What family physicians should know about interventional radiology?

Interventional radiology (IR) is a rapidly evolving specialty. The minimally invasive nature of the procedures has led to a paradigm shift in treating many disease processes from conventional surgery to interventional techniques that have become the first choice and the preferred method for the treatment of peripheral vascular disease, many aortic pathologies, and venous diseases. Interventional oncology procedures have become widely available for the treatment of solid hepatic and renal tumors. This includes palliative techniques for many advanced malignancies, and fluid drainage that is exclusively performed by interventional radiologists in many hospitals all around the world. Women's health-related procedures such as uterine fibroid embolization, fallopian tube recanalization, and embolization for pelvic congestion syndrome have become attractive choices for many patients. Family physicians (FPs) are the main source of patient referral to hospitals. However, there is a notable knowledge deficiency of IR among FPs in Saudi Arabia. This may be due to poor communication between FP and IR or the lack of FP's awareness of IR procedures. This is a nonsystematic review to introduce some IR procedures to FPs pertinent to their practice to optimize patient referral and management with the use of IR services. We focused on the most commonly performed IR procedures paying special attention to their clinical indications, benefits, and alternatives.

The Prevalence of Hjortsjo Crook Sign of Right Posterior Sectional Bile Duct and Bile Duct Anatomy in ERCP.

AIM: The frequency of the Right Posterior Sectional Bile Duct (RPSBD) hump sign in cholangiogram when it crosses over the right portal vein known as Hjortsjo Crook Sign and the bile duct anatomy are studied. Knowledge of the implication of positive sign can facilitate safe resection for both bile duct and portal vein. METHODS: Prospectively, we included 237 patients with indicated ERCP during a period from March 2010 to January 2015. RESULTS: The mean age (±SD) and male to female ratio were 38.8 (±19.20) and 1 : 1.28, respectively. All patients are Arab from Middle Eastern origin, had biliary stone disease, and underwent diagnostic and therapeutic ERCP. Positive Hjortsjo Crook Sign was found in 17.7% (42) of patients. The sign was found to be equally more frequent in Nakamura's RPSBD anatomical variant types I, II, and IV in 8.4% (20), 6.8% (16), and 2.1% (5), respectively, while rare anatomical variant type III showed no positive sign. CONCLUSION: Hjortsjo Crook Sign frequently presents in RPSBD variation types I, II, and IV in our patients.

Uterine and Tubal Abnormalities in Infertile Saudi Arabian Women: A Teaching Hospital Experience.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Hysterosalpingography (HSG) is commonly used in the evaluation of the subfertile and infertile women. This study was undertaken to assimilate the findings observed during HSG in Saudi Arabian infertile patients and to find the most common pathology identified by the HSG. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted of subfertile and infertile patients who had undergone HSG between June 2007 and May 2012. Patients' demographic data were collected from the medical records of the King Fahd Hospital of the University, Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia. The data included age, years of marriage, menstrual history either regular or irregular, primary/secondary infertility, hormonal profile, previous infection or pelvic surgery, and diagnostic laparoscopy. Radiographic reports of HSG were collected from the IPAC system and analyzed for fimbrial findings, tubal patency, and cervical and uterine cavitary pathology. The data were entered in the database and analyzed using a t-test to compare means between the age, type of infertility, different pathologies and for all the parameters assessed. All tests were performed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, version 14.0, Chicago, Illinois, USA. A P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant with a confidence interval of 95%. RESULTS: Data from the medical records of 117 patients with an average age of 32.59 ± 5.48 years were analyzed. Of this total, 48 (41%) had been diagnosed as having primary infertility. In 95 (81.2%) patients, there was an abnormality in the fallopian tubes and in 27 (23%) patients, there was an abnormality in the uterus. Patients with primary infertility were significantly younger (29.7 ± 5.6 vs. 34.58 ± 4.75; P < 0.001), and tubal and uterine pathology was more common (P < 0.08 and 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Our review indicates that the most common pathology found through HSG in women presenting with infertility is tubal blockage.

Ovarian dysgerminoma in two sisters.

Although rare, dysgerminomas are important irrespective of incidence because they affect women of reproductive age (i.e., <45 years). Dysgerminomas make up two thirds of all malignant ovarian neoplasms in women younger than 20 years. All dysgerminomas are considered malignant, but only one third of dysgerminomas behave aggressively. Their exact etiology has not been determined. Few reports are found in the review of the literature on the incidence of dysgerminoma and other germ cell tumors in families. Some of these reports focus on the genetic abnormalities associated with germ cell tumor and the responsible gene. Two cases of dysgerminomas diagnosed in two sisters aged 14 and 19 years old are presented here with their radiological studies.