Objective To assess value and limitations of non-invasive methods in assessing liver fibrosis．Methods By summarized current situation and advancement of serum fibrotic markers, ultrasound, CT and MRI in assessing liver fibrosis, we investigated their value and limitations. Results In addition to diagnosis, non-invasive methods of assessing liver fibrosis assess severity of liver fibrosis. For liver fibrosis, however, non-invasive methods can not monitor effectively reaction to therapy and progression. Conclusion Non-invasive methods play important roles in diagnosis and assessing severity of liver fibrosis, and reduce the need of liver biopsy.
Objective To evaluate the role of preoperative 64 multi-detector spiral CT (MDCT) in predicting the extent of radical resection for advanced gastric cancer (AGC)． MethodsThe imaging data of 70 patients with AGC were collected and analyzed. The N2 lymph node metastasis was predicted by the MDCT indications, and compared with that postoperative pathological results. Results Sixty-two patients were treated with surgical intervention. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of N2 positive prediction by MDCT was 92.0% (46/50), 75.0% (9/12) and 88.7% (55/62), respectively. Extended resection was performed in 81.6% (40/49) patients who were predicted as N2 positive, and D2 resection was performed in 92.3% (12/13) patients who were predicted as N2 negative.Conclusion The MDCT is a valuable technique to predict N2 lymph node metastasis, and to determine the extent of resection for AGC.
Objective To evaluate the accuracy of preoperative 64 multidetector spiral computed tomography (MDCT) in the diagnosis of stage Ⅳ gastric cancer. Methods The data of patients with stage Ⅳ gastric cancer between July 2007 and April 2008 were collected. Twenty-nine patients underwent preoperative 64 MDCT were retrospectively analyzed. All computed tomography scans were prospectly analyzed by 2 abdominal radiologists separately. Pathological tumor stage was based on TNM stage according to the revised Japanese Classification of Gastric Carcinoma from the Japanese Gastric Cancer Association. All CT results were compared with clinical, surgical and histopathologic results. Results The 65.2% (15/23), 47.8% (11/23) and 70.8% (17/24) of the stage Ⅳ patients were accurately predicted of T, N and M stage, respectively. Moreover, 58.6% (17/29) of the stage Ⅳ patients were accurately predicted of TNM stage. But 6/9 cases with peritoneal metastases were not detected by preoperative 64 MDCT. Conclusion The 64 MDCT is a promising technique for detection and preoperative staging of stage Ⅳ gastric cancer. It was difficult to detect peritoneal metastases, but it may not increase the rate of exploratory laparotomy.
Objective To investigate the mult-slice spiral CT(MSCT)imaging manifestations of bowel wall thickening due to nontumorous causes,and to address the value of MSCT scanning in assessing nontumorous bowel wall thickening.MethodsThe MSCT findings of 284 patients with bowel wall thickening due to nontumorous causes confirmed by surgery,biopsy,or clinical follow-up were retrospectively analyzed.The location, range,symmetric or asymmetric,degree,attenuation,presence or absence of enhancement and associated perienteric abnormalities of thickened bowel wall were involved.ResultsAll nontumorous disease caused bowel wall thickening include liver cirrhosis(109 cases),acute pancreatitis(54 cases),bowel obstruction(36 cases),inflammatory bowel disease(14 cases),ischemic bowel disease(12 cases),radiation enterocolitis(13 cases),tuberculosis(12 cases),immune reaction(10 cases),infective enteritis(3 cases),acute appendicitis(3 cases),hypoproteinemia(5 cases),non-common disease(8 cases)and normal variants(5 cases).The attenuation pattern of the thickened bowel wall include high attenuation(1 case),iso-attenuation(144 cases),low attenuation(127 cases),fat deposition(5 cases)and pneumatosis(7 cases).The enhancement pattern of the thickened bowel wall included gentle enhancement(249 cases),notable enhancement(32 cases)and unenhancement(3 cases).Degree of bowel wall thickening included mild thinckening(279 cases)and marked thickening(5 cases).The range of bowel wall thickening was focal(8 cases),segmental(64 cases)and diffuse(212 cases).The associated perienteric abnormalities of thickened bowel wall included swelling of fat(218 cases),ascites(189 cases),lymphadenopathy(5 cases),peirenteirc abscess(2 cases),mesenteric vascular lesion(25 cases)and involvement of solid abdominal organs(169 cases). ConclusionMSCT has an invaluable role in the diagnostic evaluation of nontumorous bowel wall thickening.A wide variety of nontumorous diseases may manifest with bowel wall thickening at MSCT.Paying attention to the characteristics of thickening of bowel wall will benefit the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of various intestinal diseases.
