Update on Quantitative Computed Tomography.

Quantitative computed tomography (QCT) has important technical advantages for the measurement of bone mineral density, and the technique is well suited for both the diagnosis of osteoporosis and the monitoring of treatment. Its use deserves a wider application than at present. The use of QCT in both research and in the clinic has recently garnered increasing attention.

Giant magnetocaloric effect in a rare-earth-free layered coordination polymer at liquid hydrogen temperatures.

Magnetic refrigeration, which utilizes the magnetocaloric effect, can provide a viable alternative to the ubiquitous vapor compression or Joule-Thompson expansion methods of refrigeration. For applications such as hydrogen gas liquefaction, the development of magnetocaloric materials that perform well in moderate magnetic fields without using rare-earth elements is highly desirable. Here we present a thorough investigation of the structural and magnetocaloric properties of a novel layered organic-inorganic hybrid coordination polymer Co(OH)(SO)[enH] (enH = ethylenediammonium).

Post-contrast CT liver attenuation alone is superior to the liver-spleen difference for identifying moderate hepatic steatosis.

Objective: To assess the diagnostic performance of post-contrast CT for predicting moderate hepatic steatosis in an older adult cohort undergoing a uniform CT protocol, utilizing hepatic and splenic attenuation values.

Materials And Methods: A total of 1676 adults (mean age, 68.4 ± 10.

Age and BMI have different effects on subcutaneous, visceral, liver, bone marrow, and muscle adiposity, as measured by CT and MRI.

Objective: We analyzed quantitative computed tomography (CT) and chemical shift-encoded magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from a Chinese cohort to investigate the effects of BMI and aging on different adipose tissue (AT) depots.

Methods: In 400 healthy, community-dwelling individuals aged 22 to 83 years, we used MRI to quantify proton density fat fraction (PDFF) of the lumbar spine (L2-L4) bone marrow AT (BMAT), the psoas major and erector spinae (ES) muscles, and the liver. Abdominal total AT, visceral AT (VAT), and subcutaneous AT (SAT) areas were measured at the L2-L3 level using quantitative CT.

Time to ECG diagnosis delays inter-hospital transfer to revascularization in STEMI patients presenting to a regional emergency department: a five-year audit.

Background: Reducing the door-to-balloon time (D2BT) in ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients maximizes myocardial salvage and mitigates morbidity/mortality.

Aims: To assess the D2BT in STEMI patients requiring inter-hospital transfer for revascularization and identify any potential causes of delay.

Methods: Consecutive patients presenting to the Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown (CHB) emergency department (ED) who were transferred to the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital in Dublin for primary percutaneous coronary intervention from January 2018 to October 2022 were identified in a regional database and their D2BTs calculated.

Inter-rater variability and repeatability in the assessment of the Tanner-Whitehouse classification of hand radiographs for the estimation of bone age.

Objective: To determine which bones and which grades had the highest inter-rater variability when employing the Tanner-Whitehouse (T-W) method.

Materials And Methods: Twenty-four radiologists were recruited and trained in the T-W classification of skeletal development. The consistency and skill of the radiologists in determining bone development status were assessed using 20 pediatric hand radiographs of children aged 1 to 18 years old.

Trends in transcatheter aortic valve implantation practice and clinical outcomes at an Irish tertiary referral centre.

Objective: A paucity of data exists on how transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) practice has evolved in Ireland. This study sought to analyse temporal trends in patient demographics, procedural characteristics, and clinical outcomes at an Irish tertiary referral centre.

Methods: The prospective Mater TAVI database was divided into time tertiles based on when TAVI was performed: Group A, November 2008-April 2013; Group B, April 2013-September 2017; and Group C, September 2017-February 2022.

Quantitative CT lumbar spine BMD cutpoint value for classifying osteoporosis among older East Asian women should be lower than the value for Caucasians.

For Caucasian women, the QCT (quantitative CT) lumbar spine (LS) bone mineral density (BMD) cutpoint value for classifying osteoporosis is 80 mg/ml. At the age of approximate 78 years, US Caucasian women QCT LS BMD population mean is 80 mg/ml, while that of Chinese women and Japanese women is around 50 mg/ml. Correlation analyses show, for Chinese women and Japanese women, QCT LS BMD of 45 mg/ml corresponds to the dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry cutpoint value for classifying osteoporosis.

Body composition changes during breast cancer preventive treatment with anastrozole: Findings from the IBIS-II trial.

