Bullet characterization using Photon-Counting detector CT: A phantom study with intact bullets.

Objectives: Photon-counting detector CT (PCD-CT) is expected to substantially improve and expand CT-imaging applicability due to its intrinsic spectral capabilities, increased spatial resolution, reduced electronic noise, and improved image contrast. The current study aim is to evaluate PCD-CT efficacy in characterizing bullets based on their dimensions, shape, and material composition.

Materials And Methods: This is an observational phantom study examining 11 unfired, intact bullets of various common calibers, placed in ballistic gelatin.

Local atrial bipolar electrogram voltage drops during cardiac magnetic resonance guided catheter ablation of typical atrial flutter: Associations with delivered radiofrequency energy and peri-procedural imaging.

Background: Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR)-guided catheter ablation of the cavotricuspid isthmus (CTI) has been proven feasible, but determinants of local electrogram (EGM) voltage drops during radiofrequency (RF) applications are unknown.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate local atrial bipolar EGM voltage drops and the association with delivered RF energy and anatomical information derived from peri-procedural CMR imaging.

Methods: In consecutive patients undergoing CMR-guided CTI ablation procedures, relative EGM voltage drops for RF applications ≥20 seconds were calculated.

Development of a P magnetic resonance spectroscopy technique to quantify NADH and NAD at 3 T.

NADH and NAD act as electron donors and acceptors and NAD was shown to stimulate mitochondrial biogenesis and metabolic health. We here develop a non-invasive Phosphorous Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (P-MRS) method to quantify these metabolites in human skeletal muscle on a clinical 3 T MRI scanner. This new MR-sequence enables NADH and NAD+ quantification by suppressing α-ATP signal, normally overlapping with NADH and NAD.

[F]FDG whole-body PET-MR including an integrated breast MR protocol for locoregional and distant staging in breast cancer patients-a feasibility study.

Purpose: To investigate in a feasibility study the combination of [F]FDG whole-body (WB) positron emission tomography-magnetic resonance (PET-MR), including an integrated breast MR within a single protocol for locoregional and distant staging in breast cancer patients.

Methods: Consecutive patients with breast cancer diagnoses according to conventional imaging modalities (full-field digital mammography (FFDM) and ultrasound (US)) were prospectively included. All patients underwent [F]FDG WB PET-MR, including an integrated dedicated breast MR (prone position) and WB PET-MR (supine position) protocol.

Critical but commonly neglected factors that affect contrast medium administration in CT.

Objective: Past decades of research into contrast media injections and optimization thereof in radiology clinics have focused on scan acquisition parameters, patient-related factors, and contrast injection protocol variables. In this review, evidence is provided that a fourth bucket of crucial variables has been missed which account for previously unexplained phenomena and higher-than-expected variability in data. We propose how these critical factors should be considered and implemented in the contrast-medium administration protocols to optimize contrast enhancement.

Comprehensive sex-specific and age-dependent analysis of four-dimensional flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance assessed aortic blood flow-related parameters in normal subjects using single-vendor magnetic resonance systems and single-vendor software.

Background: Aortic blood flow characterization by four-dimensional (4D) flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) is increasingly performed in aneurysm research. A limited number of studies have established normal values that can aid the recognition of abnormal flow at an early stage. This study aims to establish additional sex-specific and age-dependent reference values for flow-related parameters in a large cohort of healthy adults.

PCD-CT enables contrast media reduction in abdominal imaging compared to an individualized kV-adapted contrast media injection protocol on EID-CT.

Objectives: This study aims to demonstrate reduced iodine contrast media (CM) in routine abdominal CT scans in portal venous phase (PVP) using a photon-counting detector CT (PCD-CT) compared to total body weight (TBW) and kV-adapted CM injection protocols on a state-of-the-art energy-integrating detector CT (EID-CT) while maintaining sufficient image quality (IQ).

Materials And Methods: Consecutive contrast-enhanced abdominal PVP CT scans from an EID-CT (Nov 2022-March 2024) and a PCD-CT (Sep 2023-Dec 2023) were compared. CM parameters (total iodine load (TIL), iodine delivery rate (IDR) and dosing factor (DF)) were reported.

Contrast-enhanced mammography versus conventional imaging in women recalled from breast cancer screening (RACER trial): a multicentre, open-label, randomised controlled clinical trial.

Background: Women recalled from breast cancer screening receive post-screening work-up in the hospital with conventional breast imaging. The RACER trial aimed to study whether contrast-enhanced mammography (CEM) as primary imaging instead of conventional imaging resulted in more accurate and efficient diagnostic work-up in recalled women.

Methods: In this randomised, controlled trial (registered under NL6413/NTR6589) participants were allocated using deterministic minimisation to CEM or conventional imaging as a primary work-up tool in two general and two academic hospitals.

Limited Additional Value of a Chest CT in Whole-Body Staging with PET-MRI: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Hybrid PET-MRI systems are being used more frequently. One of the drawbacks of PET-MRI imaging is its inferiority in detecting lung nodules, so it is often combined with a computed tomography (CT) of the chest. However, chest CT often detects additional, indeterminate lung nodules.

Countering Calcium Blooming With Personalized Contrast Media Injection Protocols: The 1-2-3 Rule for Photon-Counting Detector CCTA.