Objective To investigate the CT manifestations of acute pancreatitis (AP) and its complications and to evaluate the imaging modalities for staging the severity of AP. Methods Literatures on CT manifestations of AP and its complications and severity staging of AP were reviewed.Results CT has shown an early overall detection rate of 90% for pancreatic necrosis with close to 100% sensitivity 4 days after episode. The CT severity index has shown a bly positive correlation with the development of local complications and mortality of AP.Conclusion Contrastenhanced CT is the imaging modality of choice to help detect pancreatic necrosis, stage the severity of the inflammatory processes, and depict local complications.
ObjectiveTo discuss the CT imaging differences between mass-forming intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) and poorly-differentiated hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). MethodThe clinical and CT data of 28 patients with mass-forming ICC (mass-forming ICC group) and 27 patients with poorly-differentiated HCC (poorly-differentiated HCC group), who were confirmed by pathological diagnosis in the West China Hospital from February 2014 to August 2014, were collected and analyzed retrospectively. ResultsThe contour, margin, enhancement patterns in the arterial phase and portal vein phase of the tumor had significant differences between the mass-forming ICC group and poorlydifferentiated HCC group (P < 0.05), in other words, the lobulated shape (15/28, 53.6%), indistinct margin (17/28, 60.7%), peripheral enhancement in the arterial phase (21/28, 75.0%) and prolonged enhancement in the portal vein phase (14/28, 50.0%) were more often seen in the mass-forming ICC group, while the poorly-differentiated HCC group were mainly the round shape (17/27, 63.0%), partially well-defined margin (18/27, 66.7%), diffuse heterogeneous enhancement in arterial phase (20/27, 74.1%) and wash out in the portal vein phase (18/27, 66.7%). The presence of bile duct dilatation in the the mass-forming ICC group was significantly higher than that in the poorly-differentiated HCC group﹝57.1% (16/28) versus 14.8% (4/27), P=0.001﹞. The size and enhancement degree of lymph node in the mass-forming ICC group were significantly bigger or higher than those in the poorly-differentiated HCC group (average lymph node size: 1.7 cm versus 1.3 cm, P=0.009; average enhancement degree of lymph node: 62.6 HU versus 51.8 HU, P=0.031). ConclusionCT features, such as tumor contour, margin, enhancement characteristics, the presence of bile duct dilatation, and the size and enhancement degree of lymph node, might help for differentiating mass-forming ICC from poorly-differentiated HCC, so that more timely selection of appropriate treatment strategies would be made.
Objective To investigate the situation and prospect of local recurrence of rectal cancer by using CT and MRI. Method Relevant references about the imaging diagnosis of local recurrence of rectal cancer， which were published domestic and abroad in recent years， were collected and reviewed. Results In the diagnosis of local recurrence of rectal cancer， the sensitivity of CT was higher than that of MRI， while the specificity and accuracy were not. Perfusion CT， dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI， and diffusion weighted imaging were valuable in diagnosing local recurrence of rectal cancer， as new diagnostic techniques. Conclusion Both CT and MRI are important and valuable methods in diagnosing for local recurrence of rectal cancer.
Objective To develop and assess the performance of a predictive model for the infiltration degree of solitary pulmonary pure ground-glass nodules (pGGN) using CT, blood cell parameters, and tumor markers. Methods The clinical data of patients with solitary pulmonary pGGN, collected from Tangshan Gongren Hospital between June 2021 and April 2024, were analyzed. They were divided into a training set and a validation set in a 7 : 3 ratio. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO)-logistic regression was used to identify risk factors for invasive adenocarcinoma and construct the model. The model's performance was assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, calibration curves, mean absolute error (MAE), mean squared error (MSE), and accuracy. Results The study included 528 patients (265 males, 263 females) with a median age of 54 years (interquartile range: 45-59 years). LASSO-logistic regression identified increased diameter, vascular convergence sign, pleural indentation sign, elevated mean CT value, and elevated carcinoembryonic antigen levels as independent risk factors for solitary pulmonary pGGN infiltration. In contrast, a rounded or similarly rounded shape and an elevated platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were independent protective factors (P<0.05). In the training set, the area under the ROC curve of model Z (comprising diameter, vascular convergence sign, pleural indentation sign, rounded or similarly rounded, mean CT value, carcinoembryonic antigen, and PLR) was 0.875, which was greater than that of model C (comprising diameter, vascular convergence sign, pleural indentation sign, rounded or similarly rounded, and mean CT value; 0.852) and model S (comprising carcinoembryonic antigen and PLR; 0.753). The MAE, MSE, and accuracy of model Z were 0.035, 0.003, and 0.808, respectively, which were lower than those of model C (0.058, 0.006, and 0.827) and higher than those of model S (0.031, 0.001, and 0.648). In the validation set, the area under the ROC curve, MAE, MSE, and accuracy of model Z were 0.829, 0.051, 0.004, and 0.755, respectively, which were higher than those of model C (0.780, 0.038, 0.002, and 0.730) and model S (0.740, 0.042, 0.002, and 0.692). Conclusion The model constructed from diameter, vascular convergence sign, pleural indentation sign, rounded or similarly rounded shapes, mean CT value, carcinoembryonic antigen, and PLR aids in assessing the infiltration degree of pulmonary pGGN, with superior performance compared to models based solely on CT or those based on tumor markers combined with blood cell parameters.
