Long-Term Volumetric Evaluation of Stent-Assisted Balloon-Induced Intimal Disruption and Relamination of Aortic Dissection (STABILISE) in Acute Type B Aortic Dissection.

Background: To quantify the volumetric aortic remodeling of patients with acute type B aortic dissection treated with the stent-assisted balloon-induced intimal disruption and relamination (STABILISE) technique.

Methods: All patients with acute type B aortic dissection operated with the STABILISE technique between 2014 and 2017 with preoperative, postoperative, and >12 months (follow-up) computed tomography scans were included in this study. True lumen and total aortic volume were accurately assessed in the thoracic and abdominal portions with a semiautomatic three-dimensional tool.

Automatic thoracic aorta calcium quantification using deep learning in non-contrast ECG-gated CT images.

Thoracic aorta calcium (TAC) can be assessed from cardiac computed tomography (CT) studies to improve cardiovascular risk prediction. The aim of this study was to develop a fully automatic system to detect TAC and to evaluate its performance for classifying the patients into four TAC risk categories. The method started by segmenting the thoracic aorta, combining three UNets trained with axial, sagittal and coronal CT images.

Abdominal aortic calcium and geometry in patients with essential hypertension.

Purpose: Abdominal aorta calcium (AAC) burden and dilatation are associated with an increased risk of mortality. The purpose of this study was to investigate determinants of AAC and abdominal aorta size in patients with essential hypertension.

Materials And Methods: Patients with uncomplicated essential hypertension who had undergone non-enhanced abdominal CT to rule out secondary hypertension in addition to biological test were recruited between 2010 and 2018.

Echocardiographic Measurements of Left Heart Chamber Size in a Large Cohort of Subjects: Comparison of Body Surface Area and Height Indexing to Account for Effects of Obesity.

Background: The assessment of cardiac chamber size in the obese population is a challenging subject. Values usually indexed to body surface area (BSA) are smaller in obese subjects and prone to overcorrection. The aims of this study were to find reference thresholds to account for the effects of obesity among a large cohort of patients and to evaluate indexing to height as an alternative to BSA.

Thoracic Aorta Calcium Detection and Quantification Using Convolutional Neural Networks in a Large Cohort of Intermediate-Risk Patients.

Arterial calcification is an independent predictor of cardiovascular disease (CVD) events whereas thoracic aorta calcium (TAC) detection might anticipate extracoronary outcomes. In this work, we trained six convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to detect aortic calcifications and to automate the TAC score assessment in intermediate CVD risk patients. Cardiac computed tomography images from 1415 patients were analyzed together with their aortic geometry previously assessed.

Comprehensive assessment of local and regional aortic stiffness in patients with tricuspid or bicuspid aortic valve aortopathy using magnetic resonance imaging.

Background: We aimed to provide a comprehensive aortic stiffness description using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with ascending thoracic aorta aneurysm and tricuspid (TAV-ATAA) or bicuspid (BAV) aortic valve.

Methods: This case-control study included 18 TAV-ATAA and 19 BAV patients, with no aortic valve stenosis/severe regurgitation, who were 1:1 age-, gender- and central blood pressures (BP)-matched to healthy volunteers. Each underwent simultaneous aortic MRI and BP measurements.

Automatic correction of background phase offset in 4D-flow of great vessels and of the heart in MRI using a third-order surface model.

Objective: To evaluate an automatic correction method for velocity offset errors in cardiac 4D-flow acquisitions.

Materials And Methods: Velocity offset correction was done in a plane-by-plane scheme and compared to a volumetric approach. Stationary regions were automatically detected.

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Volumetric Evaluation During Mid-term Follow-Up After Endovascular Sealing Using the Nellix™ Device.

Objectives: To analyze the volumetric evolution of abdominal aortic aneurysms after endovascular sealing (EVAS) with the Nellix™ device during follow-up.

Methods: Patients who underwent elective EVAS in our institution in 2014 and 2015 were retrospectively reviewed. Preoperative, postoperative and 1-year scans were processed.

Effects on Aortoiliac Fluid Dynamics After Endovascular Sealing of Abdominal Aneurysms.

Objectives:: To evaluate the effects on aortoiliac fluid dynamics after the implantation of an endograft based on endovascular aneurysm sealing (EVAS) versus endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) strategy.

Methods:: An adaptive geometrical deformable model was used for aortic lumen segmentation in 8 patients before and after the surgery. Abdominal aneurysms were treated with an endograft based on the EVAS system (Nellix, n = 4) and with a device based on an anatomical fixation technology (n = 4).

Age-related changes of thoracic aorta geometry used to predict the risk for acute type B dissection.

Aims: Risk models that use a single aortic diameter threshold have failed to successfully predict acute type B aortic dissection (TBAD). We sought to identify meaningful age-indexed anatomical variables to predict TBAD risk.

Methods And Results: A geometric deformable model, consisting of virtual elastic balloons that inflate inside a vessel lumen, was developed to quantify thoracic aorta geometry.

Association Between Thoracic Aorta Calcium and Thoracic Aorta Geometry in a Cohort of Asymptomatic Participants at Increased Cardiovascular Risk.

Introduction And Objectives: Thoracic aorta calcium detection is known to improve cardiovascular risk prediction for cardiac and noncardiac events beyond traditional risk factors. We investigated the influence of thoracic aorta morphometry on the presence and extent of aortic calcifications.

Methods: Nonenhanced computed tomography heart scans were performed in 970 asymptomatic participants at increased cardiovascular risk.

Association of thoracic aorta calcium and non cardiac vascular events in cardiac disease-free individuals.

Objective: Thoracic aorta calcium (TAC) is measurable on the same computed tomography (CT) scan as coronary artery calcium (CAC) but has still unclear clinical value. We assessed TAC and CAC relations with non-cardiac vascular events history in a cohort of subjects at risk for cardiovascular disease.

Methods: We analyzed retrospectively 1000 consecutive subjects having undergone CAC detection by non-contrast multi-slice CT with measurement field longer than usual in order to measure total TAC including aortic arch calcium.

Deformable Surface Model for the Evaluation of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms Treated with an Endovascular Sealing System.

Rupture of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) is responsible for 1-3% of all deaths among the elderly population in developed countries. A novel endograft proposes an endovascular aneurysm sealing (EVAS) system that isolates the aneurysm wall from blood flow using a polymer-filled endobag that surrounds two balloon-expandable stents. The volume of injected polymer is determined by monitoring the endobag pressure but the final AAA expansion remains unknown.

Calcifications of the thoracic aorta on extended non-contrast-enhanced cardiac CT.

Background: The presence of calcified atherosclerosis in different vascular beds has been associated with a higher risk of mortality. Thoracic aorta calcium (TAC) can be assessed from computed tomography (CT) scans, originally aimed at coronary artery calcium (CAC) assessment. CAC screening improves cardiovascular risk prediction, beyond standard risk assessment, whereas TAC performance remains controversial.

Identifying the principal modes of variation in human thoracic aorta morphology.

Purpose: Diagnosis and management of thoracic aorta (TA) disease demand the assessment of accurate quantitative information of the aortic anatomy. We investigated the principal modes of variation in aortic 3-dimensional geometry paying particular attention to the curvilinear portion.

Materials And Methods: Images were obtained from extended noncontrast multislice computed tomography scans, originally intended for coronary calcium assessment.

Effects of aging on thoracic aorta size and shape: a non-contrast CT study.

Measures of atherosclerosis burden like coronary artery calcification are performed using non-contrast heart CT. However, additional information can be derived from these studies, looking beyond the coronary arteries without exposing the patients to further radiation. We present a semi-automated method to assess ascending, arch and descending aorta geometry from non-contrast CT datasets in 250 normotensive patients.

Towards automatic measurement of anteversion and neck-shaft angles in human femurs using CT images.

Automatic assessment of human femur morphology may provide useful clinical information with regard to hip and knee surgery, prosthesis design and management of hip instability. To this end, neck-shaft and anteversion angles are usually used. We propose a full automatic method to estimate these angles in human femurs.

Estimation of coronary length-volume allometric relations of human arteries in vivo using CT.

Assessing the individual geometry of the coronary arteries in a patient can help to explain diffuse artery disease. Some allometric functions, relating arterial length and volume, were verified in porcine arteries and human autopsies but not in vivo. In this work we use skeletonization methods on MSCT images to render the whole coronary tree in healthy and cardiovascular patients.

Angle estimation of human femora in a three-dimensional virtual environment.

The estimation of human femur morphology and angulation provide useful information for assisted surgery, follow-up evaluation and prosthesis design, cerebral palsy management, congenital dislocation of the hip and fractures of the femur. Conventional methods that estimate femoral neck anteversion employ planar projections because accurate 3D estimations require complex reconstruction routines. In a recent work, we proposed a cylinder fitting method to estimate bifurcation angles in coronary arteries and we thought to test it in the estimation of femoral neck anteversion, valgus and shaft-neck angles.

Coronary arteries simplified with 3D cylinders to assess true bifurcation angles in atherosclerotic patients.

The geometry of coronary arteries affects regional atherogenic processes. Accurate images can be assessed using multislice computer tomography (MSCT) to estimate bifurcations angles. We propose a three-dimensional (3D) method to measure true bifurcation angles of coronary arteries and to determine possible correlations between plaque presence and angulations.