La Radiologia medica
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La Radiologia medica · Jun 2006
Role of magnetic resonance in characterising extrahepatic cholangiocarcinomas.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of magnetic resonance (MR) in correctly locating and characterising biliary strictures in patients affected by extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, identify findings suggestive of the disease, identify lesions with similar MR features and possible criteria for differential diagnosis and establish prospective MR accuracy in diagnosis of malignant obstruction of extrahepatic bile ducts. ⋯ MR almost always identified the cause of stenosis and suggested its neoplastic nature if it exhibited a mass-like appearance (extraductal or growing into the choledochus). On the other hand, lesions with parietal thickening, particularly if smaller than 1 cm, require endoscopic cytology or histology because of the high risk of unnecessary procedures for benign lesions.
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La Radiologia medica · Jun 2006
Tracheobronchial aspiration of foreign bodies: current indications for emergency plain chest radiography.
The purpose of this study was to determine the role of plain chest radiography in the evaluation of patients with suspected foreign-body aspiration. ⋯ Plain chest radiography remains the initial imaging modality for patients with clinically suspected tracheobronchial aspiration of a foreign body. Nevertheless, in the case of negative chest radiography and a clinical suspicion of foreign-body aspiration, MSCT-possibly integrated with virtual bronchoscopy-should be considered in order to avoid unnecessary bronchoscopy.
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La Radiologia medica · Apr 2006
ReviewMagnetic resonance diffusion-weighted imaging: extraneurological applications.
Diffusion-weighted (Dw) imaging has for a number of years been a diagnostic tool in the field of neuroradiology, yet only since the end of the 1990s, with the introduction of echoplanar imaging (EPI) and the use of sequences capable of performing diffusion studies during a single breath hold, has it found diagnostic applications at the level of the abdomen. The inherent sensitivity to motion and the magnetic susceptibility of Dw sequences nonetheless still create problems in the study of the abdomen due to artefacts caused by the heartbeat and intestinal peristalsis, as well as the presence of various parenchymal-gas interfaces. With regard to focal liver lesions, a review of the literature reveals that Dw imaging is able to differentiate lesions with high water content (cysts and angiomas) from solid lesions. ⋯ In particular, no significant difference in ADC is noted between normal hypercellular bone marrow and hypercellular bone marrow secondary to lymphomatous infiltration whereas this difference is significant between hypocellular, normocellular and haematopoietic hypercellular bone marrow. With regard to the study of joints, the limited structure dimensions, particularly cartilage, creates technical difficulties related to spatial resolution and an adequate signal-to-noise ratio, problems that can only be solved by further technological developments. Lastly, a significant difference in ADC values between degenerative and inflammatory effusion has been found, a fact that may be explained as the result of the activity of hyaluronidase present in inflammatory forms, which causes a reduction in the concentration of hyaluronic acid with a consequent decrease in viscosity.
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La Radiologia medica · Mar 2006
Case Reports Comparative StudyPulmonary nodules in osteosarcoma patients: differential diagnosis of central venous catheter-related infections in the lungs.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the differential diagnosis of pulmonary nodules by conventional radiography and computed tomography (CT) in osteosarcoma patients with central venous catheter. ⋯ Placement of a central venous catheter for infusion therapy, chemotherapy and blood sampling has improved the quality of life of cancer patients. The most common complications of the use of central venous catheters include infection and venous thrombosis whereas pulmonary septic emboli are rare.
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La Radiologia medica · Nov 2005
MRI in the acute phase of spinal cord traumatic lesions: Relationship between MRI findings and neurological outcome.
To evaluate the role of emergency MRI in the diagnosis of acute spinal injuries, and to correlate the MRI pattern with the neurological outcome. ⋯ Our results, consistent with previous reports, confirm a strong correlation between the MRI appearance of traumatic spinal cord injuries in acute phase and long-term recovery of motor and sensory function: patients with initial haemorrhage had a poor prognosis, whereas those with spinal cord oedema had a good clinical outcome, as demonstrated by the passage to a higher Frankel class. MRI is particularly important in the initial evaluation of unconscious patients who cannot undergo a motor and sensory neurological evaluation, and to define the prognosis, which will influence the correct therapeutic choice.