Introducing the ratio of cross diameters of the appendix for ultrasound diagnosis of acute appendicitis can significantly increase specificity.

PURPOSE: To validate whether the introduction of the ratio of the cross diameters on the transverse section of the appendix (RATIO) ≤ 1.18 is useful for improving the ultrasound diagnosis of acute appendicitis (AA). METHODS: Data from 220 patients with AA and 110 patients with a normal appendix were retrospectively studied. The RATIO ≤ 1.18, maximal outer diameter (MOD) > 6 mm, and a combination of RATIO ≤ 1.18 and MOD > 6 mm were used for predicting AA. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values (PPV and NPV) were calculated. RESULTS: The RATIO ≤ 1.18, MOD > 6 mm, and a combination of RATIO ≤ 1.18 and MOD > 6 mm for predicting AA showed a sensitivity of 90, 100, and 90%; specificity of 79.1, 27.3, and 88.2%; and AUC of 0.845, 0.636, and 0.891, respectively. When comparing the outcomes between MOD > 6 mm and a combination of MOD > 6 mm and RATIO ≤ 1.18, the specificity and PPV increased from 27.3 to 88.2% and 73.3 to 93.8%, respectively (all P < 0.0001). The sensitivity and NPV decreased from 100 to 90% and 100 to 81.5%, respectively (all P < 0.0001). The AUC increased from 0.636 to 0.891 (P < 0.0001). When comparing the AUC of MOD > 6 mm, and a combination of RATIO ≤ 1.18 and MOD > 6 mm for predicting AA with the AUC in a previous study, there were no significant differences between each other (all P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Introducing the RATIO ≤ 1.18 for the evaluation of AA can improve the diagnostic performance and significantly increase specificity.

Added value of ratio of cross diameters of the appendix in ultrasound diagnosis of acute appendicitis.

BACKGROUND: The maximum outer diameter (MOD) of the appendix is an essential parameter for diagnosing acute appendicitis, but there is space for improvement in ultrasound (US) diagnostic performance. AIM: To investigate whether combining the ratio of the cross diameters (RATIO) of the appendix with MOD of the appendix can enhance the diagnostic performance of acute appendicitis. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted, and medical records of 233 patients with acute appendicitis and 112 patients with a normal appendix were reviewed. The MOD and RATIO of the appendix were calculated and tested for their diagnostic performance of acute appendicitis, both individually and in combination. RESULTS: The RATIO for a normal appendix was 1.32 ± 0.16, while for acute appendicitis it was 1.09 ± 0.07. The cut-off value for RATIO was determined to be ≤ 1.18. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) for diagnosing acute appendicitis using RATIO ≤ 1.18 and MOD > 6 mm was 0.870 and 0.652, respectively. There was a significant difference in AUC between RATIO ≤ 1.18 and MOD > 6 mm (P < 0.0001). When comparing the combination of RATIO ≤ 1.18 and MOD > 6 mm with MOD > 6 mm alone, the combination showed increased specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and AUC. However, the sensitivity and negative predictive value decreased. CONCLUSION: Combining RATIO of the appendix ≤ 1.18 and MOD > 6 mm can significantly improve the specificity, PPV, and AUC in the US diagnosis of acute appendicitis.

The utility of quantifying the orientation of breast masses in ultrasound imaging.

The aim of this study was to quantify the orientation of breast masses and determine whether it can enhance the utility of a not parallel orientation in predicting breast mass malignancy. A total of 15,746 subjects who underwent breast ultrasound examinations were initially enrolled in the study. Further evaluation was performed on subjects with solid breast masses (≤ 5 cm) intended for surgical resection and/or biopsy. The orientation angle, defined as the acute angle between the align of the maximal longitudinal diameter of the breast mass and the surface of the breast skin, was measured. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was conducted, and various performance measures including sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, accuracy, odds ratio, and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) were calculated. Multivariate analysis was performed to determine if the orientation angle was an independent predictor of breast malignancy. Decision curve analysis (DCA) was also conducted to assess the net benefit of adopting the orientation angle for predicting breast mass malignancy. The final analysis included 83 subjects with breast cancer and 135 subjects with benign masses. The intra-group correlation coefficient for the measurement of the orientation angle of breast masses was 0.986 (P = 0.001), indicating high reproducibility. The orientation angles of malignant and benign breast masses were 36.51 ± 14.90 (range: 10.7-88.6) degrees and 15.28 ± 8.40 (range: 0.0-58.7) degrees, respectively, and there was a significant difference between them (P < 0.001). The cutoff value for the orientation angle was determined to be 22.9°. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, accuracy, odds ratio, and AUC for the prediction of breast malignancy using the orientation angle were 88.0%, 87.4%, 81.1%, 92.2%, 87.6%, 50.67%, and 0.925%, respectively. Multivariate analysis revealed that the orientation angle (> 22.9°), not circumscribed margin, and calcifications of the breast mass were independent factors predicting breast malignancy. The net benefit of adopting the orientation angle for predicting breast malignancy was 0.303. Based on these findings, it can be concluded that quantifying the orientation angle of breast masses is useful in predicting breast malignancy, as it demonstrates high sensitivity, specificity, AUC, and standardized net benefit. It optimizes the utility of the not parallel orientation in assessing breast mass malignancy.

