Five simultaneous artificial intelligence data challenges on ultrasound, CT, and MRI.

PURPOSE: The goal of this data challenge was to create a structured dynamic with the following objectives: (1) teach radiologists the new rules of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), while building a large multicentric prospective database of ultrasound, computed tomography (CT) and MRI patient images; (2) build a network including radiologists, researchers, start-ups, large companies, and students from engineering schools, and; (3) provide all French stakeholders working together during 5 data challenges with a secured framework, offering a realistic picture of the benefits and concerns in October 2018. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Relevant clinical questions were chosen by the Société Francaise de Radiologie. The challenge was designed to respect all French ethical and data protection constraints. Multidisciplinary teams with at least one radiologist, one engineering student, and a company and/or research lab were gathered using different networks, and clinical databases were created accordingly. RESULTS: Five challenges were launched: detection of meniscal tears on MRI, segmentation of renal cortex on CT, detection and characterization of liver lesions on ultrasound, detection of breast lesions on MRI, and characterization of thyroid cartilage lesions on CT. A total of 5,170 images within 4 months were provided for the challenge by 46 radiology services. Twenty-six multidisciplinary teams with 181 contestants worked for one month on the challenges. Three challenges, meniscal tears, renal cortex, and liver lesions, resulted in an accuracy>90%. The fourth challenge (breast) reached 82% and the lastone (thyroid) 70%. CONCLUSION: Theses five challenges were able to gather a large community of radiologists, engineers, researchers, and companies in a very short period of time. The accurate results of three of the five modalities suggest that artificial intelligence is a promising tool in these radiology modalities.

Chronic pelvic pain: An imaging approach.

Chronic pelvic pain is defined as disabling pain of at least six months duration. Chronic pelvic pain has often multiple causative factors. Careful analysis of clinical history and detailed clinical examination must be carried out to guide further imaging investigations. Endometriosis is a common cause of chronic pelvic pain, although there is no correlation between the severity of lesions and pain intensity. Pelvic ultrasonography should be the first line imaging examination to search for causative conditions that include endometriosis, adenomyosis, pelvic varices and chronic infection. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is useful for making the positive diagnosis and assessing the spread of endometriosis. MRI is more accurate than ultrasonography for the diagnosis of tubo-ovarian abscess when an adnexal mass is identified. Duplex and color Doppler ultrasonography as well as MR angiography are the best imaging technique for the diagnosis of pelvic congestion syndrome. In patients with pudendal neuralgia, cross-sectional imaging help exclude nerve compression.

ShearWave™ Elastography BE1 multinational breast study: additional SWE™ features support potential to downgrade BI-RADS®-3 lesions.

PURPOSE: To determine the benefit of ShearWave™ Elastography (SWE™) in the ultrasound characterization of BI-RADS® 3 breast lesions in a diagnostic population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 303 BI-RADS® 3 lesions (mean size: 13.2 mm, SD: 7.5 mm) from the multicenter BE1 prospective study population were analyzed: 201 (66%) had cytology or core biopsy, and the remaining 102 had a minimum follow-up of one year; 8 (2.6%) were malignant. 7 SWE features were evaluated with regard to their ability to downgrade benign BI-RADS® 3 masses. The performance of each SWE feature was assessed by evaluating the number of lesions correctly reclassified and the impact on cancer rates within the new BI-RADS® 3' lesion group. RESULTS: No malignancies were found with an E-color "black to dark blue", which allowed the downgrading of 110/303 benign masses (p < 0.0001), with a non-significant increase in BI-RADS® 3' malignancy rate from 2.6% to 4.1%. E-max ≤ 20 kPa (2.6 m/s) was able to downgrade 48/303 (p < 0.0001) lesions with a lower increase in BI-RADS® 3' malignancy rate (3.1%). No other SWE features were useful for reclassifying benign BI-RADS® 3 lesions. CONCLUSION: Applying simple reclassification rules, SWE assessment of the maximum stiffness of lesions allowed the downgrading of a sub-group of benign BI-RADS® 3 lesions. This was accompanied by a non-significant increase in the malignancy rate in the new BI-RADS® 3 class.

Placenta accreta: a review of current advances in prenatal diagnosis.

Placenta accreta is a life-threatening obstetrical condition requiring a multidisciplinary approach. Despite identified obstetrical risk factors, the diagnosis is often made at the time of delivery. Recent advances in biology could allow a prenatal screening of placenta accreta with the identification of biological markers in maternal blood including cell-free fetal DNA, placental mRNA, and DNA microarray. These promising technologies can detect the presence of anomalies and should play a future role in developing a better understanding of placental invasion. Ultrasound imaging is popular due to its low cost and accessibility and widely used for the screening of placenta location and potential abnormal development. This exam is associated with high sensitivity and specificity for diagnosis of placenta accreta when specific defined criteria are used for the diagnosis. A placental MRI provides a morphological description, as well as recently demonstrated topographical information that optimizes diagnosis and surgical management. The screening of placenta accreta should be improved with the use of a combination of these diagnostic techniques and benefit high-risk populations with a reduction in morbidity.

High signals in the uterine cervix on T2-weighted MRI sequences.

The aim of this pictorial review was to illustrate the normal cervix appearance on T2-weighted images, and give a review of common or less common disorders of the uterine cervix that appear as high signal intensity lesions on T2-weighted sequences. Numerous aetiologies dominated by cervical cancer are reviewed and discussed. This gamut is obviously incomplete; however, radiologists who perform MR women's imaging should perform T2-weighted sequences in the sagittal plane regardless of the indication for pelvic MR. Those sequences will diagnose some previously unknown cervical cancers as well as many other unknown cervical or uterine lesions.

[Camptocormia: a sign of axial myopathy. Report of 7 cases]. / La camptocormie: un signe de myopathie axiale. A propos de sept observations.

PURPOSE: Camptocormia or progressive lumbar kyphosis is an anterior bend of the trunk. It appears in orthostatism or while walking and is reducible in the decubitus position. It concerns patients older than 60 years of age. It is due to a fatty degeneration of the paravertebral muscles, although the physiopathology remains unclear. METHODS: We report seven cases of camptocormia revealing authentic myopathies. RESULTS: Our observations concern five women and two men of 55 to 72 years of age. All patients present lumbar kyphosis and had a fatty involution of the paraspinal muscles on the muscular MRI. Four patients fulfilled the Bohan and Peter criteria of polymyositis and dermatomyositis. In the other cases paravertebral muscular biopsies led to the diagnosis of a congenital myopathy, a mitochondrial myopathy and an amyloid myopathy. Four patients received a corticosteroid-immunoglobulins or cyclosporin regimen. An improvement in the camptocormia was observed in three cases. In the other cases the treatment consisted of chemotherapy on account of severe nephrotic syndrome, a coenzyme-Q treatment for the patient with mitochondrial myopathy and only physiotherapy in the case of congenital myopathy, but without positive effect on camptocormia. CONCLUSION: Camptocormia appears as a muscular symptom that may reveal an axial myopathy due to multiple and varied pathologies. Thus, the discovery of camptocormia requires an aetiological investigation in order to propose an adequate treatment, which should be associated with physiotherapy.

Severe lower limbs lymphedema of late onset revealing polysplenia syndrome--a case report.

Polysplenia syndrome includes a group of congenital abnormalities involving the spleen, gastrointestinal tract, liver, and cardiovascular system. A case of severe lower limbs lymphedema occurring in a young woman with polysplenia, azygous continuation of the inferior vena cava, short pancreas, and preduodenal portal vein is reported. Lower limb lymphedema could represent a new clinical manifestation associated with polysplenia syndrome. Lymphedema could be the result of a primary anomaly of the lymphatic system or be induced by high pressure in the venous system or by compression of the lymphatic circulation by the hypertrophic azygous vessels in the posterior mediastinum.

Radiological follow-up of inverted papilloma.

The aim of this study was to describe cross-sectional imaging features of recurrent papilloma of the nasal fossa and paranasal sinuses and to evaluate the role of MR and CT in the postoperative follow-up of this lesion. Magnetic resonance imaging and CT of ten patients who presented recurrence of inverted papilloma were reviewed and correlated to initial imaging, endoscopy, and surgical reports. Imaging patterns of recurrent inverted papilloma are identical to those of initial tumors and recurrence location is closely related to the site of the former lesion. Magnetic resonance is more efficient than CT for the diagnosis and evaluation of extensions. Magnetic resonance supplies the deficiencies of endoscopy in case of extensions to the frontal sinus or the lateral recess of the antrum, especially if mucosal hyperplasia or sinusitis is associated. Magnetic resonance imaging is the first imaging modality to perform in the follow-up after removal of inverted papilloma.

[Accessory retrograde aneurysmal aortic lumen supplying the inferior mesenteric artery]. / Lumière anévrismale aortique accessoire rétrograde alimentant l'artère mésentérique inférieure.

We report the case of a patient with infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm with mural thrombus covering the ostium of a patent inferior mesenteric artery (IMA). The IMA was supplied via flow from an accessory aneurysmal lumen within the mural thrombus that filled retrogradely from the aorta. This unusual pattern, associated with calcifications within the thrombus, raised the possibility of chronic aortic dissection.

Static and dynamic MRI of a urinary control intra-vaginal device.

The aim of this study was to describe by MRI, in dynamic conditions at rest and straining, the anatomical modifications induced by a commercially available intravaginal device (IVD) aimed at relieving female stress urinary incontinence. Ten female patients complaining of stress urinary incontinence (SUI) had pelvic MRI with static and dynamic sequences, without and with a self-inserted IVD. We studied positions and angulations of the IVD in the pelvis. Paired t-test allowed comparisons of: position of the bladder neck; urethral angulation with the pubis axis; position of the urethra; and posterior urethro-vesical angle (PUVA) without and with IVD. At rest, in ten of ten cases IVD laid cranial to the pubo-rectal muscle; with an average angulation of 95 +/- 10 degrees with the pubis axis, laterally tilted in three of ten cases. In maximum straining with IVD bladder neck descent was lower by an average of 5.2 +/- 3.1 mm (p = 0.001), pubo-urethral angle opening was smaller by an average of 22 +/- 20 degrees (p = 0.015), and bladder neck to pubis distance was shorter by an average of 5.7 +/- 4 mm. Posterior urethro-vesical angle was not significantly modified. Dynamic MRI allowed a non-invasive assessment of the mode of action of an IVD. The main modifications were a support of the bladder base and bladder neck, with a superior displacement of the urethra toward the pubis.

[Differential diagnosis of infective spondylodiscitis and erosive degenerative disk disease]. / Diagnostic différentiel entre spondylodiscite infectieuse et discopathie dégénérative erosive.

PURPOSE: To assess the value of imaging in the differential diagnosis of erosive intervertebral osteochondrosis (EIVO) versus infectious discitis (ID). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twelve cases of EIVO and 30 cases of ID were reviewed to define the usefull signs for differential diagnosis on plain films, CT, and MR. RESULTS: No single sign is sufficient, but the association of several signs is suggestive of EIVO: discal vacuum phenomenom, well-defined sclerosis and erosions of vertebral endplates, high signal strip surrounding low signal of vertebral endplates on T1-weighted images. CONCLUSION: Imaging is helpful in difficult differential diagnosis of EIVO versus ID.

Lupus cystitis: a possible additive risk factor for emphysematous cystitis in diabetes mellitus: discussion about one case.

Emphysematous cystitis (EC) is a rare condition in which gas-forming organisms are active in the bladder wall and lumen. Most of the cases have been described in patients suffering from diabetes mellitus due to glucosuria and subsequent anaerobic fermentation of glucose. To our knowledge this condition has never been described in association with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We report here the first case of EC during the course of a chronic lupus cystitis (LC) in a woman suffering from SLE and type-I diabetes mellitus.

[Imaging of benign ovarian tumors]. / L'imagerie des tumeurs bénignes de l'ovaire.

A positive diagnosis of benign ovarian tumor indicates a laparoscopic approach or a conservative treatment. Benign ovarian tumors are often easy to recognize with non ionizing modalities such as US and MRI. The most common benign ovarian tumors are: mature teratomas including dermoid cysts, tumors in the fibro-thecal group including fibromas and thecomas, benign serous and mucinous tumors (cystadenomas). Apart from ovarian tumors, endometriomas are more commonly extra ovarian, but may involve the ovarian stroma.

[Static and dynamic magnetic resonance imaging of the pelvic floor]. / Imagerie par Résonance Magnétique statique et dynamique du plancher pelvien.

MRI assessment of pelvic floor dysfunction is still fairly recent. It is a fast expanding field, owing to its safety and simplicity when compared to other imaging modalities. The possibility of direct dynamic imaging is a decisive input, and it can be coupled to a clinical examination at the magnet. The most widely used sequences are T2 weighted fast TSE or fast gradient echo, in the sagittal and frontal planes. Dynamic MRI of the pelvic floor allows pre-operative staging of prolapse, detection of hidden prolapses and assessment of muscle trophicity. Post-operatively it allows assessment of surgical results and failures or recurrences.