Objective: Photon-counting detector computed tomography (PCD-CT) enables spectral data acquisition of CT angiographies allowing for reconstruction of virtual monoenergetic images (VMIs) in routine practice. Specifically, it has potential to reduce the blooming artifacts associated with densely calcified plaques. However, calcium blooming and iodine attenuation are inversely affected by energy level (keV) of the VMIs, creating a challenge for contrast media (CM) injection protocol optimization.

Tungsten-Based Contrast Agent for Photon-Counting Detector CT Angiography in Calcified Coronaries: Comparison to Iodine in a Cardiovascular Phantom.

Objectives: Calcified plaques induce blooming artifacts in coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) potentially leading to inaccurate stenosis evaluation. Tungsten represents a high atomic number, experimental contrast agent with different physical properties than iodine. We explored the potential of a tungsten-based contrast agent for photon-counting detector (PCD) CCTA in heavily calcified coronary vessels.

The association between coronary artery calcification and vectorcardiography in mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients: the Maastricht Intensive Care COVID cohort.

Background: Coronary artery calcification (CAC) is associated with poor outcome in critically ill patients. A deterioration in cardiac conduction and loss of myocardial tissue could be an underlying cause. Vectorcardiography (VCG) and cardiac biomarkers provide insight into these underlying causes.

Quantification of myocardial scar of different etiology using dark- and bright-blood late gadolinium enhancement cardiovascular magnetic resonance.

Dark-blood late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) has been shown to improve the visualization and quantification of areas of ischemic scar compared to standard bright-blood LGE. Recently, the performance of various semi-automated quantification methods has been evaluated for the assessment of infarct size using both dark-blood LGE and conventional bright-blood LGE with histopathology as a reference standard. However, the impact of this sequence on different quantification strategies in vivo remains uncertain.

Effect of Magnetic Resonance Image Quality on Structural and Functional Brain Connectivity: The Maastricht Study.

In population-based cohort studies, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is vital for examining brain structure and function. Advanced MRI techniques, such as diffusion-weighted MRI (dMRI) and resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI), provide insights into brain connectivity. However, biases in MRI data acquisition and processing can impact brain connectivity measures and their associations with demographic and clinical variables.

Influence of Contrast Media Temperature and Concentration on Patient Comfort and Safety in Computed Tomography: CATCHY II Trial.

Background: Previous research on the necessity to reduce the viscosity of contrast media (CM) by either prewarming CM before injection during computed tomography (CT) or by using less concentrated CM has yielded conflicting results. In addition, there is limited evidence on patient comfort.

Objectives: The aim of the study was to examine if prewarming CM, with varying CM concentrations, is superior to CM at room temperature, with respect to patient comfort and safety in CT.

How subjective CT image quality assessment becomes surprisingly reliable: pairwise comparisons instead of Likert scale.

Objectives: The aim of this study is to improve the reliability of subjective IQ assessment using a pairwise comparison (PC) method instead of a Likert scale method in abdominal CT scans.

Methods: Abdominal CT scans (single-center) were retrospectively selected between September 2019 and February 2020 in a prior study. Sample variance in IQ was obtained by adding artificial noise using dedicated reconstruction software, including reconstructions with filtered backprojection and varying iterative reconstruction strengths.

Association between Antiplatelet Therapy and Changes in Intraplaque Hemorrhage in Patients with Mild to Moderate Symptomatic Carotid Stenosis: A Longitudinal MRI Study.

Introduction: Carotid atherosclerotic intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH) predicts stroke. Patients with a history of stroke are treated with antiplatelet agents to prevent secondary cardiovascular events. A positive association between previous antiplatelet use and IPH was reported in a cross-sectional analysis.

Biomarkers of Collagen Metabolism Are Associated with Left Ventricular Function and Prognosis in Dilated Cardiomyopathy: A Multi-Modal Study.

Background: Collagen cross-linking is a fundamental process in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and occurs when collagen deposition exceeds degradation, leading to impaired prognosis. This study investigated the associations of collagen-metabolism biomarkers with left ventricular function and prognosis in DCM.

Methods: DCM patients who underwent endomyocardial biopsy, blood sampling, and cardiac MRI were included.

Quantification of carotid plaque composition with a multi-contrast atherosclerosis characterization (MATCH) MRI sequence.

Background And Purpose: Carotid atherosclerotic plaques with a large lipid-rich necrotic core (LRNC), intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH), and a thin or ruptured fibrous cap are associated with increased stroke risk. Multi-sequence MRI can be used to quantify carotid atherosclerotic plaque composition. Yet, its clinical implementation is hampered by long scan times and image misregistration.

The tissue-specific metabolic effects of the PPARα agonist ciprofibrate in insulin-resistant male individuals: a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled crossover study.

Objective: Insulin resistance is characterized by ectopic fat accumulation leading to cardiac diastolic dysfunction and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. The objective of this study was to determine whether treatment with the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α (PPARα) agonist ciprofibrate has direct effects on cardiac and hepatic metabolism and can improve insulin sensitivity and cardiac function in insulin-resistant volunteers.

Methods: Ten insulin-resistant male volunteers received 100 mg/d of ciprofibrate and placebo for 5 weeks in a randomized double-blind crossover study.