Background: Uptake to anastrozole for breast cancer prevention is low, partly due to women's concerns about side effects including gains in weight and specifically gains in body fat. Previous evidence does not link anastrozole with gains in weight, but there is a lack of data on any effects on body composition i.e.

Quantifying the proportion of different cell types in the human cortex using DNA methylation profiles.

Background: Due to interindividual variation in the cellular composition of the human cortex, it is essential that covariates that capture these differences are included in epigenome-wide association studies using bulk tissue. As experimentally derived cell counts are often unavailable, computational solutions have been adopted to estimate the proportion of different cell types using DNA methylation data. Here, we validate and profile the use of an expanded reference DNA methylation dataset incorporating two neuronal and three glial cell subtypes for quantifying the cellular composition of the human cortex.

Risk prediction of second hip fracture by bone and muscle density of the hip varies with time after first hip fracture: A prospective cohort study.

Purpose: Predictors of 'imminent' risk of second hip fracture are unknown. The aims of the study were to explore strength of hip areal bone mineral density (aBMD), and muscle area and density for predicting second hip fracture at different time intervals.

Methods: Data of the Chinese Second Hip Fracture Evaluation were analyzed, a longitudinal study to evaluate the risk of second hip fracture (of the contralateral hip) by using CT images obtained immediately after first hip fracture.

Associations of Quantitative and Qualitative Muscle Parameters With Second Hip Fracture Risk in Older Women: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Older women with a first hip fracture exhibit heightened susceptibility and incidence of second fracture and potentially severe consequences. This prospective study was to compare the predictive power of qualitative and quantitative muscle parameters for a second hip fracture in older women with a first hip fracture. A total of 206 subjects were recruited from the longitudinal Chinese Second Hip Fracture Evaluation study.

Bone turnover change after randomized switch from tenofovir disoproxil to tenofovir alafenamide fumarate in men with HIV.

Objective: Bone loss in people with HIV (PWH) is poorly understood. Switching tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) to tenofovir alafenamide (TAF) has yielded bone mineral density (BMD) increases. PETRAM (NCT#:03405012) investigated whether BMD and bone turnover changes correlate.

Revision of the 1994 World Health Organization T-score definition of osteoporosis for use in older East Asian women and men to reconcile it with their lifetime risk of fragility fracture.

The 1994 WHO criterion of a T-score ≤ -2.5 for densitometric osteoporosis was chosen because it results in a prevalence commensurate with the observed lifetime risk of fragility fractures in Caucasian women aged ≥ 50 years. Due to the much lower risk of fragility fracture among East Asians, the application of the conventional WHO criterion to East Asians leads to an over inflated prevalence of osteoporosis, particularly for spine osteoporosis.

Utility of a simplified [F] sodium fluoride PET imaging method to quantify bone metabolic flux for a wide range of clinical applications.

We review the rationale, methodology, and clinical utility of quantitative [F] sodium fluoride ([F]NaF) positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) imaging to measure bone metabolic flux (K, also known as bone plasma clearance), a measurement indicative of the local rate of bone formation at the chosen region of interest. We review the bone remodelling cycle and explain what aspects of bone remodelling are addressed by [F]NaF PET-CT. We explain how the technique works, what measurements are involved, and what makes [F]NaF PET-CT a useful tool for the study of bone remodelling.

Structural Characterization and Thermoelectric Properties of Br-Doped AgSn[SbBi]Te Systems.

Herein, we report the synthesis, structural and microstructural characterization, and thermoelectric properties of AgSn[SbBi]Te and Br-doped telluride systems. These compounds were prepared by solid-state reaction at high temperature. Powder X-ray diffraction data reveal that these samples exhibit crystal structures related to the NaCl-type lattice.

East Asians' T-scores for the diagnosis of osteoporosis should be calculated using ethnicity- and gender-specific BMD reference ranges: justifications.

The 2013 ISCD consensus recommended a Caucasian female reference database for T-score calculation in men, which says "A uniform Caucasian (non-race adjusted) female reference database should be used to calculate T-scores for men of all ethnic groups." However, this statement was recommended for the US population, and no position was taken with respect to BMD reference data or ethnicity matching outside of the USA. In East Asia, currently, a Japanese BMD reference database is universally adopted in Japan for clinical DXA diagnosis, while both local BMD and Caucasian BMD reference databases are in use in Mainland China, South Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore.