Publications by authors named "Maria Cristina Chammas"

The present work describes the process of the sonographic examination, normal findings and measurements in the B-mode ultrasound evaluation. Reference is made to anatomical variants in shape, the pyramidal lobe, tubercle of Zuckerkandl, ectopic thyroid tissue, and their significance. Particular attention is paid to the reference values, the very miscellaneous reference values in different geographic regions of the world and influencing factors.

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Artificial intelligence (AI) is defined as the theory and development of computer systems able to perform tasks normally associated with human intelligence. At present, AI has been widely used in a variety of ultrasound tasks, including in point-of-care ultrasound, echocardiography, and various diseases of different organs. However, the characteristics of ultrasound, compared to other imaging modalities, such as computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), poses significant additional challenges to AI.

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  • The midface experiences significant age-related changes that can affect facial aesthetics, causing issues like prominent folds and increasing the risk of complications during filler injections due to nearby vascular structures.
  • High-frequency ultrasound (HFUS) allows for real-time visualization of facial anatomy, helping injectors accurately target treatment areas while avoiding critical structures during filler procedures.
  • This article focuses on ultrasound-guided filler injections in the midface, detailing sonographic anatomy and techniques to enhance safety and effectiveness, ultimately aiming for improved aesthetic results and reduced risks for patients.
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Introduction: Fat graft (FG) absorption rate varies from 20 to 80% in two years. Recently, several bioengineering techniques were applied to improve FG retention rate. Numerous studies investigated the use of adipocyte-derived stem cells (ASC) as FG enrichment.

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  • Amyloidosis is a disease where misfolded proteins accumulate in tissues, often causing cardiac issues like stiffness and heart failure, particularly in transthyretin amyloidosis.
  • A study involving 60 patients, including those with cardiac ATTR amyloidosis, measured right ventricular (RV) stiffness using shear wave elastography (SWE) and assessed correlations with various health metrics.
  • The findings suggest that SWE is an effective, noninvasive method for evaluating RV stiffness, with an SWE threshold of ≥ 4.6 kPa indicating potential cardiac involvement, thus aiding in diagnosis and treatment.
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Filler injections in the upper face pose significant challenges due to its complex anatomy and proximity to vascular structures. High-frequency Doppler ultrasound offers real-time visualization of facial anatomy, improving both safety and aesthetic outcomes. This paper presents a detailed overview of the ultrasonographic anatomy of the temples, forehead, and glabella, along with reproducible, ultrasound-guided filler injection techniques for these areas.

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Objective: This study aims to evaluate the role of TUSG in the postoperative period and the detection of early complications after surgical treatment, pulmonary resection, or decortication for infectious and inflammatory thoracic diseases, comparing with the standard method (Chest Radiography ‒ CXR).

Methods: Prospective non-randomized self-controlled study. Twenty-one patients over 16 years of age have undergone surgical treatment of inflammatory and infectious lung diseases.

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Introduction: Diagnosis of vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) plays an important role in the management and follow-up of children presenting with urinary tract infection. This study compared voiding uronosography (VUS) as a diagnostic method for the diagnosis of VUR with the "gold standard", voiding or micturating cystourethrography (MCU). The objective of the study is not only to compare the effectiveness of both methods, but also to assess the feasibility of implementing VUS technically and economically in a large tertiary radiology center in South America.

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The main cause of death in traumas is hypovolemic shock. Physical examination is limited to detect hemopericardium, hemoperitoneum, and hemopneumothorax. Computed tomography (CT) is the gold standard for traumatic injury evaluation.

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Objective: Cervical traumatic neuromas (CTNs) may appear after lateral neck dissection for metastatic thyroid carcinoma. If they are misdiagnosed as metastatic lymph nodes (LNs) in follow-up neck ultrasound (US), unnecessary and uncomfortable fine-needle aspiration biopsy are indicated. The present study aimed to describe US features of CTNs and to assess the US performance in distinguishing CTNs from abnormal LNs.

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  • Current studies on the use of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) for diagnosing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in non-cirrhotic patients are scarce.
  • This retrospective analysis examined CEUS characteristics of HCC in 96 patients with non-cirrhotic livers, showing that HCC lesions were predominantly hypo-echoic and heterogeneous.
  • The study found that during the arterial phase of CEUS, most lesions displayed heterogeneous hyperenhancement with rapid wash-out in the portal venous phase, differing from typical patterns observed in cirrhotic livers.
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Cervical traumatic neuromas (CTNs) are a non-neoplastic hyperplasia of damaged nerves and may be misinterpreted as metastatic lymph nodes during cervical ultrasound of patients with thyroid cancer after lateral neck dissection, resulting in unnecessary and painful fin-needle aspiration biopsy. The anatomy of the cervical plexus is challenging, and the correct identification and recognition of its neural roots and branches on ultrasound are key to the correct CTN diagnosis. This review outlines the US technique used to characterize CTNs in 10 standardized steps and describes the sonographic features of the cervical plexus, to assist the radiologist in the recognition of CTNs and their differentiation from lymph node metastases.

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Purpose: To describe a new B-mode ultrasound examination technique to assess cheek tumors.

Materials And Methods: 30 cheek oral cavity lesions of different histological types (11 benign and 19 malignant) from 23 patients (11 women and 12 men, 7-82 years old, mean age of 49.5 years) were analyzed.

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Liver cirrhosis is an established high-risk factor for HCC and the majority of patients diagnosed with HCC have cirrhosis. However, HCC also arises in non-cirrhotic livers in approximately 20 %of all cases. HCC in non-cirrhotic patients is often clinically silent and surveillance is usually not recommended.

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The vast majority of clinicians associate diagnostic ultrasound with a tool that is designed for the living patient. However, it is of course possible to apply this imaging technology to evaluate the recently deceased patient for postmortem diagnosis, or even just examine postmortem tissue. We describe several cases in which ultrasound-enabled providers obtain answers in postmortem examinations and discuss potential future strategies and applications.

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In this review, the authors address the analysis of different types of malignant focal liver lesions (FLLs) using contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS). The specific enhancing patterns of hepatocellular carcinoma, cholangiocarcinoma, and metastases are discussed and exemplified with images. In addition, the use of CEUS in malignant portal vein thrombosis is discussed.

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Although contrast-enhanced ultrasound has been shown to provide considerable benefits, particularly in pediatric patients, it is still used relatively rarely in Brazil. It has proven to be a safe technique, and adverse effects are rare. In this review, we address the technique and main applications of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in the pediatric population, including the evaluation of focal liver lesions, abdominal trauma, kidney grafts, liver grafts, bowel loops, and vesicoureteral reflux.

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  • Yellow fever is a serious viral disease that can lead to liver damage, but this study focused on understanding the long-term effects of severe YF on liver health in survivors, specifically looking for liver fibrosis.* -
  • Researchers evaluated 18 patients who survived a recent outbreak in Brazil using ultrasound technology to assess liver stiffness, with findings indicating a low occurrence of significant liver fibrosis among them.* -
  • Age and cardiac failure appeared to be linked to increased liver stiffness, suggesting that certain risk factors could predict liver health post-YF, while a subset of patients treated with sofosbuvir showed no signs of liver fibrosis.*
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  • Yellow fever, a hemorrhagic disease endemic to South America, has led to recent outbreaks, prompting a study to examine abdominal ultrasound findings and their correlation with clinical data in severely affected patients.* -
  • A retrospective cohort study evaluated 46 ICU patients with confirmed yellow fever, revealing significant lab results, with 56.5% mortality within 30 days, and specific ultrasound signs such as gallbladder wall thickening and increased renal echogenicity.* -
  • Increased renal echogenicity was found to be a significant predictor of 30-day mortality, highlighting the potential of abdominal ultrasound in assessing disease severity and patient prognosis in yellow fever cases.*
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The purpose of this study was to select thyroid nodules most at risk for malignancy among those cytologically undetermined by fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB), using B-mode, color duplex Doppler and 2-D shear wave shear wave elastography (2-D-SWE). This was a prospective diagnostic accuracy study with 62 Bethesda III/IV nodules according to FNAB (atypia/follicular lesion of undetermined significance or follicular neoplasia/Hürthle cell neoplasm). Ultrasonography (US) data were compared with resection histologic results, revealing 35 of 62 benign nodules (56.

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Lung ultrasound is a well-defined diagnostic modality in the point of care emergency medicine concept. In the context of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the lung ultrasound assumed an essential role in this disease, with a valid correlation of the imaging results with computed tomography. Recognize how the diagnostic possibilities of ultrasound in the approach of COVID-19 and its differential diagnoses are fundamental.

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