MRI of the Rectum: A Decade into DISTANCE, Moving to DISTANCED.

Over the past decade, advancements in rectal cancer research have reshaped treatment paradigms. Historically, treatment for locally advanced rectal cancer has focused on neoadjuvant long-course chemoradiotherapy, followed by total mesorectal excision. Interest in organ preservation strategies has been strengthened by the introduction of total neoadjuvant therapy with improved rates of complete clinical response.

[Transosseous lacerations in the ankylosed cervical spine].

Transosseous lacerations represent a particular type of discoligamentous injury of the cervical spine and occur in ankylosing diseases of the spine, with ankylosing spondylitis and diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) being the primary entities. The altered biomechanics of the spine due to the underlying disease pose special challenges in the diagnostics and treatment. Even low-energy trauma can cause severe injuries of the cervical spine, which are often difficult to accurately diagnose due to the difficult assessability of the conventional projection radiography used in the primary diagnostics.

Bone metabolism in complex regional pain syndrome.

Introduction: Patients with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) often show disturbed bone metabolism, assessed using three-phase bone scintigraphy (TPBS). However, current methods lack automation and standardisation. Bone serum markers have been proposed as biomarkers, but their utility is unclear.

Targeting caspase-8/c-FLIP heterodimer in complex II promotes DL-mediated cell death.

Death receptor (DR) networks are controlled by the assembly of the Death-Inducing Signaling Complex (DISC) and complex II. The family of small molecules FLIPins (FLIP interactors) were developed to target the caspase-8/c-FLIP heterodimer. FLIPin compounds were shown to promote apoptosis and caspase-8 activation at the DISC upon stimulation with death ligands (DLs) such as CD95L and TRAIL.

Monitoring Everyday Upper Extremity Function in Patients with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome: A Secondary, Retrospective Analysis from ncRNAPain.

Objective: Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) represents a rare complication following injury to a limb. The DASH questionnaire (disability of arm, shoulder, and hand) evaluates everyday arm function. We assessed the DASH and its subitems in comparison to patients with brachial plexus lesions or fracture controls, analysed it over time, and in relation to active range of motion (ROM), to determine patients' impairment and trajectory.

Isavuconazole for the Treatment of Fungal Infections: A Real-life Experience From the Fungal Infection Network of Switzerland (FUNGINOS).

This analysis of 116 isavuconazole therapy courses shows that hepatic test disturbances (HTDs) were relatively frequent (29% of cases) but rarely led to treatment interruption (5%). Importantly, patients with baseline HTDs, including those attributed to a first-line triazole, did not exhibit a higher risk of subsequent HTD under isavuconazole therapy.

O-RADS US v2022: An Update from the American College of Radiology's Ovarian-Adnexal Reporting and Data System US Committee.

First published in 2019, the Ovarian-Adnexal Reporting and Data System (O-RADS) US provides a standardized lexicon for ovarian and adnexal lesions, enables stratification of these lesions with use of a numeric score based on morphologic features to indicate the risk of malignancy, and offers management guidance. This risk stratification system has subsequently been validated in retrospective studies and has yielded good interreader concordance, even with users of different levels of expertise. As use of the system increased, it was recognized that an update was needed to address certain clinical challenges, clarify recommendations, and incorporate emerging data from validation studies.

Prognostic value of three iron deficiency definitions in patients with advanced heart failure.

Aims: There is uncertainty about the definition of iron deficiency (ID) and the association between ID and prognosis in patients with advanced heart failure. We evaluated three definitions of ID in patients referred for heart transplantation.

Methods And Results: Consecutive patients assessed for heart transplantation at a single UK centre between January 2010 and May 2022 were included.

Evaluation of a Respiration Rate Sensor for Recording Tidal Volume in Calves under Field Conditions.

In the assessment of pulmonary function in health and disease, both respiration rate (RR) and tidal volume (Vt) are fundamental parameters of spontaneous breathing. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether an RR sensor, which was previously developed for cattle, is suitable for additional measurements of Vt in calves. This new method would offer the opportunity to measure Vt continuously in freely moving animals.

Adnexal Lesion Imaging: Past, Present, and Future.

Currently, imaging is part of the standard of care for patients with adnexal lesions prior to definitive management. Imaging can identify a physiologic finding or classic benign lesion that can be followed up conservatively. When one of these entities is not present, imaging is used to determine the probability of ovarian cancer prior to surgical consultation.

Generalizability of Machine Learning Models: Quantitative Evaluation of Three Methodological Pitfalls.

Purpose: To investigate the impact of the following three methodological pitfalls on model generalizability: () violation of the independence assumption, () model evaluation with an inappropriate performance indicator or baseline for comparison, and () batch effect.

Materials And Methods: The authors used retrospective CT, histopathologic analysis, and radiography datasets to develop machine learning models with and without the three methodological pitfalls to quantitatively illustrate their effect on model performance and generalizability. F1 score was used to measure performance, and differences in performance between models developed with and without errors were assessed using the Wilcoxon rank sum test when applicable.

MRI Evaluation of Uterine Masses for Risk of Leiomyosarcoma: A Consensus Statement.

