Journal of the Chinese Medical Association : JCMA
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Reporting the findings from radiologic images is an important method for radiologists to communicate with referring physicians. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the recommendations for additional imaging (RAIs) after abdominal computed tomography (CT) studies for abdominal magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. ⋯ RAIs have a significant influence on clinical decisions. Radiologists should be aware of the power of RAIs and be prudent and conscientious when making recommendations in radiology reports.
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Coronavirus disease 2019, known as a widespread, aerosol spreading disease, has affected >549 000 000 people since 2019. During the lockdown period, dramatic reduction of elective endoscopic procedures, including endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, had been reported worldwide, leading to delayed diagnosis and treatment. Nevertheless, whether patients' hospital stays and complication rate of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) during the lockdown period were influenced by the pandemic still remains controversial. ⋯ Patients from May 16 to July 26, 2021, the lockdown period, had longer hospital stays and higher biliary tract enzyme levels, which indicated more severe disease. Nevertheless, ERCP could be safely and successfully performed even during the medical level 3 alert lockdown period without causing an increase in procedure-related complications and mortality.
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Moderate to severe tricuspid regurgitation (TR) is known to cause right ventricular (RV) failure and death. Although TR is traditionally classified as primary or secondary, recently, a new class of TR called idiopathic TR has been proposed, with varying definitions among different studies. ⋯ Idiopathic TR was associated with better RV function than the other secondary TRs. Thus, idiopathic TR should be strictly defined and regarded as a distinct type of TR.
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The Greulich-Pyle (GP) and Tanner-Whitehouse 3 (TW3) methods are two common methods for assessing bone age (BA). The applicability of these methods for populations other than those in the United States and Europe has been questioned. Thus, this study tested the applicability of these methods for Taiwanese children. ⋯ The GP and TW3-RUS methods exhibit strong agreement in the pubertal and postpubertal stages for both sexes. With appropriate adjustments based on Taiwanese data, both methods are applicable to our children.
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Postvertebroplasty infection (PVI) is a catastrophic complication after vertebroplasty (VP). Although the urinary tract has been considered as a source of infectious pathogens, whether asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB) is a risk factors for PVI remains unknown. ⋯ ASB was not uncommon among patients admitted for VP and should be considered a marker of relatively poor host immunity. Preoperative ASB, a history of malignancy, and smoking were identified as significant risk factors for PVI.