An epidemiological analysis of the burden of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension in the USA, Europe and Japan.

Epidemiological data for chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) are limited and there are conflicting reports regarding its pathogenesis.A literature review was conducted to identify CTEPH epidemiological data up to June 2014. Data were analysed to provide estimates of the incidence of CTEPH in the USA, Europe and Japan.

High-frequency ultrasonic detection of thrombi with a targeted contrast system.

Site-targeted acoustic contrast agents used in conjunction with high-frequency intravascular ultrasound have the potential to localize and characterize intravascular pathology. The present study quantifies the utility of a novel, site-targeted ultrasonic contrast agent with high-frequency ultrasound (30 to 50 MHz) and demonstrates the feasibility of the new agent for augmenting detection of targeted pathology with intravascular ultrasonic catheters. High-frequency acoustic microscopy was used to image avidinconjugated nitrocellulose membranes after exposure to a control or biotinylated contrast agent.

A novel site-targeted ultrasonic contrast agent with broad biomedical application.

Background: In this work, we report a novel targetable ultrasonic contrast agent with the potential to noninvasively define and localize myriad pathological tissues for diagnosis or therapy. The agent is a biotinylated, lipid-coated, perfluorocarbon emulsion that has low inherent echogenicity unless bound to a surface or itself.

Methods And Results: In study 1, emulsions with and without biotin were suspended in buffered saline and imaged with a 7.

In vivo fluorine-19 MR imaging: relaxation enhancement with Gd-DTPA.

The lack of a naturally occurring background signal from fluorine in magnetic resonance (MR) imaging makes fluorinated compounds potentially attractive candidates for tissue-specific MR contrast agents. Problems associated with the in vivo use of fluorinated compounds are toxicity, which limits the amount of agent that can be used; multiple resonance lines; and an excessively long T1, which leads to long sequence TRs and consequently long imaging times. Many fluorinated agents also possess complex MR spectra that result in chemical shift artifacts if not corrected.