April 04 News Headlines

These are radiology news updates from other sites

Date this page was last updated: 01/07/2007 03:02:51 PM

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April 30, 2004   MR imaging of muscle injuries - Applied Radiology Muscle injuries are common and are usually diagnosed and treated without imaging. However, magnetic resonance (MR) has a role in identifying muscle injuries, determining the site and severity of injury and evaluating for complications. This article reviews muscle morphology, risk factors for injury, and the clinical spectrum of muscle injuries. The authors also discuss MR findings of muscle strain, contusion, hematoma, and herniation...   Distal-Type Cervical Spondylotic Amyotrophy: Assessment of Pathophysiology from Radiological Findings on Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Epidurally Recorded Spinal Cord Responses - Spine Conclusions: The results suggest a longitudinal gray matter lesion as one pathophysiologic feature, and that less damage to the lateral posterior column is the reason for the preservation of sensory function in the patients with distal-type cervical spondylotic amyotrophy described in this study...   Reliability of symptoms to determine use of bone scans to identify bone metastases in lung cancer: prospective study - British Medical Journal Only a small proportion of bone metastases can be recognised based on clinical symptoms or by increased serum alkaline phosphatase or calcium levels. Because of the high incidence of arthritic complaints, guidelines mandating bone scans only in patients with skeletal complaints often result in coincidental discovery of bony metastases. Restricting bone scans to patients whose skeletal complaints were clinically suspicious for metastatic disease, however, would have resulted in an unacceptably low sensitivity of 20%...

April 29, 2004   prospective, double-blind comparison of magnetic resonance imaging and arthroscopy in the evaluation of patients presenting with shoulder pain - Journal of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery This study demonstrates that patients presenting with the clinical findings of shoulder impingement syndrome represent a heterogeneous population. Overall, MRI is a useful tool in the identification of shoulder pathology; however, the clinical correlation of this information and the assessment of outcomes remains unknown...   In vivo precision of quantitative shoulder cartilage measurements, and changes after spinal cord injury - Magnetic Resonance in Medicine Our data show, for the first time, that articular cartilage of the humeral head can be quantified with acceptable precision in vivo. It was demonstrated that, in contrast to the knee, the articular cartilage morphology of the humeral head changes very little (i.e., there is no significant increase or decrease in thickness) after spinal cord injury (SCI)...   Evidence-Based Medicine - Journal of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons Evidence-based medicine refers to an explicit process of using and evaluating information to make medical decisions. Evidence-based medicine, perhaps contrary to popular perception, requires its users to embrace uncertainty in medical decision making because information that is simultaneously true and complete cannot be attained... April 28, 2004   Boom Times for Medicare - Advance for Nurse Practitioners President George W. Bush and Congress have instituted the biggest expansion of Medicare since its creation in 1965, agreeing to spend $400 billion on prescription drugs for the elderly over 10 years. Since the federal government has no surplus to fund these new benefits, who will pay that debt, with interest? The public. Not today's public, mind, but the public "that's lying in your bassinet...   Direct CSF injection of MnCl2 for dynamic manganese-enhanced MRI - Magnetic Resonance in Medicine This injection showed different distribution dynamics: it remained chiefly within the CSF spaces, and was largely washed out after 1 day. This method shows promise as a means of supplying Mn++ uniformly to the whole brain for a variety of chronic functional activation studies...   Improvement in breast lesion characterization with dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI using pharmacokinetic modeling and bookend T1 measurements - Magnetic Resonance in Medicine This is presumably due to unexpected variations in the shape and/or amplitude of the slice profile, which could be caused by factors such as patient-to-patient variations in breast geometry or inconsistently set transmit gains. Therefore, both T1pre and T1post measurements are necessary for optimum sensitivity and specificity using pharmacokinetic analysis...

April 27, 2004   Altered fractionated radiotherapy in the management of head and neck carcinomas: advantages and limitations - Current Opinion in Oncology This article provides an overview of randomized studies of altered fractionated radiotherapy (RT) in Head and Neck squamous cell carcinoma...Recent findings: Both hyperfractionated RT and accelerated RT may improve tumor control probability as compared to conventional RT, along with increased but manageable toxicity and a modest improvement in survival... April 26, 2004   Determining Lung Volume With Three-dimensional Reconstructions of CT Scan Data: A Pilot Study to Evaluate the Effects of Expansion Thoracoplasty on Children With Severe Spinal Deformities - Journal of Pediatric Orthopaedics The authors were able to show that expansion thoracoplasty and stabilization with a titanium rib was able to increase the volume of lung parenchyma in the five patients in the study group by approximately 25% to 90% after surgical intervention... April 23, 2004   Distal-Type Cervical Spondylotic Amyotrophy: Assessment of Pathophysiology from Radiological Findings on Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Epidurally Recorded Spinal Cord Responses - Spine Conclusions: The results suggest a longitudinal gray matter lesion as one pathophysiologic feature, and that less damage to the lateral posterior column is the reason for the preservation of sensory function in the patients with distal-type cervical spondylotic amyotrophy described in this study... April 22, 2004   Quantitative assessment of MRI T2 relaxation time of thigh muscles in juvenile dermatomyositis - Rheumatology Conclusions: The MRI T2 relaxation time can be used as a quantitative measure of muscle inflammation and it has good correlations with other measures of disease activity... April 20, 2004   Medicine�s Malediction - Decisions in Imaging Economics Radiologists have much to fear from big-payment malpractice judgments that are boosting premiums and altering practices: the call has gone out for relief on the federal level...

April 19, 2004   Identification of Wrist and Metacarpophalangeal Joint Erosions Using a Portable Magnetic Resonance Imaging System Compared to Conventional Radiographs - Journal of Rheumatology Conclusion: There was superior sensitivity to bone damage using the portable MR system compared to radiographs of the wrists and MCP joints, suggesting that this scanner is extremely promising for assessment of inflammatory arthritis...   Radiographic Features of Lumbar Disc Degeneration and Self-Reported Back Pain - Journal of Rheumatology Conclusion: These data highlight the frequent occurrence, and the increase in frequency with age, of the individual radiographic features of lumbar disc degeneration in population samples of men and women. Disc space narrowing appeared more strongly associated with back pain than the other radiographic features...   The Value of CAD in Clinical Practice - Decisions in Imaging Economics A new study that offers conflicting evidence of the value of CAD leads the author to question whether the results are applicable to a private practice setting...   BMD: Testing the Waters - Decisions in Imaging Economics The bone mineral densitometry market is growing, but so is the competition; nonetheless, the test remains a natural extension of breast screening services... April 15, 2004   Vascular malformations in muscles around the knee presenting as knee pain - The Knee Vascular malformations involving the muscles around the knee can be a cause of knee pain. We studied ten such cases. All underwent magnetic resonance (MR) imaging which confirmed the diagnosis. Eight cases underwent wide surgical excision of the lesion, histology of which showed a vascular malformation with predominantly venous element. There was no recurrence in any of the operated cases at the last follow-up. We believe that most of these lesions can be treated successfully by careful preoperative planning aided by MR imaging and a wide-open excision of the lesion... April 14, 2004   MRI of the wrist in early rheumatoid arthritis can be used to predict functional outcome at 6 years - Annals of Rheumatic Diseases Conclusion: MR imaging of the wrist in patients with early RA can help to predict function at 6 years and could be used to plan aggressive management at an earlier stage...

April 13, 2004   Tc-99m MDP Three-Phase Bone Scintigraphy of Tuberculous Dactylitis Involving the Middle Finger in the Adult - Clinical Nuclear Medicine Delayed imaging showed intensely increased uptake in the bony region adjacent to the PIP joint. These findings corresponded to the destructive lesions on radiographs and soft tissue abscess on ultrasonogram. An open biopsy with curettage confirmed tuberculosis...   Bone Scintigraphy of Raynaud's Syndrome Secondary to Fibromuscular Dysplasia - Clinical Nuclear Medicine The findings of bone scintigraphy in a 39-year-old woman with new-onset Raynaud's syndrome are presented. Shortly after being diagnosed with fibromuscular dysplasia, the patient developed bilateral Raynaud's syndrome of increasing severity accompanied by pain in all digits. In due course, 4-phase bone scintigraphy was performed to exclude possible arthritis. Imaging was done following intravenous injection of 740 MBq (20 mCi) Tc99m methylene diphosphonate (MDP) ...   Scintigraphy in Osteitis Condensans Ilii - Clinical Nuclear Medicine A 42-year-old asymptomatic woman presented for a bone scan after excision of a carcinoma of the left breast with axillary lymph node metastases. Her last pregnancy had been complicated by back pain, which resolved spontaneously. Physical examination was unremarkable ...   Peripheral Bone Metastases in Prostate Cancer: A Rare Localization at Initial Presentation - Clinical Nuclear Medicine We present 2 patients with extensive metastases from a prostate carcinoma in the lower extremities, a rare localization at initial presentation... April 12, 2004   Isolated Acromioclavicular Joint Pathology in the Symptomatic Shoulder on Magnetic Resonance Imaging: A Pictorial Essay - Journal of Computer Assisted Tomography The acromioclavicular (AC) joint is a synovial joint that is predisposed to painful syndromes because of mechanical stress or developmental variation. It is often overlooked in the evaluation of patients with shoulder pain, however. Isolated AC joint pathology was studied on magnetic resonance imaging scans of patients with symptoms suggesting rotator cuff pathology. The conditions identified included osteoarthritis, distal clavicle osteolysis, and os acromiale syndrome...   Bare Area of the Glenoid: Magnetic Resonance Appearance With Arthroscopic Correlation - Journal of Computer Assisted Tomography Conclusions: The bare area of the glenoid is an acquired cartilage defect located at the center of the glenoid articular surface. Characteristic findings can be seen on MR imaging. Care should be taken not to mistake this acquired condition for posttraumatic defects of the glenoid articular cartilage...   Combination of Extremity Computed Tomography Angiography and Abdominal Imaging in Patients With Musculoskeletal Tumors - Journal of Computer Assisted Tomography Conclusion: Extremity CT angiography and abdominal staging CT can be combined in a single dynamic multidetector CT protocol in patients with musculoskeletal tumors, resulting in a reduction of costs, acquisition time, and contrast dose as well as an improvement in patient management. The same protocol can also be used in trauma patients...

April 08, 2004   Detection and Quantification of Rotator Cuff Tears - Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery Conclusions: Ultrasonography and magnetic resonance imaging had comparable accuracy for identifying and measuring the size of full-thickness and partial-thickness rotator cuff tears. When an investigator has comparable experience with both imaging tests, the decision regarding which test to perform for rotator cuff assessment does not need to be based on accuracy concerns...   Prospective Matched-Pair Analysis of Hydroxyapatite-Coated and Uncoated Femoral Stems in Total Hip Arthroplasty - Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery This prospective study was performed to examine the results of total hip arthroplasty with a tapered uncemented femoral component with and without hydroxyapatite coating in a matched-pair group of patients. Since our original publication in 1996, no femoral component was revised in either group. After a mean clinical and radiographic follow-up of 9.8... April 07, 2004   Ohio physicians fight frivolous lawsuits - Diagnostic Imaging The Ohio State Medical Association has formed a frivolous lawsuit committee to help physicians recover money spent defending lawsuits that are without merit. Formation of the committee also puts lawyers on notice that physicians are ready to fight back...   Structural, psychological, and genetic influences on low back and neck pain: A study of adult female twins - Arthritis Care and Research Genetic factors have an important influence on back and neck pain reporting in women. These factors include the genetic determinants of structural disc degeneration and an individual's inherited tendency toward psychological distress. MRI changes are the strongest predictor of low back pain...   Public trust in health care: the system or the doctor? - Quality in Health Care Objectives: To examine how the public assess trust in health care in England and Wales...Conclusion: Public assessment of trust tends to address the views of care at the micro level. Policy makers concerned with the erosion of public trust need to target aspects associated with patient centred care and professional expertise...   The effect of pulsed electromagnetic fields on hindfoot arthrodesis: A prospective study - Journal of Foot & Ankle Surgery This study suggests that, if all parameters are equal, the adjunctive use of a pulsed electromagnetic field in elective hindfoot arthrodesis may increase the rate and speed of radiographic union of these joints... April 06, 2004   Magnetic resonance imaging of wrist and finger joints in healthy subjects occasionally shows changes resembling erosions and synovitis as seen in rheumatoid arthritis - Arthritis & Rheumatism Changes resembling mild synovitis or small bone erosions are occasionally found in the MCP and wrist joints of healthy controls. Signs of synovitis on dynamic MRI, enhancement within bone erosion-like changes, and signs of bone marrow edema appear rarely or are absent in healthy controls. These signs may thus prove to be very specific in the distinction between arthritic and normal joints...

April 01, 2004
	Quantitative assessment of cartilage status in osteoarthritis by quantitative magnetic resonance imaging: Technical validation for use in analysis of cartilage volume and further morphologic parameters - Arthritis & Rheumatism
	Quantitative MRI permits technically accurate and differential assessment of increases in eroded joint surface area and reductions in cartilage thickness in OA. The surrogate validity of these parameters requires testing in longitudinal studies. These parameters may be advantageous over determination of cartilage volume alone when diagnosing OA, exploring its progression, or testing responsiveness to new therapies...
	Relationship between radiographic grading of osteoarthritis and the biochemical markers for arthritis in knee osteoarthritis - Arthritis Research & Therapy
	The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the biochemical markers of arthritis and the radio-graphic grading of osteoarthritis (OA) in knees. Seventy-one women aged 49–85 years with knee OA were studied. Anterior–posterior knee radiographs and hand radiographs were taken in all patients...
	Articular Cartilage of Knee: Normal Patterns at MR Imaging That Mimic Disease in Healthy Subjects and Patients with Osteoarthritis - Radiology
	Conclusion: Fat-suppressed FSE and 3D SPGR MR images showed nonuniform signal intensity arising from articular cartilage and cartilage thinning, both of which could mimic disease...