Embolization of the Pancreas Using Microspheres: A Proof-of-Safety Study in a Porcine Model.

Purpose: To evaluate safety and impact of particle embolization on pancreatic function in a pig model.

Materials And Methods: Embolization of the dorsal pancreatic artery using 100-300-μm particles was performed on 14 Yorkshire pigs. Baseline and post-embolization glucose tolerance testing results and serum amylase/lipase levels were obtained.

Correlation of Ablation Volume with Renal Function Loss after Cryoablation in Solitary Functioning Kidneys.

Purpose: To determine the degree of renal function deterioration after renal cryoablation in patients with a solitary functioning kidney on the basis of ablation volume.

Materials And Methods: Over a 15-year period, 81 percutaneous cryoablations were performed in solitary functioning kidneys. After exclusion of patients with baseline end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and insufficient follow-up, analysis was performed on 65 procedures in 52 patients (40 men; mean age, 63.

Long term impact of transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) creation on hepatic morphology.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate long-term morphologic changes occurring in the liver after TIPS creation with correlation with hepatic function to gain insight on the physiologic impact of TIPS on the liver.

Methods: This retrospective study included patients who underwent TIPS creation between 2005 and 2022 and had contrasted CT or MRI studies prior to and between 1 and 2 years post procedure. Strict exclusion criteria were applied to avoid confounding.

Comparing magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasound in the clinical evaluation of fibroids prior to uterine artery embolization.

Purpose: Uterine artery embolization has become established as a frontline treatment for uterine leiomyomata. In planning embolization, preprocedural imaging can further characterize pathology and anatomy, but it may also reveal coexisting diagnoses that have the potential to change clinical management. The purpose of this study is to compare the diagnostic outcomes of ultrasound and MRI performed for patients prior to undergoing embolization.

Increasing Medicare Annual Wellness Visit Utilization: An RN-Led Model of Care Pilot.

Annual wellness visits (AWVs) are an important component of primary care as they provide preventive services and an opportunity to identify safety and health risk factors for Medicare beneficiaries. However, primary care practices are facing unprecedented demands with high patient volumes, multimorbidity, a rapidly growing aging population, and primary care provider (PCP) shortages. RN-led models of care are increasingly recognized as a major key to providing quality care while relieving PCP demands.

Intravascular Ultrasound Guidance for Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt Creation Reduces Laboratory Markers of Acute Liver Injury.

Purpose: To compare the laboratory markers of acute liver injury after transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) creation performed using intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) guidance with those using other techniques.

Materials And Methods: This single-center, retrospective study examined 293 TIPS procedures performed between 2014 and 2022 (160 men; mean age, 57.4 years; 71.

Intravascular Ultrasound-Guided Transvenous Biopsy of Retroperitoneal Lymph Nodes: Diagnostic Accuracy and Safety Compared with CT-Guided Percutaneous Biopsy.

Purpose: To compare the diagnostic accuracy and adverse event rates of intravascular ultrasound (US)-guided transvenous biopsy (TVB) versus those of computed tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous needle biopsy (PNB) for retroperitoneal (RP) lymph nodes.

Materials And Methods: In this single-institution, retrospective study, 32 intravascular US-guided TVB procedures and a sample of 34 CT-guided PNB procedures for RP lymph nodes where targets were deemed amenable to intravascular US-guided TVB were analyzed. Procedural metrics, including diagnostic accuracy, defined as diagnostic of malignancy or a clinically verifiable benign result, and adverse event rates were compared.

Biomarkers for occupational manganese exposure.

Long-term inhalation exposure to manganese (Mn) metal or its inorganic compounds can result in manganism or subclinical neurofunctional deficits. Studies have described affected workers in Mn dioxide mining, Mn-containing ore crushing and milling facilities, manufacturing of dry-cell batteries, Mn steel and alloy production plants, and in welders. The objective of this study was to critically review existing evidence on the reliability of potential biomarkers of Mn exposure, specifically the relationship between inhalation exposure to Mn particulates in different occupational settings and Mn concentrations in blood and other biological fluids and tissues, with a particular focus on whole blood as a potentially useful medium for measuring internal tissue dose.

Utility of CBCT and AVD for intraprocedural diagnosis and treatment of lower GI bleeding.

Background: Intraprocedural Cone Beam CT (CBCT) is assessed to examine if use improves diagnosis and embolization rates of acute lower GI bleed (LGIB) and if automatic vessel detection (AVD) software can identify feeding vessels (FV) for embolization.

Methods: Patients with inconclusive DSA findings had CBCT and retrospective analysis with AVD software (Innova 3100, GE Company, USA). Technical success was defined as the ability to detect a lower GIB site while clinical success was defined as successful embolization without evidence of rebleeding or death within 30 days.

Magnetic resonance imaging T1 indices of the brain as biomarkers of inhaled manganese exposure.