Integrating vascularity into the pattern classification of pilomatricomas on ultrasound provides a more competent approach for discriminative evaluation.

BACKGROUND: Pilomatricoma has various manifestations on color Doppler ultrasound, and a differential diagnosis is challenging. The objective of this study was to investigate which characteristics of skin lesions on color Doppler ultrasound are effective in distinguishing pilomatricoma from epidermoid cyst and dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Records of patients with pilomatricomas (n = 63), epidermoid cysts (n = 76), and dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans (n = 19) who underwent color Doppler ultrasound evaluation and surgical excision were reviewed. The anatomical distribution and color Doppler ultrasound characteristics of these lesions were analyzed. The 63 pilomatricomas were categorized into five types based on their color Doppler ultrasound characteristics, and the roles of these five types in the differential diagnosis of the aforementioned diseases were studied. RESULTS: Pilomatricomas, epidermoid cysts, and dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans exhibited some similar characteristics. Dominantly markedly hyperechoic or hyperechoic appearance, posterior acoustic shadowing, and the presence of vascularity were the major characteristics of pilomatricomas. The pilomatricomas could be categorized into five types, with type II having a diagnostic performance of sensitivity of 65.08%, specificity of 98.95%, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.743, positive predictive value of 97.62%, and negative predictive value of 81.03% for the diagnosis of the aforementioned skin diseases. CONCLUSION: A combination of dominantly markedly hyperechoic or hyperechoic appearance, posterior acoustic shadowing, and the presence of vascularity exhibits higher diagnostic performance for the differential diagnosis of pilomatricomas, epidermoid cysts, and dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans.

An alternative second performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasound for large focal liver lesion is necessary for sufficient characterization.

Focal liver lesions (FFLs) evaluated using contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) and contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT) may have the same or similar findings or substantial discrepant findings. Such phenomenon can be found in two performances of CEUS that the second performance of CEUS conducted shortly following the initial performance of CEUS. Discrepancy of two performances of CEUS for FFLs occurring in the same patient at a short internal has not been well addressed, which raises challenge for CEUS for the evaluation of FFLs. In this case study, such phenomenon is illustrated and implication is obtained.

Ultrasound classification of non-mass breast lesions following BI-RADS presents high positive predictive value.

PURPOSE: To investigate the positive predictive value of ultrasound classification of non-mass breast lesions (NMLs) following breast imaging reporting and data system (BI-RADS), and enhance understanding of NMLs. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty-nine women with 59 ultrasound-detected breast NMLs were finally enrolled. The ultrasound (US) features of breast NMLs were analyzed; the incidence of malignant NMLs was calculated; the malignancy risk stratification of US for breast NMLs was established using BI-RADS. RESULTS: The incidence of malignant NMLs was 4.59% of all breast carcinoma. Non-ductal hypoechoic area, microcalcifications and posterior shadowing are the main US features of malignant NMLs, and there were significant differences between malignant and benign NMLs for microcalcifications and posterior shadowing. Taking BI-RADS 4B as a cutoff value, the sensitivity, specificity, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), positive and negative predictive values, and odds ratio of the BI-RADS category were 82.98%,41.67%,0.62,84.78%,38.46% and 3.48, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Stratifying the malignancy risk of breast NMLs using the BI-RADS the sensitivity and positive and predictive value are promising, but the likelihood of malignancy of malignant NMLs is underestimated, and that of benign NMLs is overestimated. The solution may be that to separate NMLs from breast masses and use different malignancy risk stratification protocols.

