. We propose an international, multicenter consensus paper focused on providing the best combination of acquisition time/technical requirements and image quality. Distinct protocols for different regions of the head and neck and, in some cases, for specific pathologies or clinical indications are recommended. This white paper is endorsed by several international scientific societies and it is the result of discussion, in consensus, among experts in pediatric head and neck imaging.

A case of MV2K subtype of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease with florid-like plaques: Similarities and differences to variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) is traditionally regarded as having a distinct clinical course, imaging study findings and neuropathological features, which in combination should allow a clear distinction from the six currently well-defined subtypes of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD). This is of major importance, especially from the standpoint of epidemiology. As we would like to demonstrate through this case report, the MV2K subtype of sCJD, being rare and heterogeneous in both clinical and neuropathological presentations, might challenge this concept by virtue of partial overlapping, both clinically and neuropathologically, with the characteristic phenotype of vCJD. Chiefly, we observed prolonged isolated psychiatric prodrome, new onset limb pain and late cognitive decline clinically, while florid-like plaques were present on routine histology, albeit in scarce and regionally restricted distribution when compared to vCJD. However, the issue is further complicated by the fact that a case of vCJD in a heterozygous (i.e. methionine - M and valine - V) allelic state with regard to the polymorphic codon 129 of the prion protein gene (PRNP) has recently been described in the UK, which deviated from the otherwise well-defined and constant clinicopathological phenotype that vCJD had thus far demonstrated. Taking both the facts into account, we would like to emphasize the use of complementary diagnostic methods to the established and otherwise reliable histological type-based model, particularly when confronted with a rare or atypical phenotype such as ours.