CT image quality assessment by a Channelized Hotelling Observer (CHO): Application to protocol optimization.

In this work we investigate the feasibility of employing a Channelized Hotelling model Observer (CHO) in a CT protocol optimization program with the aim at assuring that the scanners are working at their own best with regard to the quality of images and patient exposure. Although the benefit of using model observers in the clinical protocol optimization is evident, in the practice it is still to be investigated what are the pitfalls associated with this method. With this concern we focused on a clinical protocol for oncology of the abdomen.

Diagnostic imaging to detect and evaluate response to therapy in bone metastases from prostate cancer: current modalities and new horizons.

Different therapeutic options for the management of prostate cancer (PC) have been developed, and some are successful in providing crucial improvement in both survival and quality of life, especially in patients with metastatic castration-resistant PC. In this scenario, diverse combinations of radiopharmaceuticals (for targeting bone, cancer cells and receptors) and nuclear medicine modalities (e.g.

A great enigma of the Italian Renaissance: paleopathological study on the death of Giovanni dalle Bande Nere (1498-1526) and historical relevance of a leg amputation.

Background: The Medici project consisted in archeological and paleopathological researches on some members of the great dynasty of the Italian Renaissance. The remains of Giovanni de' Medici, so-called "dalle Bande Nere" (Forlì 1498- Mantua 1526) have not been investigated yet. The enigma of the fatal injury and leg amputation of the famous Captain excited curiosity of paleopathologists, medical scientists and Italian Society of Orthopedic and Traumatology which contributed to realize the project of exhumation and study of his skeletal remains.

Diffusion-weighted signal models in healthy and cancerous peripheral prostate tissues: comparison of outcomes obtained at different b-values.

Purpose: To evaluate the dependence on the b-values adopted of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), perfusion fraction (PF), slow and fast diffusion coefficient (Dslow, Dfast), corrected diffusion coefficient (D) and kurtosis (K), in healthy peripheral (HP) and peripheral cancerous (PCa) prostate tissues.

Materials And Methods: Patients who underwent multiparametric prostate MR examination were retrospectively evaluated for possible inclusion. ADC, PF, Dslow, Dfast, D, and K were estimated both in HP and PCa tissues, using three different ranges of b-values: 0-2300, 0-1800, 0-800 s/mm2 (group A, B and C, respectively).

High-intensity focused ultrasound provides palliation for liver metastasis causing gastric outlet obstruction: case report.

Background: Surgery is the standard of care in several oncologic diseases. However, when non-surgical candidates are not suitable for radical treatment, palliation must be achieved at least. High-intensity focused ultrasound uses ultrasound power that can be sharply focused for highly localised application, as it is a completely non-invasive procedure.

Clinical uroradiology: the standardisation of terminology for lower urinary tract function and dysfunction.

A key problem in clinical practice and research regards effective communication and comparison of results. This is particularly difficult between different specialities that use different definitions and terms for lower urinary tract dysfunction. We therefore tried to adapt the document on the "Standardisation of Terminology of Lower Urinary Tract Function" prepared by the International Continence Society for radiologists who need to acquire some basic clinical experience in the interpretation of the symptoms and signs encountered during simple urodynamic studies in order to increase the effectiveness of imaging studies of the lower urinary tract in men and women.

Statistical evaluation of hemodynamic effects of regular use of sildenafil on the human corpora cavernosa.

Introduction: Sildenafil citrate is currently used on demand in the treatment of erectile failure, regardless of etiology. Nevertheless, recent data suggest a significant improvement in nocturnal penile erections in potent and impotent men taking a single dose at bedtime. The present study analyzes whether continuous use of sildenafil positively correlates with improvement of penile blood flow and treatment satisfaction referred by patients with erectile dysfunction (ED) of vascular origin.

CT colonography after incomplete colonoscopy in subjects with positive faecal occult blood test.

Aim: To report our experience with computed tomography colonography (CTC) systematically performed in subjects with positive faecal occult blood test (FOBT) and an incomplete colonoscopy in the setting of a population-based screening for colorectal cancer (CRC).

Methods: From April 2006 to April 2007, 43290 individuals (age range 50-70) who adhered to the regional screening program for the prevention of CRC underwent immunochemical FOBT. FOBT was positive in 1882 subjects (4.

Bronchial artery embolization with detachable coils for the treatment of haemoptysis. Preliminary experience.

Purpose: This paper reports our early experience in the treatment of haemoptysis with embolization of the bronchial arteries using detachable coils.

Materials And Methods: Ten patients (mean age 45 years, range 23-83) with haemoptysis due to bronchoscopic biopsy of indeterminate lung nodules, lung cancer, tubercular bronchiectasis, cystic bronchiectasis or sarcoidosis underwent embolization of the bronchial arteries responsible for the bleeding using detachable coils. Patients were followed-up for a median of 14 months.

AEC set-up optimisation with computed radiography imaging.

Phototimer set-up is a critical procedure for dose and image quality optimisation in computed radiography (CR) systems. While a conventional radiography automatic exposure control device (AEC) can be calibrated in order to gain a constant optical density on the film independent of beam quality and patient size, CR detectors present a high dynamic range which allows a much larger dose interval, but with different image quality levels. CR leads to a less frequent exam repetition, but may produce quite noisy images if the exposure level on the plate is not correct.

Imaging of male urethra.

The male urethral imaging and pathology is not widespread in the radiology literature because this part of the urinary tract is easily studied by urologists with clinical or endoscopic examinations. Ultrasonography and MR imaging are increasingly being used in association with voiding cystourethrography and retrograde urethrography. The posterior urethra is being studied with voiding cystourethrography or voiding sonography which allows the detection of bladder neck pathology, post-surgical stenosis, and neoplasms.

Paraffinoma of the knee.

We present the case of a 90-year-old man with a swollen, painful knee and a history of paraffin injections. Radiography showed soft tissue streaky and nodular calcifications without erosions. MR imaging showed globular areas of low signal intensity on T1- and T2-weighted images which became even more hypointense on STIR sequences, and an infiltrative hypointense region containing areas of high signal on T1-weighted, T2-weighted and STIR images.

New imaging of the anterior male urethra.

Retrograde urethrography is the method commonly employed in the detection of anterior male urethra pathology. Ultrasonography and magnetic resonance imaging have been proposed recently as new methods that can replace conventional radiography. Normal urethral anatomy can be easily studied after saline distention of the urethra, which creates high contrast relative to adjacent structures such as mucosa and corpus spongiosum.

Endorectal coil MR imaging findings in hemospermia.

The purpose of this study was to illustrate the spectrum of abnormalities found at endorectal coil magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in patients with hemospermia. Ninety patients aged between 23 and 71 years (mean age 41 years) presenting with hemospermia underwent evaluation with endorectal coil MR imaging at 1.5 T.

Prostatic abscess: diagnosis and treatment.

Objective: Prostatic abscesses are uncommon in clinical practice because early antibiotic therapy has reduced complications of prostatitis. Prostatic abscess mainly affects diabetic and immunosuppressed patients. The organisms most frequently involved are Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus, whereas gonococcus is rarely encountered.

Prediction of pathological tumor volume in clinically localized prostate cancer: value of endorectal coil magnetic resonance imaging.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether endorectal coil magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) enables accurate assessment of pathologic tumor volume in patients with clinically localized prostate carcinoma. Twenty-four patients with biopsy-proved prostate carcinoma underwent MRI at 0.5 T before radical prostatectomy.

The morphology of the prostatic capsule with particular regard to the posterosuperior region: an anatomical and clinical problem.

The composition of the prostatic capsule is important from a clinical point of view, since it is considered to be a barrier against the spread of prostatic tumours. Clinical follow-up demonstrates that apparently intracapsular tumours, particularly in the posterosuperior region of the gland, are frequently understaged at clinical diagnosis. The morphology of the prostatic capsule was studied in 6 cadavers.

Local staging of prostate carcinoma with endorectal coil MRI: correlation with whole-mount radical prostatectomy specimens.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the accuracy of endorectal coil MRI in the local staging of prostate carcinoma. A total of 73 patients with biopsy-proven prostate carcinoma were examined at 0.5 T prior being submitted to radical prostatectomy.

Bacteriologic, histologic and ultrasonographic findings in strictures recurring after urethrotomy. A preliminary study.

Twelve men with recurrent anterior urethral stricture after endoscopic urethrotomy (2-12 attempts) underwent open urethroplasty with en bloc removal of diseased urethral segments. Bacteriologic and histologic studies of the excised urethral tracts (mucosa and spongiosum tissue) were performed. The bacteriologic findings were compared with the results of preoperative urine cultures and urethral swabs for chlamydia.

MR imaging with STIR technique and air insufflation for local staging of bladder neoplasms.

Fifty-six patients with bladder carcinoma were studied with MR imaging for the assessment of the local stage, using the inversion recovery pulse sequence with fat suppression (STIR) with air in the bladder. With this technique images of the inner and the outer parts of the bladder wall were obtained, showing high contrast between the latter and the tumor (tumor/muscle contrast 89.9%).

Staging of cervical cancer: reliability of transrectal US.

One hundred twenty-four patients with invasive carcinoma of the cervix were examined with transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) before treatment. Since surgery preceded any other kind of therapy, sonographic findings could be compared with the surgical pathologic stage. The accuracy of staging with TRUS was 83%, compared with an accuracy of 78% for clinical staging performed according to the criteria of the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO).

[The "in situ" treatment of ureteral calculi with extracorporeal lithotripsy].

The authors report on 80 cases of ureteral calculi treated with in situ extracorporeal shock wave (ESWL), with no retrograde or antegrade maneuvers. Success rate was high (97.5%).

Epirubicin high-dose therapy in advanced breast cancer: preliminary clinical data. Epirubicin as a single agent in breast cancer.

Of the new anthracycline derivatives, epirubicin is the antibiotic whose antitumor activity is comparable to that of doxorubicin while its cardiotoxicity is reduced by half. We therefore incorporated into our continuing study on anthracycline antitumor effects and toxicity a group of 22 evaluable patients, mean age 52 years, with advanced breast cancer, all of whom had previously undergone chemotherapy, radiotherapy and/or hormonal therapy. Epirubicin was administered at a dose of 120 mg/M2 every 3 weeks, for a maximum of 10 such cycles.