Objective To summarize recent advances on preoperative staging strategies in rectal cancer. Methods Relevant references about preoperative staging strategies were collected and reviewed. The multimodal preoperative evaluation (MPE) system recently documented was focused on. Results The comparably accurate T and M stage could be achieved preoperatively by following an appropriate available method; however, the N stage’s accuracy was still not satisfying. The MPE system， incorporating with the advantages of transrectal ultrasound， computerized tomography and serum amyloid A protein in a multi-disciplinary mode could display the most accurate preoperative staging for rectal cancer currently. Conclusion The MPE has potential prospects in preoperative staging of rectal cancer， and can provide the most accurate preoperative staging for rectal cancer at present.
ObjectiveTo investigate the efficacy of anterolateral thigh (myocutaneous) flap designed with computed tomography angiography (CTA) to reconstruct oral and maxillofacial soft tissue defects.MethodsBetween January 2011 and December 2015, 23 cases of oral and maxillofacial tumors were treated. There were 14 males and 9 females with the age range from 45 to 72 years (mean, 56.8 years). There were 12 cases of tongue carcinoma, 5 cases of buccal mucosa carcinoma, 4 cases of mouth floor carcinoma, and 2 cases of oropharynx carcinoma; all were squamous cell carcinoma. According to standard TNM staging of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), 8 cases were rated as T2N0M0, 3 cases as T2N1M0, 1 case as T2N2M0, 4 cases as T3N0M0, 2 cases as T3N1M0, 2 cases as T3N2M0, 2 cases as T4N1M0, and 1 case as T4N2M0. The course of disease was 1-6 months (mean, 2.4 months). CTA was performed before operation to locate the perforator vessel and its surface projection of emerging point and to design anterolateral thigh (myocutaneous) flap by computer. The defects of soft tissue ranged from 6 cm×4 cm to 11 cm×7 cm after resection of tumor. The flap was used to repair defects, including 14 thinned anterolateral thigh flaps, 7 anterolateral thigh myocutaneous flaps, and 2 anterolateral bilobed flaps; and the flap area ranged from 7 cm× 5 cm to 12 cm×8 cm. The donor sites were sutured directly.ResultsCTA showed that myocutaneous perforators penetrated at the fascias of the vastus lateralis muscles in 22 cases with a location rate of 95.7% (22/23). Submandibular fistula occurred in 1 case at 5 days after operation and fistula healed after changed dressings. Other wounds at recipient site and donor site healed at primary stage. Anastomose with 2 vein was performed because of poor venous return in 1 case, and the flap survived. The other flaps survived well. All the patients were followed up 6-36 months (mean, 16.4 months). At 3 months after operation, the simplified recovery standard of speech function and swallow function was established according to the University of Washington Quality of Life Scale (UW-QOL). The speech and swallow function recovered satisfactorily in 22 cases, and not very satisfactorily in 1 case of well differentiated squamous cell carcinoma of the right mouth floor (T 4N1M0). No obvious tissue atrophy was observed in 23 cases. No dysfunction was found at the donor site. There was no tumor recurrence in 21 patients; 1 patient accepted the second operation due to lymphonodi metastasis of contralateral neck at 6 months after first operation, who died after 23 months; 1 patient died of distant metastasis at 10 months after first operation.ConclusionThe anterolateral thigh (myocutaneous) flap designed with CTA could well recover the morphology and function of the recipient site.