Magnetic resonance angiography of the carotid arteries: comparison of unenhanced and contrast enhanced techniques.

Objective: To compare different techniques for carotid imaging including contrast-enhanced, unenhanced and dynamic techniques to find an alternative to contrast-enhanced MRA.

Methods: 43 patients referred for imaging of the carotids were enrolled in this IRB-approved study. Imaging included dark-blood, time-of-flight, ECG-gated SSFP and dynamic and static contrast-enhanced MRA.

Are you ready?--lessons learned from the Fort Hood shooting in Texas.

On November 5, 2009, a US Army psychiatrist allegedly opened fire with one or more handguns, killing 12 military personnel and one civilian at Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas. The most severely wounded casualties were transported to Scott and White Memorial Hospital, a Level I trauma center and tertiary care teaching hospital in Temple, Texas associated with the Texas A&M University College of Medicine. Ten victims arrived in a 1-h period with another two arriving in the second hour, necessitating an emergency response to a mass casualty event.

Brain MRI with single-dose (0.1 mmol/kg) Gadobutrol at 1.5 T and 3 T: comparison with 0.15 mmol/kg Gadoterate meglumine.

Objective: The purpose of this article is to evaluate the efficacy of a single dose of gadobutrol (0.1 mmol/kg of body weight) compared with that of a substantially higher dose of gadoterate meglumine (0.15 mmol/kg of body weight) in a rat brain tumor model at 1.

Diffusion weighted imaging: a comprehensive evaluation of a fast spin echo DWI sequence with BLADE (PROPELLER) k-space sampling at 3 T, using a 32-channel head coil in acute brain ischemia.

Purpose: To evaluate the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and diagnostic quality of diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) using a fast spin echo (FSE) sequence with BLADE k-space trajectory at 3 T in combination with a 32-channel head coil. The scan was compared with a standard spin echo (SE) echo-planar imaging (EPI) DWI and a high resolution SE EPI DWI sequence.

Material And Methods: Fourteen patients with acute brain ischemia were included in this Institutional Review Board approved study.

Diffusion-weighted imaging in patients with acute brain ischemia at 3 T: current possibilities and future perspectives comparing conventional echoplanar diffusion-weighted imaging and fast spin echo diffusion-weighted imaging sequences using BLADE (PROPELLER).

Objectives: To compare diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) based on a fast spin echo (FSE) sequence using BLADE (PROPELLER) with conventional DWI-echoplanar imaging (EPI) techniques at 3 T and to demonstrate the influence of hardware developments on signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) with these techniques using 12- and 32-channel head coils.

Materials And Methods: Fourteen patients with brain ischemia were evaluated with DWI using EPI and FSE BLADE sequences, with a 12-channel head coil, in the axial plane and 1 additional plane (either sagittal or coronal). SNR and CNR were calculated from region-of-interest measurements.

MR angiography of the renal arteries: intraindividual comparison of double-dose contrast enhancement at 1.5 T with standard dose at 3 T.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare prospectively and within subjects use of 0.1 mmol/kg of gadodiamide at 3 T with use of 0.2 mmol/kg of gadodiamide at 1.

Brain magnetic resonance imaging at 3 Tesla using BLADE compared with standard rectilinear data sampling.

Objectives: We sought to evaluate Periodically Rotated Overlapping ParallEL Lines with Enhanced Reconstruction (PROPELLER; BLADE) data acquisition in comparison with standard k-space sampling techniques for axial and sagittal brain imaging at 3 T regarding imaging artifacts.

Material And Methods: Forty patients who gave consent were included in a prospective comparison of standard and PROPELLER (BLADE) k-space sampling techniques. All examinations were performed at 3 T with comparison of standard T2-weighted fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) to PROPELLER T2-weighted FLAIR in the axial image orientation and standard T1-weighted gradient echo to PROPELLER T1-weighted FLAIR in the sagittal image orientation.

Renal arteries: comparison of steady-state free precession MR angiography and contrast-enhanced MR angiography.

All participants provided informed consent to participate in this study, which was approved by the institutional review board. Breath-hold three-dimensional (3D) steady-state free precession (SSFP) magnetic resonance (MR) angiography was compared with 3D contrast material-enhanced MR angiography in patients suspected of having renal artery stenosis. Two radiologists assessed visualization of renal arteries and detection of vascular disease.

T1-weighted imaging of the brain at 3 tesla using a 2-dimensional spoiled gradient echo technique.

Rationale And Objectives: The objective of this study was to evaluate a 2-dimensional spoiled gradient echo (GRE) imaging approach using a very short in-phase TE for routine T1-weighted imaging of the brain at 3 T.

Materials And Methods: Patient examinations were compared from a 3 T magnetic resonance (MR) unit located immediately adjacent to a similarly equipped 1.5 T unit.

Improvement in sensitivity of screening mammography with computer-aided detection: a multiinstitutional trial.

Objective: Our study evaluated radiologist detection of breast cancer using a computer-aided detection system.

Materials And Methods: Three radiologists reviewed 377 screening mammograms interpreted as showing normal or benign findings 9-24 months before cancer diagnosis from 17 of the 18 participating centers. In 313 cases, study radiologists recommended additional mammographic evaluation.

Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain in glutaric acidemia type I: a review of the literature and a report of four new cases with attention to the basal ganglia and imaging technique.

Rationale And Objectives: In glutaric acidemia type I (GA I), a pediatric neurometabolic disease that may be mistaken for nonaccidental trauma, expeditious detection is critical as early treatment may substantially improve psychomotor dysfunction. In this study, we examine in depth the magnetic resonance (MR) findings, with special attention to the basal ganglia, in 4 new cases and compare the findings with those described in the literature.

Methods: MR studies of 4 children, diagnosed to have GA I via cultured fibroblast enzyme studies or urine metabolite assays, were performed on a 1.

Optimizing the latest neuroradiology tools. New techniques are particularly useful in stroke management.

In the past several years, advances in central nervous system imaging and interventional techniques have directly and dramatically improved healthcare. In this article, Drs Naul and Santiago discuss developments in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and interventional neuroradiology. In addition, the role of these techniques in the management of strokes is highlighted.

Radiology goes filmless. What does this mean for primary care physicians?

Technical advances over the past few years have rapidly increased the possibilities for filmless radiology services provided by PACS. Such systems are also financially feasible for many healthcare practices, primarily because of the goals achieved through increased efficiency and improved patient care. In coming years, most medical facilities are likely to either convert or begin to convert to PACS as conventional film-based systems fade into the annals of medical history.

Intracranial infantile hemangiopericytoma.

Hemangiopericytoma (HP) is a rare vascular tumor that usually occurs in adults, but 10% occur in children. Tumors occurring in the first year of life are even more rare and are referred to as infantile hemangiopericytoma. In this article, we report the imaging, operative, and pathological findings in a patient with an infantile HP.

Extensive cerebrospinal fluid enhancement with gadopentetate dimeglumine in a primitive neuroectodermal tumor.

We report a case of diffuse enhancement of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) after intravenous administration of gadopentetate dimeglumine in an 8-year-old girl with a primitive neuroectodermal tumor. The enhancement of the CSF was caused by leakage of gadolinium chelate complexes into the CSF, which was proved by CSF analysis.

Gliosarcoma: MR features.

Purpose: Our goal was to characterize the MR features of pathologically documented gliosarcoma and to determine if these features help differentiate gliosarcoma from other intracranial neoplasms.

Method: MR studies of six patients with pathologically documented gliosarcoma were retrospectively analyzed.

Results: The tumors tended to be well defined lesions demonstrating either an inhomogeneous or cystic appearance with surrounding vasogenic edema.

Intramedullary gliofibroma: MR, ultrasound, and pathologic correlation.

We describe the clinical, MR, ultrasound, and pathologic findings of an intramedullary gliofibroma. This uncommon primitive tumor is thought to be of mixed glial and mesenchymal origin. Although the majority of tumors described to date have been histologically benign, clinical course has been quite variable.

Intraventricular fibroma: MR and pathologic comparison.

This case report describes clinical, surgical, MR, and pathologic findings of an intraventricular fibroma, a rare, benign mesenchymal neoplasm. Relatively isointense with normal brain parenchyma on T1-weighted images, the tumor exhibited hyperintense signal on T2-weighted pulse sequences and enhanced intensely and homogeneously after intravenous administration of gadopentetate dimeglumine. Choroid plexus papilloma/carcinoma, meningioma, ependymoma, and subependymal giant cell astrocytoma should be included in the differential diagnosis.

Intracranial granulocytic sarcoma: CT, MR, and angiography.

Granulocytic sarcoma is a rare, solid tumor composed of immature granulocytes usually found in association with systemic leukemia in younger patients. We present a case of granulocytic sarcoma occurring in an elderly female with no evidence of systemic leukemia. Computed tomography, MR (with and without Gd-DTPA), and angiography showed features commonly found in meningiomas.

Paraplegia after a routine lumbar laminectomy: report of a rare complication and successful management.

Arachnoid cysts of the spinal canal are relatively common lesions that may be either intra- or extradural. These cysts are usually asymptomatic but may produce symptoms by compressing the spinal cord or nerve roots. We report a case in which an intradural thoracic arachnoid cyst became symptomatic after a routine decompressive lumbar laminectomy for spinal stenosis.

Avascular necrosis of the vertebral body: MR imaging.

Five patients with plain radiographic evidence of a compressed vertebra containing an intravertebral vacuum cleft indicative of avascular necrosis underwent magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. In these patients, the T2-weighted images revealed a distinct appearance consisting of marked and discrete hyperintensity at the location of the intravertebral cleft. T1-weighted images were hypointense in this region.

Gallium-67 uptake by a benign adrenocortical adenoma.

A 55-yr-old man presented with an atypical relapsing meningitis and was found to have intense unilateral adrenal uptake by 67Ga imaging. Computed tomography showed a 4-cm right adrenal mass which was hypointense on the T1-weighted images and mildly hyperintense on the T2-weighted images of a magnetic resonance (MR) scan. At surgery, a coincidental benign adrenocortical adenoma was found.