Ratio and difference of the cross-sectional area of median nerve to ulnar nerve in diagnosing carpal tunnel syndrome: a case control study.

Background: To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of the median-to-ulnar nerve ratio (MUR) and the median-to-ulnar nerve difference (MUD) in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS).

Methods: In this study, 32 patients with CTS and 32 healthy volunteers were evaluated. All participants received a series of tests and ultrasound examination for the evaluation of the following criteria: cross-sectional area of the median nerve at the pisiform level (CSA-P), swelling ratio (SR), MUR, MUD, and flattening ratio (FR).

Assessment of Unicuspid Aortic Valve Stenosis Using Multimodality Imaging, X-ray Radiography and Raman Analysis.

Unicuspid aortic valve (UAV) is an extremely rare form of congenital cardiac malformation, leading to aortic stenosis (AS), aortic regurgitation (AR), or both. We report the case of a 55-year-old man with unicommissural UAV associated with severe AS and mild AR using different multimodality imaging approaches. The excised UAV isolated after aortic valve replacement exhibited an eccentric "teardrop" opening with a slit-shaped unicommissural structure.

Echocardiographic manifestations and chemical composition of stenotic bicuspid aortic valves.

Bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) is an inherited form of heart disease with only two aortic valve leaflets via a disorder of cardiac valvulogenesis. We investigated the in vivo echocardiographic features of cardiac morphology in patients with BAV and the ex vivo compositional components of all the excised BAV leaflets isolated from BAV patients. Three BAV patients were randomly selected.

New morphological classification of congenital quadricuspid aortic valve and its histopathologic features.

We report a 52-year-old male patient who had a quadricuspid aortic valve (QAV) associated with aortic regurgitation (AR) and left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH). A new accessory cusp (ACC) with maximum thickness than other cusps was located between right coronary cusp (RCC) and left coronary cusp (LCC). The histopathological features revealed markedly thickened and distorted cusp architecture with fibrosis and/or myxomatous degeneration in both non-coronary cusp (NCC) and ACC.

Cost-utility analysis of direct ventricular assist device vs double bridges to heart transplantation in patients with refractory heart failure.

Object: This study compared the cost-utility of direct ventricular assist device (VAD) vs double bridges, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) before VAD, to heart transplantation in patients with refractory heart failure.

Materials And Methods: From a health payer perspective, a Markov model was developed. The cycle length was 1 month, and the time horizon was a lifetime.

Ex vivo assessment of valve thickness/calcification of patients with calcific aortic stenosis in relation to in vivo clinical outcomes.

Calcific aortic stenosis (AS) plays a critical role in the risk of cardiovascular disease. This preliminary study examined the relationship between the ex vivo valve thickness/calcification and in vivo clinical outcomes of Chinese patients with calcific AS. Six Chinese patients (3 patients with tricuspid aortic valves (TAV)) and 3 patients with.

Spectral and morphological classification of different chronic and acute Taiwanese gallstones via FTIR, SEM and ESEM-EDX microanalyses.

Background: Gallstone disease is one of the leading upper gastrointestinal surgical problems in different countries.

Aims: To analyze the chronic gallstones and acute gallbladder sludge retrieved from 36 Taiwanese patients.

Methods: FTIR microspectroscopy was used to classify the types of gallstones, and an ESEM-EDX microanalysis was first applied to determine the microstructural features and elemental compositions of the various gallstones.

Dual-Energy Computed Tomography Gemstone Spectral Imaging: A Novel Technique to Determine Human Cardiac Calculus Composition.

Objective: Understanding the chemical composition of any calculus in different human organs is essential for choosing the best treatment strategy for patients. The purpose of this study was to assess the capability of determining the chemical composition of a human cardiac calculus using gemstone spectral imaging (GSI) mode on a single-source dual-energy computed tomography (DECT) in vitro.

Methods: The cardiac calculus was directly scanned on the Discovery CT750 HD FREEdom Edition using GSI mode, in vitro.

Application of scanning electron microscopy and X-ray microanalysis: FE-SEM, ESEM-EDS, and EDS mapping for studying the characteristics of topographical microstructure and elemental mapping of human cardiac calcified deposition.

To explore the pathogenic mineral formation in a huge cardiolith isolated from the left heart atrium of an 80-year-old male patient, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) was used to analyze the topographic microstructure and perform elemental mapping in a cross-section of the cardiac calcified deposit after dissection. Environmental SEM equipped with an energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS) was also used to investigate the composition and spatial distribution of elements in the cross-section, and fiberoptic Raman spectroscopy was used to reidentify the chemical composition of designated positions. The results indicated that calcium hydroxyapatite and cholesterol were the main components of the cardiac calculus.

Composition and distribution of elements and ultrastructural topography of a human cardiac calculus.

Trace elements (TEs) may contribute to the formation of calculi or stones or be involved in the aetiopathogenesis of stone diseases. The compositions and spatial distribution of elements from the inner nucleus to outer crust of the cardiac calculus were investigated by energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) spectrometer. The surface topograph, distribution map of elements, elemental and chemical compositions were also determined by environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM)-energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis.