Pectus excavatum: current imaging techniques and opportunities for dose reduction.

Pectus excavatum (PE) is the most common congenital chest wall deformity in children. It affects 1 in every 300-1000 live births with a male to female ratio of 5:1. Most of the patients present in their first year of life. During the teenage years, patients may have exercise intolerance and psychological strain because of their chest wall deformity. The Nuss and Ravitch procedures are established methods of surgical correction of PE. An index of severity known best as the Haller index, typically evaluated with computed tomography scan, when measuring greater than 3.2 is considered to indicate moderate or severe PE and is a prerequisite for third-party insurance reimbursement for these corrective procedures. This article reviews the clinical features of PE, the role of imaging, and the opportunities for radiation dose reduction.

Imaging of nontraumatic acute hip pain in children: multimodality approach with attention to the reduction of medical radiation exposure.

Nontraumatic acute hip pain in children is common. However, the presentation and etiology is variable, including difficulty with weight bearing and abnormal gait. Barriers in communication, multiple possible etiologies, and age-specific anatomical variations of the pediatric hip make the evaluation of hip pain in children a difficult clinical diagnosis. Multimodality radiologic approach plays an important role for the evaluation of these children. However, owing to the complexity of pediatric hip disease, children sometimes undergo multiple radiologic examinations, resulting in delay in diagnosis and increased radiation dose. This article focuses on the illustration and discussion of common causes of acute hip pain or limp in children. Current recommendations for the imaging of these patients with specific attention to the ALARA (as low radiation as reasonably achievable) principle of radiation exposure are considered. Examples of the entities discussed are provided.

Metaphyseal fragmentation with physiologic bowing: a finding not to be confused with the classic metaphyseal lesion.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe the varied appearances of metaphyseal fragmentation associated with physiologic bowing and to estimate their frequency in children undergoing radiographic evaluation. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that metaphyseal fragmentation is occasionally encountered in children with physiologic bowing. Results of a systematic imaging assessment should minimize confusion of this innocent radiologic alteration with the classic metaphyseal lesion of child abuse.

Congenital adrenocortical adenoma: case report and review of literature.

Congenital ardrenocortical neoplasms are exceedingly rare. Our review of the medical literature revealed 23 reported cases of adrenocortical neoplasm including this one. Eighteen of these cases were adrenocortical carcinoma and four were grouped as adrenocortical tumor. We have not found any reported case with a histological diagnosis of a congenital adrenocortical adenoma. We present this case of a congenital adrenocortical neoplasm with histological findings consistent with an adrenocortical adenoma in a premature infant aged 27 weeks and 4 days who had a prenatal sonogram showing a cystic right abdominal mass and a physical examination demonstrating a palpable mass.