The gap year for college students interested in medicine: Can they contribute to your mission?

Gap years taken between undergraduate completion and entrance into medical school have become increasingly popular. We examine the role of gap years among college graduates interested in medicine and how they might contribute to academic research productivity within clinical environments. Recently, academic faculty have struggled to balance increasing clinical responsibilities with their scholarly endeavors. Academic medical departments may have incentives to hire pre-medical students to help ease the research burden on faculty. Properly motivated pre-medical students may view research positions in academic medical departments as ideal opportunities to learn in areas that will broaden their scientific knowledge and help prepare them for medical school, while greatly enhancing their medical school applications through distinguishing themselves as co-authors published in medical journals. Our experience, with two co-authors working as research associates while preparing for their medical school applications and careers, suggests that pre-medical students can strengthen their medical school applications during their gap year(s) while proving instrumental in enhancing research output thus alleviating the workload of clinical faculty.

Corrigendum to: 'CT of a pulmonary artery intimal sarcoma: A case report' [Radiology Case Reports 18 (2023) 3840-3843].

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.radcr.2023.08.029.].

Cinematic rendering in the evaluation of complex vascular injury of the lower extremities: how we do it.

Lower extremity trauma is one of the most common injury patterns seen in emergency medical and surgical practice. Vascular injuries occur in less than one percent of all civilian fractures. However, if not treated promptly, such injuries can lead to ischemia and death. Computed tomography angiography (CTA) is the non-invasive imaging gold standard and plays a crucial part in the decision-making process for treating lower extremity trauma. A novel, FDA-approved 3D reconstruction technique known as cinematic rendering (CR) yields photorealistic reconstructions of lower extremity vascular injuries depicting clinically important aspects of those injuries, aiding in patient workup and surgical planning, and thus improving patient outcomes. In this article, we provide clinical examples of the use of CR in evaluating lower extremity vascular injuries, including the relationship of these injuries to adjacent osseous structures and overlying soft tissues, and its role in management of lower extremity trauma.

CT of a pulmonary artery intimal sarcoma: A case report.

Pulmonary artery intimal sarcomas are rare, malignant tumors often associated with poor prognoses. These highly lethal tumors are difficult to distinguish given their nonspecific symptoms and challenging imaging interpretations, often being misdiagnosed as acute or chronic pulmonary embolisms, tumor emboli, or mediastinal masses. Given the poor survival rate associated with this malignancy and surgical resection is the absolute choice of treatment, early and accurate diagnoses are essential. In this article, we report the case of a 78-year-old female who was diagnosed with a pulmonary artery intimal sarcoma. We focus on optimizing diagnosis and management through the application of radiological imaging modalities, specifically computed tomography angiography scans.

A Primer on the Role of iPhone Apps in Medical and Radiology Education and How to Develop Them.

Among the numerous innovations implemented in medical education since the beginning of the 21st century, small-group learning experiences have worked well for modern students and the application of computer technology provided access to thousands of lectures, images, and slides via the internet. This has helped to build an electronic foundation on which further educational adaptations have arisen in the current era, coupled with the altered communications landscape represented by Apple's introduction of the iPhone and Google's subsequent entrance onto the playing field. With the advent of smartphone applications (apps), education has taken on an even more personalized approach. Data show that the use of educational apps has been embraced by today's nursing and medical students, notably including radiology students. We survey recent research on the use and desirability of medical apps and offer practical tips for those ready to embark on developing medical, particularly radiology, educational apps including how to assess and hone them for optimal use.

From medical school through residency applications: Puerto Ricans may face ignorance and prejudice.

It is not that unusual to find that Americans are unaware that Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States, and, like them, Puerto Ricans are U.S citizens enjoying the same liberties, freedoms, and rights. It may be less expected to face such incognizance or ignorance within the medical community as careers in medicine offer healthcare professionals the opportunity to serve patients spanning race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and other demographic differences. Unfortunately, some of the personal experiences of the primary author have prompted us to cull four personal narratives of Puerto Rican individuals (Boricuas), who comprise 20.8% of the Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish Origin applicants to U.S. medical schools, during various early stages of a medical career. Of course, these personal anecdotes, offered in response to just a few general questions about recent experiences of bias in medical applications or in early training, do not indicate pervasive bias. Similarly, these instances may be more common than people in the medical community would prefer to believe. In the brief narratives that follow, Boricuas at different junctures in their medical educations highlight the bias that they have faced and their reactions to it. We present this information with the hope of promoting awareness of potential biases at different stages of medical education.

CT of pancreatic schwannoma.

Schwannomas are a type of nerve sheath tumor formed by Schwann cells. They typically occur in the head and neck area, the trunk, and flexor surfaces of the upper and lower extremities. Schwannomas are often benign, and pancreatic schwannomas are extremely uncommon. Given the rarity of these tumors and their clinical similarity to other pancreatic lesions, however, pancreatic schwannomas are challenging to diagnose preoperatively. In this article, we report the case of a 69-year-old female who was diagnosed with a pancreatic schwannoma. We focus on optimizing diagnosis and management through the application of radiological imaging modalities, specifically computed tomography scans with cinematic rendering.

Corrigendum to "Response to letter to the editor Re: Case report CT of rhabdomyolysis as a sequela of drug abuse" [Radiology Case Reports 18 (2023) 729].

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.radcr.2022.11.028.].

CT of Castleman disease in the mediastinum.

Castleman disease is a rare lymphoproliferative disease commonly occurring as a benign localized mass of lymph nodes in the mediastinum. Given that Castleman disease presents as asymptomatic or through non-specific thoracic symptoms, detection is considered complex. Ultimately, surgical resection is the preferred course of action with a greater than 90% relapse-free survival and no malignant transformation reported. In this article, we describe the case of a 34-year-old male with an unclear smoking history who was diagnosed with hyaline-vascular Castleman disease. We focus on optimizing diagnosis and management through the application of radiological imaging modalities, including computed tomography scans.