Laparoscopic myomectomy, a common gynecologic operation in premenopausal women, has become heavily regulated since 2014 following the dissemination of unsuspected uterine leiomyosarcoma (LMS) throughout the pelvis of a physician treated for symptomatic leiomyoma. Research since that time suggests a higher prevalence than previously suspected of uterine LMS in resected masses presumed to represent leiomyoma, as high as one in 770 women (0.13%).

Community-level prevalence of epilepsy and of neurocysticercosis among people with epilepsy in the Balaka district of Malawi: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Epilepsy and neurocysticercosis (NCC) prevalence estimates in sub-Saharan Africa are still scarce but show important variation due to the population studied and different screening and diagnosis strategies used. The aims of this study were to estimate the prevalence of epileptic seizures and epilepsy in the sampled population, and the proportion of NCC among people with epilepsy (PWE) in a large cross-sectional study in a rural district of southern Malawi.

Methods: We conducted a community-based door-to-door screening study for epileptic seizures in Balaka, Malawi between October and December 2012.

Ischemia-Selective Cardioprotection by Malonate for Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury.

Background: Inhibiting SDH (succinate dehydrogenase), with the competitive inhibitor malonate, has shown promise in ameliorating ischemia/reperfusion injury. However, key for translation to the clinic is understanding the mechanism of malonate entry into cells to enable inhibition of SDH, its mitochondrial target, as malonate itself poorly permeates cellular membranes. The possibility of malonate selectively entering the at-risk heart tissue on reperfusion, however, remains unexplored.

Development and Validation of Multiparametric MRI-based Radiomics Models for Preoperative Risk Stratification of Endometrial Cancer.

Background Stratifying high-risk histopathologic features in endometrial carcinoma is important for treatment planning. Radiomics analysis at preoperative MRI holds potential to identify high-risk phenotypes. Purpose To evaluate the performance of multiparametric MRI three-dimensional radiomics-based machine learning models for differentiating low- from high-risk histopathologic markers-deep myometrial invasion (MI), lymphovascular space invasion (LVSI), and high-grade status-and advanced-stage endometrial carcinoma.

Improved Detection of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease at Chest CT Using the Mean Curvature of Isophotes.

Purpose: To determine if the mean curvature of isophotes (MCI), a standard computer vision technique, can be used to improve detection of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at chest CT.

Materials And Methods: In this retrospective study, chest CT scans were obtained in 243 patients with COPD and 31 controls (among all 274: 151 women [mean age, 70 years; range, 44-90 years] and 123 men [mean age, 71 years; range, 29-90 years]) from two community practices between 2006 and 2019. A convolutional neural network (CNN) architecture was trained on either CT images or CT images transformed through the MCI algorithm.

Ovarian cancer reporting lexicon for computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging developed by the SAR Uterine and Ovarian Cancer Disease-Focused Panel and the ESUR Female Pelvic Imaging Working Group.

Objectives: Imaging evaluation is an essential part of treatment planning for patients with ovarian cancer. Variation in the terminology used for describing ovarian cancer on computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging can lead to ambiguity and inconsistency in clinical radiology reports. The aim of this collaborative project between Society of Abdominal Radiology (SAR) Uterine and Ovarian Cancer (UOC) Disease-focused Panel (DFP) and the European Society of Uroradiology (ESUR) Female Pelvic Imaging (FPI) Working Group was to develop an ovarian cancer reporting lexicon for CT and MR imaging.

Influence of Hyponatremia on Spinal Bone Quality and Fractures Due to Low-Energy Trauma.

Hyponatremia is the most common electrolyte disorder in elderly and associated with increased risk of falls. Clinical studies as well as small animal experiments suggested an association between chronic hyponatremia and osteoporosis. Furthermore, it has been assumed that subtle hyponatremia may be an independent fracture risk in the elderly.

Ten millennia of hepatitis B virus evolution.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) has been infecting humans for millennia and remains a global health problem, but its past diversity and dispersal routes are largely unknown. We generated HBV genomic data from 137 Eurasians and Native Americans dated between ~10,500 and ~400 years ago. We date the most recent common ancestor of all HBV lineages to between ~20,000 and 12,000 years ago, with the virus present in European and South American hunter-gatherers during the early Holocene.

A transfer learning approach to facilitate ComBat-based harmonization of multicentre radiomic features in new datasets.

Purpose: To facilitate the demonstration of the prognostic value of radiomics, multicenter radiomics studies are needed. Pooling radiomic features of such data in a statistical analysis is however challenging, as they are sensitive to the variability in scanner models, acquisition protocols and reconstruction settings, which is often unavoidable in a multicentre retrospective analysis. A statistical harmonization strategy called ComBat was utilized in radiomics studies to deal with the "center-effect".

R-Loop-Mediated ssDNA Breaks Accumulate Following Short-Term Exposure to the HDAC Inhibitor Romidepsin.

Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) induce hyperacetylation of histones by blocking HDAC catalytic sites. Despite regulatory approvals in hematological malignancies, limited solid tumor clinical activity has constrained their potential, arguing for better understanding of mechanisms of action (MOA). Multiple activities of HDACis have been demonstrated, dependent on cell context, beyond the canonical induction of gene expression.