Research update on cell membrane camouflaged nanoparticles for cancer therapy.

Cell membrane-camouflaged biomimetic functionalization of nanoparticles has emerged as a promising strategy for cancer theranostics. These cell membranes used for camouflaging are generally isolated from natural or engineered erythrocytes, neutrophils, macrophages, T lymphatic cells, stem cells, and cancer cells. The camouflaging strategy of coating nanoparticles with cell membranes allows for tumor homotypic targeting through self-recognition as source cells, immune evasion, and a prolonged blood circulation time, thereby improving the effective payload delivery and tumor therapy. More so, some engineered cell membranes with functionalized peptides, proteins and moieties on membrane surface can be transferred for therapy in the same time. In this review, we summarize the latest research on various types of cell membrane-camouflaged nanoparticles aimed at anti-cancer therapy, focusing on the biological advantages of different cell membranes, constitutions of nanoparticles, fabrication processes, key findings, potential therapies, and discuss the major challenges and future opportunities.

Validating and Comparing C-TIRADS, K-TIRADS and ACR-TIRADS in Stratifying the Malignancy Risk of Thyroid Nodules.

The thyroid imaging reporting and data system (TIRADS) was proposed by experts for optimal ultrasound evaluation of malignancy risk of thyroid focal lesions. There are several versions of TIRADS, some of them have been validated sufficiently, and the others have not been well assessed. In this study, a recently launched Chinese version of TIRADS (C-TIRADS) for malignancy risk stratification of thyroid nodules was validated, and the performance was compared to that of the Korean TIRADS (K-TIRADS) and American College of Radiology(ACR) TIRADS (ACR-TIRADS). Archives of 2177 patients who had undergone thyroid ultrasound examination, coarse needle tissue biopsy and/or surgery were reviewed, and 1978 patients with 1982 thyroid nodules were assessed according to the three TIRADSs. The histopathology was taken as the golden standard. The results showed the 1982 thyroid nodules were consisted of 1306 benign nodules and 676 malignant nodules. The malignancy risk accounted for 1.09%, 2.14%, 10.34%, 49.28%, 88.19% and 85.29% of the total nodules that were categorised as C-TIRADS 2, 3, 4A, 4B, 4C and 5, respectively; 0.00%, 1.64%, 2.87%,18.71% and 82.22% of the total nodules that were categorised as ACR-TIRADS 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, respectively; 0.85%, 3.27%, 24.27% and 80.96% of the total nodules that were categorised as K-TIRADS 2, 3, 4 and 5, respectively. The correlation between the category of TIRADS and percentile of malignancy was 0.94 in the C-TIRADS, 1.00 in the ACR-TIRADS, and 1.00 in the K-TIRADS, respectively. The highest values of accuracy(AUC) of ROC curves of C-TIRADS 4B, K-TIRADS 5 and ACR-TIRADS 5 were taken as the cut-off values for risk stratification, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and AUC by C-TIRADS 4B, K-TIRADS 5 and ACR-TIRADS 5 for malignancy risk stratification of thyroid nodules were 90.83%, 84.23%, 74.88% and 94.66% and 0.88, respectively; 83.58%, 89.82%, 80.95%, 91.36% and 0.87, respectively; and 85.50%, 90.35%, 82.10%, 92.33% and 0.88, respectively (P>0.05 for all). We concluded that the C-TIRADS has excellent performance in the malignancy risk stratification of thyroid nodules by the optimized cut-off value, which is comparable to that in K-TIRADS and ACR-TIRADS.

