The effect of retroaortic left renal vein on lumbar osteophytes formation.

PURPOSE: Assess whether a Retroaortic left renal vein (RLRV) affects vertebral osteophyte formation in the lumbar spine, compared to normal anatomy left renal vein. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective case-control study. Computed tomography (CT) scans of individuals with a RLRV (study group) were compared to age- and gender-matched normal anatomy CT scans (control group). L1 to L4 vertebral levels were appreciated for: left renal vein level, osteophyte presence and the aorta-vertebral distance (AVD) at the left renal vein level. Univariate analyses were conducted using Chi-square test and Fisher's test for categorical variables, and Student's t-test for continuous variables. Logistic regression was used for multivariate analyses. RESULTS: A total of 240 patients were included in the study - equally distributed between the study and control groups. Normal anatomy left renal veins traversed the spine only at the L1 and L2 levels. RLRVs traversed the spine in all L1-L4 levels, mostly at the L3 and L2. Osteophyte prevalence at the level of left renal vein was significantly higher in the study group, compared with the control group [OR 2.54, P = 0.01]. Mean AVD was greater in the study group [9.2 mm ±3.6 mm Vs. 3.5 mm ± 2.6 mm, P < 0.001]. Increased AVD was found to be associated with a higher chance of osteophyte presence at the level of the left renal vein [OR 1.282, P = 0.025]. CONCLUSIONS: Osteophytes are more prevalent at the level of the RLRV variant compared to the normal anatomy. Furthermore, the RLRV is characterized by a lower lumbar level compared to the normal anatomy. CLINICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: This anatomic variation could assist in further understanding of osteophyte formation.

Artificial intelligence for X-ray scaphoid fracture detection: a systematic review and diagnostic test accuracy meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: Scaphoid fractures are usually diagnosed using X-rays, a low-sensitivity modality. Artificial intelligence (AI) using Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) has been explored for diagnosing scaphoid fractures in X-rays. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to evaluate the use of AI for detecting scaphoid fractures on X-rays and analyze its accuracy and usefulness. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study followed the guidelines of Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) and PRISMA-Diagnostic Test Accuracy. A literature search was conducted in the PubMed database for original articles published until July 2023. The risk of bias and applicability were evaluated using the QUADAS-2 tool. A bivariate diagnostic random-effects meta-analysis was conducted, and the results were analyzed using the Summary Receiver Operating Characteristic (SROC) curve. RESULTS: Ten studies met the inclusion criteria and were all retrospective. The AI's diagnostic performance for detecting scaphoid fractures ranged from AUC 0.77 to 0.96. Seven studies were included in the meta-analysis, with a total of 3373 images. The meta-analysis pooled sensitivity and specificity were 0.80 and 0.89, respectively. The meta-analysis overall AUC was 0.88. The QUADAS-2 tool found high risk of bias and concerns about applicability in 9 out of 10 studies. CONCLUSIONS: The current results of AI's diagnostic performance for detecting scaphoid fractures in X-rays show promise. The results show high overall sensitivity and specificity and a high SROC result. Further research is needed to compare AI's diagnostic performance to human diagnostic performance in a clinical setting. CLINICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: Scaphoid fractures are prone to be missed secondary to assessment with a low sensitivity modality and a high occult fracture rate. AI systems can be beneficial for clinicians and radiologists to facilitate early diagnosis, and avoid missed injuries. KEY POINTS: • Scaphoid fractures are common and some can be easily missed in X-rays. • Artificial intelligence (AI) systems demonstrate high diagnostic performance for the diagnosis of scaphoid fractures in X-rays. • AI systems can be beneficial in diagnosing both obvious and occult scaphoid fractures.

MRI features of intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm of the bile ducts, "The myth about the cyst": A systematic review.

Rationale and objectives: Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm of the bile ducts (IPMN-B) is a true pre-cancerous lesion, which shares common features with pancreatic IPMN (IPMN-P). While IPMN-P is a well described entity for which guidelines were formulated and revised, IPMN-B is a poorly described entity.We carried out a systematic review to evaluate the existing literature, emphasizing the role of MRI in IPMN-B depiction. Materials and methods: PubMed database was used to identify original studies and case series that reported MR Imaging features of IPMN-B. The search keywords were "IPMN OR intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm OR IPNB OR intraductal papillary neoplasm of the bile duct AND Biliary OR biliary cancer OR hepatic cystic lesions". Risk of bias and applicability were evaluated using the QUADAS-2 tool. Results: 884 Records were Identified through database searching. 12 studies satisfied the inclusion criteria, resulting in MR features of 288 patients. All the studies were retrospective. Classic features of IPMN-B are under-described. Few studies note worrisome features, concerning for an underlying malignancy. 50 % of the studies had a high risk of bias and concerns regarding applicability. Conclusions: The MRI features of IPMN-B are not well elaborated and need to be further studied. Worrisome features and guidelines regarding reporting the imaging findings should be established and published. Radiologists should be aware of IPMN-B, since malignancy diagnosis in an early stage will yield improved prognosis.

Diffusion-weighted MRI for predicting and assessing treatment response of liver metastases from CRC - A systematic review and meta-analysis.

The evaluation of response to chemotherapy and targeted therapies in colorectal liver metastases has traditionally been based on size changes, as per the RECIST criteria. However, therapy may alter tissue composition and not only tumor size, therefore, functional imaging techniques such as diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWI) may offer a more comprehensive assessment of treatment response. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate the use of DWI in the prediction and assessment of response to treatment in colorectal liver metastases and to determine if there is a baseline apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) cut-off value that can predict a favorable response. A literature search was conducted using the MEDLINE/PubMed database, and risk of bias was evaluated using the QUADAS-2 tool. The mean differences between responders and non-responders were pooled. A total of 16 studies met the inclusion criteria, and various diffusion-derived techniques and coefficients were found to have potential for predicting and assessing treatment response. However, discrepancies were noted between studies. The most consistent predictor of response was a lower baseline ADC value calculated using traditional mono-exponential methods. Non-mono-exponential techniques for calculating DWI-derived parameters were also reported. A meta-analysis of a subset of studies failed to establish a cut-off value of ADC due to heterogeneity, but revealed a pooled mean difference of -0.12 × 10-3 mm2/s between responders and non-responders. The results of this systematic review suggest that diffusion-derived techniques and coefficients may contribute to the evaluation and prediction of treatment response in colorectal liver metastases. Further controlled prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings and to guide clinical and radiological decision-making in the management of patients with CRC liver metastases.

Effect of General Anesthesia on MR Optic Nerve Sheath Diameter in the Pediatric Population.

BACKGROUND: Papilledema is thought to be the hallmark sign of increased intracranial pressure (ICP). Distension of the subarachnoid space within the optic nerve sheath is also commonly reported in MR studies as an indirect sign of increased ICP. HYPOTHESIS: General anesthesia and positive pressure ventilation might result in changes in optic sheath diameter (OSD) observed on clinical brain MRI. STUDY TYPE: Retrospective. POPULATION: One hundred forty-five  patients (154 MRI scans, 7.3 years ± 5.1); 97 studies in the anesthesia group (4.4 years ± 3.4) of which 22 had papilledema, and 57 in the non-anesthesia group (12.3 years ± 3.2), of which 28 had papilledema. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE: 1.5T or 3.0T volumetric T2 images. T2 images were obtained from different vendors. ASSESSMENT: OSD, optic nerve diameter (OND), and peri-optic cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were measured manually on T2-weighted MR images for various population subgroups (with and without anesthesia; with or without papilledema). The correlation between these measurements and the clinical diagnosis of papilledema was evaluated via receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. STATISTICAL TESTS: Chi-square test; Mann-Whitney Test; Spearman's test and ROCs; Interclass correlation coefficient, P = 0.05. RESULTS: General anesthesia resulted in significantly larger mean OSD in patients with or without papilledema (7.3 ± 1.0 mm vs. 6.1 ± 1.1 mm and 6.7 ± 1.0 mm vs. 5.4 ± 0.9 mm, respectively). In the non-anesthesia group, the average OSD values (6.1 ± 1.1 mm) were significantly higher in papilledema patients compared to non-papilledema patients (5.4 ± 0.9 mm), with larger peri-optic CSF rim (1.6 ± 0.4 mm vs. 1.3 ± 0.3 mm). In the anesthesia group, OND was significantly larger in papilledema patients (3.4 ± 0.4 mm vs. 3.1 ± 0.5 mm), though the average peri-optic CSF rim did not reach a significance in papilledema compared with non-papilledema patients (2.0 ± 0.3 mm vs. 1.8 ± 0.4 mm, P = 0.06). In patients with general anesthesia, peri-optic CSF rim had a limited correlation with increased ICP. DATA CONCLUSION: In the pediatric population, imaging findings of increased OSD on brain MRI might be related to general anesthesia rather than increased ICP. The interpretation of optic nerve sheath distention should be reported cautiously in conjunction with anesthesia status, especially in the pediatric population. EVIDENCE LEVEL: 4 Technical Efficacy: 5.

Interrupted inferior vena cava with deep vein thrombosis.

A 22-year-old healthy man presented to the emergency department with worsening left flank and testicular pain. Lower abdominal pain and lower urinary tract symptoms, were also noted. Contrast-enhanced CT demonstrated several vascular malformations: both common iliac veins converging to an infrarenal inferior vena cava (IVC) with an absent cephalad IVC. Multiple collateral veins were noted, and both the Azygos and Hemiazygos veins were seen dilated, serving as an alternative venous drainage path due to the interrupted IVC. The patient's CT was also notable for several pathologies: bilateral iliac vein thrombosis and left-sided testicular vein thrombus with surrounding fat stranding, suggestive of testicular vein thrombophlebitis. The patient was admitted, and received antibiotic and anticoagulation treatment, with clinical improvement. Hypercoagulability work-up was obtained, and the patient was found to be heterozygous for Factor V Leiden. Interrupted IVC with azygos continuation is an uncommon, and mostly a benign vascular malformation, resulting from abnormal development of IVC-contributing segments during embryogenesis. It is associated with lower limb deep vein thombosis and hypercoagulable states. It is imperative for radiologists to be acquainted with this entity, in order to avoid misdiagnosis. Testicular vein thrombosis is uncommon, mostly associated with prothrombotic disorders, and it should be considered when coagulopathy is suspected.

CT signs of hypovolemic shock complex in patients with non-traumatic shock.

PURPOSE: To assess the frequency of hypovolemic shock complex (HSC) signs on CT in patients who presented to the emergency department (ED) with undifferentiated non-traumatic shock. Secondary aim was to assess the correlation between HSC signs and all-cause mortality. METHODS: This retrospective, single-center study included 100 patients who underwent contrast-enhanced thoraco-abdominal CT in the ED to evaluate the etiology for non-traumatic undifferentiated shock. All patients were retrospectively assigned a shock subtype (i.e., distributive, cardiogenic, hypovolemic, obstructive, multifactorial, and unknown) based on medical records. Patients' demographics and time to all-cause mortality up to 90 days were collected. All CT studies were re-assessed for the presence of HSC signs. Correlation between HSC signs, mortality and shock subtype was assessed. RESULTS: Overall, 58% (58/100) of all patients had at least one HSC sign. Flattened inferior vena cava and adrenal hyper-enhancement were the most common HSC signs (27.3%, 27/99; in both). Overall mortality was 59% (59/100). When evaluated separately, shock liver was the only HSC sign to significantly correlate with increased mortality (84.6% vs. 55.2%, p = .04). However, patients with at least two HSC signs had a significantly higher mortality rate compared to patients without any HSC signs (73.5% vs. 45.2%, p = .017). CONCLUSION: Most patients with non-traumatic shock had at least one HSC sign. Mortality rates were significantly higher in patients with two or more HSC signs compared to patients without any signs. Patients with shock liver sign had significantly higher mortality rates.

Disturbed B and T cell homeostasis and neogenesis in patients with ataxia telangiectasia.

OBJECTIVE: Ataxia telangiectasia (AT) is a rare genetic, multi-system disorder characterized by neurodegeneration, chromosome instability, B and T cell immunodeficiency and a predisposition to cancer. We examined immunologic parameters reflecting cell development and proliferation and their relevancy to the clinical phenotype in affected individuals. PATIENTS AND METHODS: AT patients from the AT National Clinic in Israel underwent immunological investigation. Their T and B cell workup included lymphocyte subset counts, immunoglobulin levels, responses to mitogenic stimulations, TCR-Vß families and BCR immunoglobulin heavy chain spectratyping, TCR rearrangement excision circles (TRECs) and Kappa-deleting recombination excision circles (KRECs). RESULTS: Thirty-seven AT patients (median age 12.7 years, range 4.2-25.1) were evaluated. CD20 B and CD3 T lymphocytes were decreased in 67 % and 64 % of the patients, respectively, while only 33 % of the patients had reduced lymphoproliferative responses. Almost all AT patients displayed extremely low TRECs and KRECs levels, irrespective of their age. Those levels were correlated to one another and to the amounts of CD3+ and CD20+ cells, respectively. Abnormal TCR-Vß repertoires were found with different degrees of clonality or reduced expression in these AT patients. There was no clear clustering of expansions to specific TCR-Vß genes. PCR spectratyping analysis of the FR2 IgH BCR gene rearrangements in peripheral blood was abnormal in 50 % of the patients. CONCLUSION: The immunodeficiency associated with AT is combined, remains low over time and not progressive. It is characterized by low TREC and KREC copies suggestive of abnormal T and B cell neogenesis.