In the last decade, ultrasound examination in neurology has been undergoing a significant expansion of its modalities. In parallel, there is an increasing demand for rapid and high-quality diagnostics in various acute diseases in the prehospital setting, the emergency room, intensive care unit, and during surgical or interventional procedures. Due to the growing need for rapid answers to clinical questions, there is particular demand for diagnostic ultrasound imaging.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Purpose: Mechanical thrombectomy (MT) is standard care for patients suffering from an ischemic stroke due to a large vessel occlusion. Immediate and follow-up transcranial ultrasound examinations after MT were shown to have a diagnostic benefit. However, it is unclear whether repeated extracranial ultrasound after MT has an additional diagnostic yield, that is, depicts new findings.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe updated version of the EFSUMB guidelines on the application of non-hepatic contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) deals with the use of microbubble ultrasound contrast outside the liver in the many established and emerging applications.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe updated version of the EFSUMB guidelines on the application of non-hepatic contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) deals with the use of microbubble ultrasound contrast outside the liver in the many established and emerging applications.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCervical artery dissection (CeAD), a mural hematoma in a carotid or vertebral artery, is a major cause of ischemic stroke in young adults although relatively uncommon in the general population (incidence of 2.6/100,000 per year). Minor cervical traumas, infection, migraine and hypertension are putative risk factors, and inverse associations with obesity and hypercholesterolemia are described.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The clinical significance of vertebral artery hypoplasia (VAH) and the possible pathomechanism of ischemic stroke in patients with VAH are still not completely clear.
Methods: In a group of 80 posterior circulation strokes (PCS) patients, we compared the location of the ischemic areas in VAH (n = 26) and non-VAH (n = 54) group. We assessed the side of VAH (diameter equal to or less than 2.
To systematically review the ultrasonographic criteria proposed for the diagnosis of chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency (CCSVI). The authors analyzed the five ultrasonographic criteria, four extracranial and one intracranial, suggested for the diagnosis of CCSVI in multiple sclerosis (MS), together with the references from which these criteria were derived and the main studies that explored the physiology of cerebrospinal drainage. The proposed CCSVI criteria are questionable due to both methodological and technical errors: criteria 1 and 3 are based on a scientifically incorrect application of data obtained in a different setting; criteria 2 and 4 have never been validated before; criterion 2 is technically incorrect; criteria 3 and 5 are susceptible to so many external factors that it is difficult to state whether the data collected are pathological or a variation from the normal.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: The aim of this study was to evaluate a deficit in cerebral perfusion after administration of the contrast agent SonoVue (Bracco Altana Pharma, Konstanz, Germany) in patients with intracranial space-occupying lesions.
Methods: We used transcranial duplex sonography to examine 10 healthy volunteers and 4 patients. Of the patients, one 55-year-old woman had an intracranial glioblastoma; one 54-year-old woman had an intracranial hemorrhage; and one 49-year-old woman and one 69-year-old man had a malignant middle cerebral artery infarction.
Dissection of cervical arteries causes ischemic stroke in young adults. This reports the clinical, ultrasonographic, and neuroradiological findings in 24 patients with 28 vertebral artery dissections in the neck (4 occurring bilaterally). In 20 patients (83%), the dissection was temporally related to trauma.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Ultrasound Med
February 2006
Background And Purpose: Glycohemoglobin (hemoglobin A1c [HbA1c]) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) are risk indicators for atherosclerosis. Limited information exists regarding the combined effects of inflammation and hyperglycemia. We investigated the joint effects of both parameters on early carotid atherosclerosis progression and major vascular events in diabetic and nondiabetic subjects.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: The clinical value of transcranial color-coded duplex sonography (TCCS) in the evaluation of arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) has not yet been fully investigated. In this study, 54 intracranial AVMs confirmed by angiography were prospectively examined over 6 years. The purpose of the study was to describe their typical sonographic features and to define sensitivity for diagnosis with regard to the location of an AVM.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur J Ultrasound
November 2002
Transcranial color-coded duplex ultrasonography (TCCS) makes possible the visualization of basal cerebral arteries through color-coding the flow velocity information. This method is well established in the clinical routine for the diagnostics of pathological processes in cerebrovascular disease. The present review describes the examination technique, normal and pathological findings, such as stenosis and occlusion of intracranial arteries, as well as intracranial vascular malformations focussing on the advantages of the examination in the axial imaging planes.
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