Excessive exposure to manganese (Mn) is linked to its accumulation in the brain and adverse neurological effects. Paramagnetic properties of Mn allow the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques to identify it in biological tissues. A critical review was conducted to evaluate whether MRI techniques could be used as a diagnostic tool to detect brain Mn accumulation as a quantitative biomarker of inhaled exposure.

Patient Radiation Doses in IR Procedures: The American College of Radiology Dose Index Registry-Fluoroscopy Pilot.

Purpose: To update normative data on fluoroscopy dose indices in the United States for the first time since the Radiation Doses in Interventional Radiology study in the late 1990s.

Materials And Methods: The Dose Index Registry-Fluoroscopy pilot study collected data from March 2018 through December 2019, with 50 fluoroscopes from 10 sites submitting data. Primary radiation dose indices including fluoroscopy time (FT), cumulative air kerma (K), and kerma area product (P) were collected for interventional radiology fluoroscopically guided interventional (FGI) procedures.

Coaxial Stent Graft inside a Constraining Stent for Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt Reduction.

A technique to create a coaxial, self-expanding stent graft inside a constraining, bare-metal, balloon-expandable stent for transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) reduction is described. The key steps are performed on a back table rather than inside the patient, and the resulting construct is deployed using standard unsheathing maneuvers. The construct was used in 4 patients to make 6 TIPS diameter reductions (mean postreduction diameter, 6 mm; range, 0-8 mm), all resulting in increases in the portosystemic pressure gradient (mean increase, 6 mm Hg; range, 1-19 mm Hg).

Patient Radiation Doses in Interventional Radiology Procedures: Comparison of Fluoroscopy Dose Indices between the American College of Radiology Dose Index Registry-Fluoroscopy Pilot and the Radiation Doses in Interventional Radiology Study.

Purpose: To compare radiation dose index distributions for fluoroscopically guided interventions in interventional radiology from the American College of Radiology (ACR) Fluoroscopy Dose Index Registry (DIR-Fluoro) pilot to those from the Radiation Doses in Interventional Radiology (RAD-IR) study.

Materials And Methods: Individual and grouped ACR Common identification numbers (procedure types) from the DIR-Fluoro pilot were matched to procedure types in the RAD-IR study. Fifteen comparisons were made.

Biomarkers of environmental manganese exposure.

We conducted a critical review on biomarkers of environmental manganese (Mn) exposure to answer the following questions: 1) are there reliable biomarkers of internal Mn exposure (Mn in biological matrices) associated with external metrics of Mn exposure (Mn in environmental media)? and 2) are there accurate reference values (RVs) for Mn in biological matrices? Three bibliographic databases were searched for relevant references and identified references were screened by two independent reviewers. Of the 6342 unique references identified, 86 articles were retained for data abstraction. Our analysis of currently available evidence suggests that Mn levels in blood and urine are not useful biomarkers of Mn exposure in non-occupational settings.

Nanoscintillator-Based X-Ray-Induced Photodynamic Therapy.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is an emerging treatment option for cancer. In PDT, photosensitizers are delivered to tumors and stimulated by light to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS)-most importantly singlet oxygen (O)-to damage tumor cells or induce tissue ischemia. PDT is associated with a low level of systemic toxicity because photosensitizers are usually pharmaceutically inactive in the dark and photoirradiation is applied only to tumor areas in the procedure.

Hemodialysis Reliable Outflow (HeRO) graft creation in upper extremities abandoned due to stent obstruction via recanalization and HeRO outflow component insertion across stent interstices.

Background: The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility and outcomes of recanalization and subsequent HeRO graft outflow component insertion across stent interstices in patients with an otherwise abandoned upper extremity.

Methods: Over a 10-year period, 15 patients underwent central venous recanalization by interventional radiology across the interstices of one or more occluded stents for the purpose of subsequent HeRO graft creation. A tunneled central venous catheter was left across the stent and occlusions with tip in right atrium.

Potassium Iodide Nanoparticles Enhance Radiotherapy against Breast Cancer by Exploiting the Sodium-Iodide Symporter.

Iodine has shown promise in enhancing radiotherapy. However, conventional iodine compounds show fast clearance and low retention inside cancer cells, limiting their application as a radiosensitizer. Herein, we synthesize poly(maleic anhydride--1-octadecene) coated KI nanoparticles (PMAO-KI NPs) and evaluate their potential for enhancing radiotherapy.

Analysis of Patient Handoff Between Providers at a Tertiary Urban Medical Center.

Introduction: Few studies have quantified the total number of attending and consulting physicians involved in inpatients' care, and no other research quantifies the total number of all providers participating in inpatients' care. The purpose of this study was to calculate the number of attending hand-offs, the attending encounter time, and the total number of providers participating in inpatients' care for all admitted patients at a tertiary urban medical center.

Methods: The study design was an observational retrospective cohort.