The ambiguous "internal carotid artery"-Ultrasound diagnosis of congenital absence of the internal carotid artery: A case report and review of the literature.

Rationale: Congenital anatomical variation of internal carotid artery (ICA) rarely occurs, and congenital absence of the ICA is even rarer. Few reports are available on the diagnosis of congenital absence of the ICA by carotid doppler ultrasound (CDUS), and most cases have been identified by computed tomographic angiography (CTA) or digital subtraction angiography (DSA).

Patient Concerns: A 61-year-old male was admitted to our hospital due to dizziness for more than half a month.

Assessment of regional myocardial function in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy by velocity vector imaging.

Objective: To assess the left ventricular (LV) longitudinal systolic and diastolic function in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) by syngo Velocity Vector Imaging (VVI).

Methods: Digital dynamic images of 30 DCM patients and 30 healthy subjects were collected; then the longitudinal velocity, strain, and strain rate were measured in systolic early and late diastolic periods, and the time to peak systolic velocity, strain, and strain rate were measured and recorded. The parameters of the two groups were compared.