Efficacy of logistic regression model based on multiparametric ultrasound in assessment of cervical lymphadenopathy - a retrospective study.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate whether a multiparametric ultrasound (MPUS) diagnostic model improves differential diagnosis of benign and malignant cervical lymph nodes. METHODS: MPUS evaluation was performed on 87 lesions in 86 patients, and related characteristics and parameters of the patients and lesions were studied and logistic regression models based on the MPUS characteristics of cervical lymph nodes were built. A receiver operating characteristic curve and area under the curve (AUC) were built for the evaluation of diagnostic performances. RESULTS: Of the 87 lesions in 86 patients, there were 31 benign and 56 malignant lesions. Regression models for Duplex ultrasound and MPUS were established. The Duplex ultrasound regression model showed a sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of 94.4, 61.3, 86.3 and 80.9%, respectively. The predictive accuracy was 82.4%, and the AUC was 0.861. The MPUS regression model showed a sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of 98.1, 61.3, 81.5 and 95.0%, respectively. The predictive accuracy was 84.7%, and the AUC was 0.894. The differences in AUCs between the Duplex ultrasound model and MPUS model, ultrasound model and ultrasonic elastography (UE), and Duplex ultrasound and UE were not significant (all p > 0.05); the differences in AUCs between the MPUS model and Duplex ultrasound, Duplex ultrasound model and Duplex ultrasound, and MPUS model and UE were significant (all p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The Duplex ultrasound and MPUS models achieve significantly higher diagnostic performance for differentiating between benign and malignant cervical lymph nodes.

Liver stiffness measured with two-dimensional shear wave elastography comparable to histopathology falls dominantly on the severe liver fibrosis.

BACKGROUND: Two-dimensional shear-wave elastography (2D-SWE) has been used for years for liver assessment of patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), but its effectiveness remains unclear in different populations and using different ultrasound systems. OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the effectiveness of 2D-SWE in evaluating liver fibrosis in patients with CHB. METHODS: A prospective investigation was conducted after approval by the institutional ethics committee, with 116 out of 133 patients with CHB referred for liver biopsy included and 50 patients with healthy livers selected as controls. Assessment with 2D-SWE of liver stiffness measurement (LSM) was compared with histopathological results. Cutoff values for LSM were set to determine the degree of fibrosis, and area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) curve, sensitivity, and specificity were calculated. RESULTS: The optimal LSM cutoff for differentiating healthy livers from livers with CHB and any liver fibrosis was 6.485 kPa, with an AUROC of 0.927, sensitivity of 94%, and specificity of 19.8%. The optimal LSM cutoff values for F1, F2, F3, and F4 were 6.19 kPa, 6.485 kPa, 7.46 kPa, and 9.62 kPa, respectively, with corresponding AUROCs of 0.516, 0.625, 0.779, and 0.881, respectively. Comparisons of AUROCs between F1 and F3, F1 and F4, F2 and F3, and F2 and F4 were all significantly different (P = 0.0001, P < 0.0001, P = 0.0139, and P = 0.0003, respectively); comparisons of AUROCs between F1 and F2 and between F3 and F4 were not significantly different (P = 0.1232 and P = 0.2462, respectively). Comparisons of LSMs between healthy livers and F0 and between healthy livers and a combination of F0 and F1 were significantly different (P = 0.002 and P = 0.001, respectively). Comparisons of LSMs between F1 and F2 and between F3 and F4 were not significantly different (P = 0.233 and P = 0.072, respectively). Other comparisons between fibrosis score groups were significantly different (F1 and F3, P = 0.003; F1 and F4, P = 0.007; F2 and F3, P = 0.013; F2 and F4, P = 0.015). CONCLUSION: 2D-SWE using a specific diagnostic ultrasound system is effective for the assessment of severe liver fibrosis and cirrhosis, but is limited in diagnosing mild liver fibrosis.

Diagnostic performance of intravascular perfusion based contrast-enhanced ultrasound LI-RADS in the evaluation of hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: The contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) liver imaging reporting and data system (LI-RADS) is a relative new algorithm for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) assessment. OBJECTIVE: To validate the diagnostic efficiency of the intravascular perfusion based CEUS LI-RADS for HCC. METHODS: Archives of 873 patients with focal liver lesions (FLLs) undergoing CEUS were reviewed, and target images were read by two sonologists independently according to the CEUS LI-RADS. The diagnostic performance was calculated and compared. RESULTS: Assessment with reference to CEUS LI-RADS, 87 of 218 FLLs (39.9%) were categorized as LR-5, 131 of 218 FLLs (60.1%) were categorized as non-LR-5, 19 of 99 HCCs were categorized as non-LR-5, and 7 of 119 non-HCCs were categorized as LR-5. The sensitivity, specificity, AUROC, positive and negative predictive values of CEUS LI-RADS for diagnosing HCC were 80.81%(95%CI: 71.7%-88.0%), 94.1%(95%CI: 88.3%-97.6%), 0.87 (95%CI: 0.82-0.92), 91.9%(95%CI: 84.1%-96.7%), and 85.5%(95%CI: 78.3%-91.0%), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The diagnostic efficiency of the intravascular perfusion based CEUS LI-RADS for the evaluation of HCCs is very good.

