Impact of aortic branch retention strategies on thrombus growth prediction in type B aortic dissection: A hemodynamic study.

Background: Type B Aortic Dissection (TBAD) is a serious cardiovascular condition treated effectively by TEVAR (Thoracic Endovascular Aortic Repair), which promotes false lumen thrombosis with minimal invasiveness. However, the impact of aortic branch retention strategies on thrombus growth prediction is often underestimated.

Method: This study numerically investigated four branch retention strategies: preserving all branches (Type 1 strategy), removing all branches (Type 2 strategy), removing only the aortic arch branches (Type 3 strategy), and removing only the abdominal aortic branches (Type 4 strategy).

Diastolic dysfunction in adults with uncomplicated obesity evaluated with left atrial and left ventricular tissue tracking and ventricular volume-time curve: a prospective cardiac magnetic resonance study.

Background: Obesity is commonly linked with heart failure (HF) with preserved ejection fraction, with diastolic dysfunction playing an important role in this type of HF. However, diastolic function has not been well clarified in obese patients free of overt comorbidities. We aimed to comprehensively assess diastolic function in adults with uncomplicated obesity by combining left atrial (LA) and left ventricular (LV) strain and ventricular volume-time curve based on cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR), and to evaluate its association with body fat distribution.

Optimizing coronary CT angiography quality with motion-compensated reconstruction for second-generation dual-layer spectral detector CT.

Objectives: To investigate the effect of motion-compensated reconstruction (MCR) algorithm on improving the image quality of coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) using second-generation dual-layer spectral detector computed tomography (DLCT), and to evaluate the influence of heart rate (HR) on the motion-correction efficacy of this algorithm.

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively enrolled 127 patients who underwent CCTA for suspected coronary artery disease using second-generation DLCT. We divided the patients into two subgroups according to their average HR during scanning: the "HR < 75 bpm" group and the "HR ≥ 75 bpm" group.

Radiomics based on HRCT can predict RP-ILD and mortality in anti-MDA5 + dermatomyositis patients: a multi-center retrospective study.

Objectives: To assess the effectiveness of HRCT-based radiomics in predicting rapidly progressive interstitial lung disease (RP-ILD) and mortality in anti-MDA5 positive dermatomyositis-related interstitial lung disease (anti-MDA5 + DM-ILD).

Methods: From August 2014 to March 2022, 160 patients from Institution 1 were retrospectively and consecutively enrolled and were randomly divided into the training dataset (n = 119) and internal validation dataset (n = 41), while 29 patients from Institution 2 were retrospectively and consecutively enrolled as external validation dataset. We generated four Risk-scores based on radiomics features extracted from four areas of HRCT.

Predicting Left Ventricular Adverse Remodeling After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement: A Radiomics Approach.

Rationale And Objectives: To develop a radiomics model based on cardiac computed tomography (CT) for predicting left ventricular adverse remodeling (LVAR) in patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS) who underwent transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR).

Materials And Methods: Patients with severe AS who underwent TAVR from January 2019 to December 2022 were recruited. The cohort was divided into adverse remodeling group and non-adverse remodeling group based on LVAR occurrence, and further randomly divided into a training set and a validation set at an 8:2 ratio.

Effect of Metabolic Syndrome on Left Atrial and Left Ventricular Deformation and Atrioventricular Interactions in Patients With Myocardial Infarction.

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is associated with worse prognosis in patients with myocardial infarction (MI). However, it is unclear how MetS in MI patients is associated with left atrial (LA) and left ventricular (LV) deformation.

Purpose: To determine the effect of MetS on LA and LV deformation and atrioventricular interactions in MI patients.

The effect of hyperlipidemia and body fat distribution on subclinical left ventricular function in obesity: a cardiovascular magnetic resonance study.

Background: Obesity is often associated with multiple comorbidities. However, whether obese subjects with hyperlipidemia in the absence of other complications have worse cardiac indices than metabolically healthy obese subjects is unclear. Therefore, we aimed to determine the effect of hyperlipidemia on subclinical left ventricular (LV) function in obesity and to evaluate the association of cardiac parameters with body fat distribution.

Masting promotes transformation from predation to mutualism in an oak-weevil-rodent system.

The significance of ecological non-monotonicity (a function whose first derivative changes signs) in shaping the structure and functions of the ecosystem has recently been recognized, but such studies involving high-order interactions are rare. Here, we have proposed a three-trophic conceptual diagram on interactions among trees, rodents, and insects in mast and non-mast years and tested the hypothesis that oak (Quercus wutaishanica) masting could result in increased mutualism and less predation in an oak-weevil-rodent system in a warm temperate forest of China. Our 14-year dataset revealed that mast years coincided with a relatively low rodent abundance but a high weevil abundance.

Harnessing joint distraction for the treatment of osteoarthritis: a bibliometric and visualized analysis.

Osteoarthritis (OA) stands as a prevalent degenerative joint ailment, demanding immediate attention towards the development of efficacious therapeutic interventions. Presently, a definitive cure for OA remains elusive, and when conservative treatment modalities prove ineffective, resorting to a joint prosthesis becomes imperative. Temporary distraction emerges as a pivotal joint-preserving intervention in human OA patients, conferring both clinical amelioration and structural enhancements.

