Pediatric radiology
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Pediatric radiology · Aug 2018
Optimization of magnetization-prepared rapid gradient echo (MP-RAGE) sequence for neonatal brain MRI.
Sequence optimization in neonates might improve detection sensitivity of abnormalities for a variety of conditions. However this has been historically challenging because tissue properties such as the longitudinal relaxation time and proton density differ significantly between neonates and adults. ⋯ Our in vivo neonatal brain imaging experiments confirmed that both SNR and CNR efficiencies significantly increased with our proposed protocol. Our proposed optimization methodology could be readily extended to other populations (e.g., older children, adults), as well as different organ systems, field strengths and MR sequences.
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Pediatric radiology · Jul 2018
Increased risk of symptomatic upper-extremity venous thrombosis with multiple peripherally inserted central catheter insertions in pediatric patients.
Peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) are associated with superficial and deep venous thrombosis of the arm. ⋯ Repetitive PICC insertions in the same arm are associated with an increased risk of symptomatic thrombosis. Double-lumen PICCs are associated with a higher risk of thrombosis compared to single-lumen lines.
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Pediatric radiology · Jul 2018
Comparative StudyFree-breathing quantification of hepatic fat in healthy children and children with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease using a multi-echo 3-D stack-of-radial MRI technique.
In adults, noninvasive chemical shift encoded Cartesian magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and single-voxel magnetic resonance (MR) spectroscopy (SVS) accurately quantify hepatic steatosis but require breath-holding. In children, especially young and sick children, breath-holding is often limited or not feasible. Sedation can facilitate breath-holding but is highly undesirable. For these reasons, there is a need to develop free-breathing MRI technology that accurately quantifies steatosis in all children. ⋯ In this pediatric study, non-sedated free-breathing radial MRI provided accurate and repeatable hepatic PDFF measurements and improved image quality, compared to standard breath-holding MR techniques.
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Pediatric radiology · Jul 2018
Utility of CT classifications to predict unfavorable outcomes in children with acute pancreatitis.
Computed tomography (CT) is useful for the diagnosis of local complications in children with acute pancreatitis but its role as a prognostic tool remains controversial. ⋯ A CT Severity Index ≥3 in children with acute pancreatitis who require CT assessment based on clinical criteria is associated with the need for admission to the Pediatric Special Care Unit. We found that pancreatic necrosis greater than 30% is the only tomographic parameter related to severe acute pancreatitis. New studies with a greater sample size are necessary to confirm this result.
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In juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), imaging is increasingly used in clinical practice. In this paper we discuss imaging of the knee, the clinically most commonly affected joint in JIA. ⋯ The validation processes of MRI as an imaging biomarker for clinical trials in the JIA knee are at an advanced stage, with important data available on the feasibility, reliability and validity of the Juvenile Arthritis MRI Scoring system. Moreover, both US and MRI data are emerging on the normal appearance of the growing knee joint.