Validity of measurements of testicular volume obtained by a built-in software of ultrasound systems: with formula recommended by updated guidelines as reference.

Aim: To investigate the validity of measurement of testicular volume acquired by a built-in software in different ultrasound systems with reference to the updated guidelines. Materials and methods: Archives of 1,976 patients who had undergone scrotal ultrasound evaluation were reviewed. A total of 973 patients with 1,909 testes, who had undergone ultrasound measurement of the testicular volume, were included in the study, and 1,003 patients were excluded. The age of enrolled patients ranged from 17 to 66 years (median age of 39 years). The ultrasound systems included Siemens Sonoline S2000, Philips EPIQ5, GE Logiq E9, Hitachi Aloka prosoundα7, Mindray DC-8 and Mindray Resona7. The transducers have imaging frequencies of 5-14 MHz. Validity of the measurement of testicular volume acquired by a built-in software in different ultrasound systems was assessed with reference to the formula that Volume (V) = Length (L) × Width (W) × Height (H) × 0.71, recommended by the updated guidelines, by recalculating the original numbers using a calculator. Results: The values obtained by the built-in software of Mindray DC-8 and Mindray Resona7 ultrasound systems and measurements recalculated on a computer were all in concordance; and the values obtained by the built-in software of Siemens Sonoline S2000, Philips EPIQ5, GE Logiq E9, and Hitachi Aloka prosoundα7 ultrasound systems and measurements recalculated on computer were all discordant. The same testicular measurements calculated with different formulas (V = L×W×H×0.71 vs. V = L×W×H×0.52) produced 26.76% difference. Conclusion: Values of testicular volume obtained by some ultrasound systems are not accurate with reference to the formula recommended by the updated guidelines.

Growing Evidence of Exosomal MicroRNA-Related Metastasis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Metastasis is the prominent cause of death in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC); however, the mechanisms behind HCC metastasis are not well understood. MicroRNAs (miRs) can regulate gene expression and affect HCC metastasis. Exosomes can transport miRs and other cargoes to and from different cells, thus being associated with tumour-distant metastasis. Exosomal miRs involve different processes of HCC metastasis through their functional effects, such as their induction of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, angiogenesis, and distant niche. In this review, data from the literature were analysed and summarised, with a focus on the evidence extraction of exosomal miRs in HCC metastasis with the purpose of increasing the understanding of the mechanisms behind HCC metastasis and acquiring implications for application.

Curated findings and implications in duplex ultrasound interrogation of the scrotum or varicoceles.

The purpose of this study was to curate clustered findings of duplex ultrasound in the evaluation of spermatic venous varicoceles, and deliver more responses to the present concerns. Archives of 979 men who had undergone scrotum and spermatic venous plexus duplex ultrasound were reviewed. In the duplex ultrasound interrogation, the sizes of the larger vessels of the spermatic venous plexus, peritesticular vessels, and testicular volume and relevant parameters were measured. Findings of the vessels were analyzed. One hundred and eight-one out of 979 patients had varicoceles. Color Doppler flow signal was rendered in veins of pampiniform plexus but not in peritesticular vessels in 501 out of 979 patients; 101 out of 501 patients had veins of pampiniform plexus ≤ 3 mm, no color Doppler flow signal could be rendered in the veins in the 101 patients at supine and standing positions without Valsalva maneuver, color Doppler flow signal could be rendered in the veins in 82 out of 101 patients at supine and standing positions with Valsalva maneuver; no color Doppler flow signal could be rendered in the veins from 19 out of 101 patients with and without Valsalva maneuver at supine and standing positions. 37 out of 979 patients with 61 ipsilateral testicular volume ≤ 5 mL had no vessel diameter > 2 mm. The incidences of varicoceles corresponding to different ranges of testicular volume of 1-5 mL, 5.1-10 mL, 10.1-15 mL, 15.1-20 mL, 20.1-25 mL, and 25.1-30 mL were 0.0%, 6.9%, 8.3%, 6.63%, 20.94%, and 59.1%, respectively. The comparisons of incidences of varicocele between distribution percentages of different ranges of testicular volume of 1-5 mL and others (of 5.1 mL and more) were all significant (all P < 0.05). The correlation coefficient between the different ranges of testicular volume and the incidence of varicoceles was 0.829. Increased testicular volume may be also a factor for the development of varicoceles. Dilated peritesticular vessels may be collateral veins of spermatic veins, anterior and posterior scrotal veins, or proximal vas deferens.

