A Lotus Root-like Appearance in the External Iliac Artery Detected by Intravascular Ultrasonography.

A lotus root-like appearance on blood vessels is a rare abnormality. The multiple channels within arteries may represent the recanalization or neovascularization of the thrombus. This abnormality is most frequently found in coronary arteries.

A breastfeeding woman with spontaneous coronary artery dissection and possible takotsubo syndrome: A case report.

Rationale: The relationship between spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) and takotsubo syndrome (TTS) remains unclear. Coexistence of SCAD and TTS has been reported in the literature. However, the relationship between these two diseases has not yet been elucidated.

Pulmonary Embolism and Splenic Infarction after Minocycline Infusion in a Patient with Polycythemia Vera.

A 55-year-old man treated with polycythemia vera visited our hospital, complaining of left abdominal pain and dyspnea. He had received minocycline infusions three weeks earlier for mycoplasma pneumonia. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography revealed pulmonary embolism and splenic infarction.

Relationship between coronary arterial F-sodium fluoride uptake and epicardial adipose tissue analyzed using computed tomography.

Purpose: F-Sodium fluoride (F-NaF) positron emission tomography (PET) has the potential to detect high-risk coronary plaques. Epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) reportedly correlates with coronary atherosclerosis progression. We evaluated the relationship between coronary arterial F-NaF uptake and EAT findings using computed tomography (CT).

Clinical implications of F-sodium fluoride uptake in subclinical aortic valve calcification: Its relation to coronary atherosclerosis and its predictive value.

Background: Uptake of F-sodium fluoride (F-NaF) on positron emission tomography (PET) reflects active calcification. Application of this technique in the early phase of aortic valve calcification (AVC) is of clinical interest. We investigated clinical implications of F-NaF uptake in subclinical AVC evaluated simultaneously with coronary atherosclerosis, and the utility of F-NaF uptake in predicting AVC progression.

Coronary Artery Calcium Is Associated with Left Ventricular Diastolic Function Independent of Myocardial Ischemia.

It has been shown in several studies that coronary artery calcium (CAC) burden or CAC progression is associated with heart failure. We tested the hypothesis that the extent of CAC is associated with left ventricular (LV) diastolic parameters derived from gated myocardial perfusion single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) in patients with no evidence of myocardial ischemia.157 patients undergoing coronary computed tomography (CT), gated SPECT, and transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) were enrolled in this study.

Predictive Value of F-Sodium Fluoride Positron Emission Tomography in Detecting High-Risk Coronary Artery Disease in Combination With Computed Tomography.

Background Application of F-sodium fluoride (F-NaF) positron emission tomography ( PET ) to coronary artery disease has attracted interest. We investigated the utility of F-NaF uptake for predicting coronary events and evaluated the combined use of coronary computed tomography (CT) angiography ( CCTA ) and F-NaF PET /CT in coronary artery disease risk assessment. Methods and Results This study included patients with ≥1 coronary atherosclerotic lesion detected on CCTA who underwent F-NaF PET / CT .

Impact of the Coronary Artery Calcium Score on Mid- to Long-Term Cardiovascular Mortality and Morbidity Measured With Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography.

Background: Although the coronary artery calcium score (CACS) is a prognostic measurement in asymptomatic individuals, it is measured in symptomatic patients using coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA). We aimed to examine the predictive value of the CACS for mid- to long-term cardiovascular mortality and morbidity in patients who underwent CCTA.

Methods and results: We studied 736 patients with suspected coronary artery disease (CAD) who underwent CCTA.

Clinical features and predictive value of serum inflammatory markers of perivascular involvement in immunoglobulin G4-related disease.

Vascular and/or perivascular involvements of sclerotic inflammation (perivasculitis) are a complication of immunoglobulin G4-related disease (IgG4-RD). We sought to examine clinical manifestations of perivasculitis by computed tomography (CT) in patients with elevated serum IgG4 levels, and then to evaluate some potential predictors of perivasculitis in definite IgG4-RD patients. From a database of patients with serum IgG4 measurements, we selected 81 patients with elevated serum IgG4 levels (≥135 mg/dl).