Abdominal imaging
-
Review
Pelvic CT angiography in blunt trauma: imaging findings and protocol considerations. [corrected].
The evolution of multi-row detector computed tomography (MDCT) technology has resulted in evolving applications of CT angiography (CTA) in the trauma setting. In patients with significant blunt pelvic injuries, the immediate diagnosis and characterization of vascular injuries are of significant import given their morbidity and mortality in this patient population. ⋯ This review will discuss the use of pelvic CTA in blunt pelvic trauma and its utility in detecting and characterizing vascular injury, including the differentiation of arterial from venous hemorrhage. Protocol considerations in pelvic CTA using 64MDCT technology will be detailed as well as the integration of pelvic CTA into torso CT trauma protocols.
-
To evaluate the value of the gadobenate dimeglumine-enhanced hepatobiliary-phase magnetic resonance (MR) imaging for the differentiation of scirrhous hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and cholangiocarcinoma (CC) with or without HCC. ⋯ Although both scirrhous HCC and CC with or without HCC show similar imaging findings on unenhanced and gadobenate dimeglumine-enhanced dynamic MR images, gadobenate dimeglumine-enhanced hepatobiliary-phase MR images may be helpful to differentiate scirrhous HCC from CC with or without HCC.
-
The purpose of this study was to retrospectively assess the diagnostic performance of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and dynamic contrast-enhanced imaging (DCEI) at 3T in predicting locally recurrent prostate cancer after radiation therapy. Twenty-four patients with a rising prostate-specific antigen level after treatment with radiation therapy underwent prostate MR imaging at 3T, followed by transrectal ultrasound-guided biopsy. MRI findings and biopsy results were correlated in six prostate sectors of both peripheral zones. ⋯ The accuracy of DWI, DCEI and combined DCEI and DWI was greater than that of T2WI. A significantly greater Az was determined for combined DCEI and DWI (Az = 0.863, P < 0.05) as compared with T2WI, DCEI, and DWI. For predicting locally recurrent prostate cancer after radiation therapy, our preliminary results suggest that the use of either DWI or DCEI is superior to the use of T2WI.
-
Giant hepatic artery aneurysm is a very rare vascular lesion, but can be detected incidentally during abdominal imaging. We report the sonographic and computed tomography (CT) features of a giant hepatic artery aneurysm in a 52-year-old woman presenting with vague abdominal discomfort. This report illustrates that a giant hepatic artery aneurysm can manifest as an incidental large mass in the porta hepatis, and we discuss the role of sonography and CT in the diagnosis of the lesion and review the natural history and clinical presentation of hepatic artery aneurysm.
-
Proper interpretation of PET-CT images requires knowledge of the normal physiological distribution of the tracer, frequently encountered physiological variants, and benign pathological causes of FDG uptake that can be confused with a malignant neoplasm. In addition, not all malignant processes are associated with avid tracer uptake. A basic knowledge of the technique of image acquisition is also required to avoid pitfalls such as misregistration of anatomical and scintigraphic data. This article reviews these potential pitfalls as they apply to the abdomen and pelvis of patients with cancer.