Trials in developing a nanoscale material for extravascular contrast-enhanced ultrasound targeting hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Medical imaging is an important approach for the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), a common life threaten disease, however, the diagnostic efficiency is still not optimal. Developing a novel method to improve diagnosis is necessary. The aim of this project was to formulate a material that can combine with GPC3 of HCC for targeted enhanced ultrasound. METHODS: A material of sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) filled liposome microbubbles and conjugated with synthesized peptide (LSPMbs) was prepared and assessed in vitro and vivo. Liposome microbubbles were made of DPPC, DPPG, DSPE-PEG2000,and SF6, using thin film method to form shell, followed filling SF6, and conjugating peptide. A carbodiimide method was used for covalent conjugation of peptide to LSMbs. RESULTS: The prepared LSPMbs appeared round shaped, with size of 380.9 ±  176.5 nm, and Zeta potential of -51.4 ±  10.4mV. LSPMbs showed high affinity to Huh-7 cells in vitro, presented good enhanced ultrasound effects, did not show cytotoxicity, and did not exhibit targeted fluorescence and enhanced ultrasound in animal xenograft tumors. CONCLUSION: Extravascular contrast-enhanced ultrasound targeted GPC3 on HCC may not be realized, and the reason may be that targeted contrast agents of microbubbles are hard to access and accumulate in the tumor stroma and matrix.

Ultrasonic assessment has high sensitivity for pregnant women with previous cesarean section occurring uterine dehiscence and rupture: A STARD-compliant article.

To investigate the diagnostic performance of ultrasound (US) for pregnant women with previous caesarean section (CS) occurring lower uterine segment (LUS) dehiscence and rupture.107 pregnant women with previous CS and LUS thickness of 1.0 mm or less were recruited, the LUS and myometrium was measured, and US findings suggestive of uterine rupture were compared with findings at laparotomy. The included pregnant women were assigned into 2 groups, including 64 pregnant women had vaginal delivery at full-term and 43 pregnant women underwent repeat CS at preterm.US findings suggestive of uterine rupture and dehiscence occurred in 18 women and 89 women, respectively; ten of them developed uterine rupture, and the incidence of uterine rupture was 9.34% (10/107). The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive, and negative predictive values of US for the evaluation of LUS dehiscence and rupture were 100.0%, 91.8%, 92.5%, 55.6%, and 100.0%, respectively. There was no severe maternal obstetric complication, 1 fetus died, and the other fetuses were born with a 5-minute Apgar score of 7 to 10.US has high sensitivity and specificity for pregnant women with previous CS occurring LUS dehiscence and rupture.

Contrast-enhanced ultrasound evaluation of the prostate before transrectal ultrasound-guided biopsy can improve diagnostic sensitivity: A STARD-compliant article.

To conduct a STARD-compliant validity that the contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) evaluation of prostate for the improvement of positive rate of biopsy and diagnostic efficiency of prostate carcinoma (PCa).Data of 137 patients with suspected PCa who underwent relevant examinations and treatment were reviewed, and 82 of 137 patients were finally included. The patients consisted of Group 1 (26 patients) and Group 2 (42 patients) according to which they underwent transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) biopsy selected from CEUS evaluation of the prostate and who underwent TRUS-guided biopsy directly. A systematic 12-core biopsy was performed at first, and additional 1 to 2 cores biopsy was made in the suspected target area where CEUS had showed abnormal enhancement. The assumed diagnoses were compared with pathological findings.There were 37 patients with PCa and 31 patients with benign lesions; and 14 patients without biopsy after CEUS did not find PCa emerging in follow-up (18-47 months). The positive rates of biopsy-malignant lesions were 73.1% and 42.8% in Group 1 and Group 2, respectively. The positive rate of biopsy in Group 1 was significantly higher than that in Group 2 (P = .024). The sensitivity and accuracy of TRUS biopsy and a combination of TRUS biopsy after transrectal CEUS for the evaluation of prostate benign and malignant lesion were 60% and 66.7% (P=0.0139), and 94.4% and 88.5% (P=0.0453), respectively.CEUS evaluation of the prostate of PSA-elevated patient before biopsy can help select target patient with high risk of PCa, reduce unnecessary biopsy, increase detection rate of PCa, and improve diagnostic sensitivity and accuracy.