New Whole-Heart motion correction algorithm enables diagnostic CT of aortic valve and coronary arteries in systolic phase for transcatheter aortic valve implantation candidates.

Objectives: To investigate the ability of new generation snapshot freeze (NGSSF) algorithm in improving diagnostic image quality of both aortic valve and coronary arteries for transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) candidates in TAVI planning CT.

Methods: Sixty-four TAVI candidates underwent TAVI planning CT were enrolled. Scans from coronary CT angiography were reconstructed at 20%, 30%, 40%, and 75% R-R cardiac phases with NGSSF and standard (STD) algorithm.

Myocardial tissue remodeling in early adult obesity and its association with regional adipose tissue distribution and ectopic fat deposits: a prospective study.

Objectives: To evaluate the left ventricular (LV) myocardial tissue characteristics in early adult obesity and its association with regional adipose tissue and ectopic fat deposition.

Methods: Forty-nine obese adults (mean body mass index: 29.9 ± 2.

Radiomics Based on Single-Phase CTA for Distinguishing Left Atrial Appendage Thrombus from Circulatory Stasis in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation before Ablation.

Differentiation of left atrial appendage thrombus (LAAT) and left atrial appendage (LAA) circulatory stasis is difficult when based only on single-phase computed tomography angiography (CTA) in routine clinical practice. Radiomics provides a promising tool for their identification. We retrospectively enrolled 204 (training set: 144; test set: 60) atrial fibrillation patients before ablation, including 102 LAAT and 102 circulatory stasis patients.

Early endovascular intervention for unfavorable remodeling of the thoracic aorta after open surgery for acute DeBakey type I aortic dissection: study protocol for a multicenter, randomized, controlled trial.

Background: Total arch replacement with frozen elephant trunk has been developed with promising results for DeBakey type I aortic dissection. However, several problems, such as continuous perfusion of distal false lumen and unfavorable remodeling of distal aorta postoperatively, can seriously affect the long-term outcome. This trial aims to assess the effects of early minimally invasive endovascular repair on distal aortic remodeling and long-term clinical outcomes in patients with dominant false lumen and residual tears in the descending thoracic aorta after total arch replacement and frozen elephant trunk procedure.

The carbon costs of global wood harvests.

After agriculture, wood harvest is the human activity that has most reduced the storage of carbon in vegetation and soils. Although felled wood releases carbon to the atmosphere in various steps, the fact that growing trees absorb carbon has led to different carbon-accounting approaches for wood use, producing widely varying estimates of carbon costs. Many approaches give the impression of low, zero or even negative greenhouse gas emissions from wood harvests because, in different ways, they offset carbon losses from new harvests with carbon sequestration from growth of broad forest areas.

Association of abdominal adiposity, hepatic shear stiffness with subclinical left-ventricular remodeling evaluated by magnetic resonance in adults free of overt cardiovascular diseases: a prospective study.

Background: Abdominal ectopic fat deposition and excess visceral fat depots in obesity may be related to cardiovascular disease (CVD) as both are involved in the metabolic syndrome (MetS). The awareness of the link between abdominal adiposity and subclinical cardiac remodeling would help improve treatment and outcome. Besides, liver fibrosis has also shown a potential relationship with cardiac dysfunction.

A Review of Research Progress in Selective Laser Melting (SLM).

SLM (Selective Laser Melting) is a unique additive manufacturing technology which plays an irreplaceable role in the modern industrial revolution. 3D printers can directly process metal powder quickly to obtain the necessary parts faster. Shortly, it will be possible to manufacture products at unparalleled speeds.

Radiomic analysis of enhanced CMR cine images predicts left ventricular remodeling after TAVR in patients with symptomatic severe aortic stenosis.

Objective: This study aimed to develop enhanced cine image-based radiomic models for non-invasive prediction of left ventricular adverse remodeling following transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) in symptomatic severe aortic stenosis.

Methods: A total of 69 patients (male:female = 37:32, median age: 66 years, range: 47-83 years) were retrospectively recruited, and severe aortic stenosis was confirmed transthoracic echocardiography detection. The enhanced cine images and clinical variables were collected, and three types of regions of interest (ROIs) containing the left ventricular (LV) myocardium from the short-axis view at the basal, middle, and apical LV levels were manually labeled, respectively.

Predicting the Risk of Type B Aortic Dissection Using Hemodynamic Parameters in Aortic Arches: A Comparative Study between Healthy and Repaired Aortas.

Background And Objective: The development of acute aortic dissection (AD) remains unpredictable due to the intricate nature of the AD mechanism and the varied patient-specific aortic anatomy. The aim of this study was to simulate the hemodynamic parameters in the aortas before the onset of TBAD with healthy controls.

Methods: This study numerically assessed the effectiveness of hemodynamic indicators in predicting the risk of type B AD (TBAD) by investigating the differences in hemodynamic parameters between healthy and repaired aortas (aortas before TBAD development).

Computed tomography-based radiomics for identifying pulmonary cryptococcosis mimicking lung cancer.

Background: Pulmonary cryptococcosis (PC) is an invasive pulmonary fungal disease, and nodule/mass-type PC may mimic lung cancer (LC) in imaging appearance. Thus, an accurate diagnosis of nodule/mass-type PC is beneficial for appropriate management. However, the differentiation of nodule/mass-type PC from LC through computed tomography (CT) is still challenging.