Patchy echogenicity of the liver in patients with chronic hepatitis B does not indicate poorer elasticity.

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to investigate whether the presence of patchy echogenicity in the liver of patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is predictive of liver stiffness. METHODS: A total of 200 CHB patients with and without patchy echogenicity of the liver were assigned to two groups, with 100 patients in each group, and 32 of them underwent liver biopsy. Additionally, 80 healthy subjects, 100 inactive HBV carriers, and 100 patients with decompensated hepatic cirrhosis were assigned to the control groups. Laboratory tests and clinical data were collected, and shear wave velocity (SWV) of the liver was measured for all 480 subjects. RESULTS: The median SWV in patients with a normal liver, inactive hepatitis B virus carriers, CHB patients with and without patchy echogenicity, and decompensated hepatic cirrhosis were 1.07 m/sec, 1.08 m/sec, 1.16 m/sec, 1.16 m/sec, and 2.02 m/sec, respectively; there was no significant difference in SWV values between CHB patients with patchy echogenicity and those without patchy echogenicity. Furthermore, among CHB patients with and without patchy echogenicity, no significant difference in SWV was found according to fibrosis stage. CONCLUSION: The presence of patchy echogenicity of the liver does not indicate a higher degree of liver stiffness.

Shear Wave Elastography Improves Specificity of Ultrasound for Parotid Nodules.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to determine the performance of Virtual Touch tissue quantification (VTQ) technique in the differential evaluation of parotid gland nodules. METHODS: Acoustic radiation force impulse VTQ technique was used to determine the shear wave velocity (SWV) of 76 patients with parotid nodules and 30 subjects with normal parotid gland. These nodules were assigned to benign and malignant nodules according to histopathology, measurements of SWV were compared, a cutoff point for benign and malignant nodules was obtained with reference to receiver-operating characteristic curve, and relevant sensitivity and specificity were evaluated. RESULTS: There were 61 of 76 patients with benign parotid nodules and 15 of 76 patients with malignant nodules. The SWV of the malignant nodules was higher than the SWV of the benign nodules, and the SWV of the benign and malignant nodules was higher than the normal parotid glands. There were significant differences between benign and malignant nodules as well as normal parotid glands in terms of the age and SWV of the nodules (all P < 0.001). The area under the curve is 0.893, the cutoff is 2.445 m/s, and the sensitivity and specificity are 80.0% and 91.8%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Acoustic radiation force impulse VTQ technique can determine the stiffness of parotid nodules in general, its ability to distinct malignant from benign nodular nodule is still not strong, and overlay of SWV of VTQ between benign and malignant nodules is the main impedance to set cutoff point.

Importance of Distending Stomach With Fluid for Ultrasound Detection of Focal Lesion in the Elongated Left Lobe of the Liver.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to evaluate distending the stomach with water for ultrasound detection of focal lesions in the elongated left lobe of the liver. METHODS: A total of 13,277 patients undergoing liver ultrasound were evaluated for the presence of an elongated left lobe of the liver and a focal lesion. Patients with an elongated left lobe of the liver had their stomach distended with oral water for further evaluation of a focal lesion. A portion of the patients had computed tomography (CT) examinations, which were compared with the ultrasound studies. RESULTS: A total of 643 patients were found with elongated left lobe of the liver by ultrasound; of them, 451 underwent CT, 259 out of the 451 patients meeting the inclusion criteria underwent second ultrasound and final analysis, and 16 of these 259 patients had focal lesion in the elongated left lobe of the liver on CT study. The sonographic visualization of the liver and spleen at the same scan view before and after distending the stomach were 7% (7 of 100) and 100% (100 of 100), respectively (P < .001). The sonographic detection of the lesions before and after distending the stomach were zero and 87.5%, respectively (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Distending the stomach with water can greatly increase ultrasound detection of focal lesions in the elongated left lobe of the liver.