Biocompatibility of a new generation of covered metallic biliary stents in a treatment of malignant causes irreversibile cholestasis

Introduction: Overview of periprocedural and postprocedural (early and late) complication giving us access to determine the biological effects of treatment with covered versus uncovered metal stents in patients with irreversible jaundice malignant etiology. The Aim: The aim of study was to compare the clinical therapeutical effects of covered billiary stents versus uncovered billiary stents. Subjects and methods: We treated two groups of patients with irreversible cholestasis malignant etiology. In the first group of patients were used metal covering stents (MCS), while in the other group used metal uncovered stents (MNS). Results: We observed periprocedural complications, technical complications, and the early- to 30-day and late-to 6 months post-procedural complications such as parameters of biocompatibility of inserted endoprosthesis, i.e. biological effects on surrounding tissues. We found statistically high difference in the occurrence of bleeding and periprocedural complications in total of MNS group. In the category of early postprocedural complications, we found a statistically significant difference in the MNS groups for a hemobilia, post-stent cholangitis, stent occlusion, irritative symptoms and appetite loss, and also in the overall appearance of early postprocedural complications in MNS. In the category of late postprocedural complications statistically significant difference we found in the MNS reobstructive cholangitis, reobstruktive jaundice, irritative symptoms, loss of appetite and in full. The cause of stent dysfunction-obliteration, biliary encrustation, ingrowth, overgrowth and mucosal hyperplasia, tells us in favor of the biological effects of the insertion, point applied prosthesis and the final therapeutic effect achieved by them. Conclusions: According to our results, taking into account the parameters of biocompatibility under applicable definitions, authors can conclude that covered stents in contrast to the uncovered are meeting the criteria of almost ideal biological prostheses

Follow-Up Imaging of Inflammatory Myofibroblastic Tumor of the Uterus and Its Spontaneous Regression

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT) is an aggressive benign mass that may arise from various tissues and organs with a great variability of histological and clinical appearances. Due to variable and nonspecific imaging findings, diagnosis of IMT is not obtained before surgery. The aim of this paper is to present CT and MRI findings during four-year follow-up of complete, spontaneous regression of IMT of the uterus. The diagnosis was made by histology and immunohistochemistry analysis of the open excisional biopsy specimen. At that time, the organ of origin was not specified. After analysis of the follow-up imaging findings and the mode of tumor regression, the uterus was proclaimed as the probable site of origin. IMT of the uterus is extremely rare and has been reported in ten cases up to now. The gradual, complete regression of uterine IMT documented by CT and MRI may contribute to understanding of its nature

Feasibility of using cross-sectional area of masticatory muscles to predict sarcopenia in healthy aging subjects

Abstract Determination of sarcopenia is crucial in identifying patients at high risk of adverse health outcomes. Recent studies reported a significant decline in masticatory muscle (MM) function in patients with sarcopenia. This study aimed to analyze the cross-sectional area (CSA) of MMs on computed tomography (CT) images and to explore their potential to predict sarcopenia. The study included 149 adult subjects retrospectively (59 males, 90 females, mean age 57.4 ± 14.8 years) who underwent head and neck CT examination for diagnostic purposes. Sarcopenia was diagnosed on CT by measuring CSA of neck muscles at the C3 vertebral level and estimating skeletal muscle index. CSA of MMs (temporal, masseter, medial pterygoid, and lateral pterygoid) were measured bilaterally on reference CT slices. Sarcopenia was diagnosed in 67 (45%) patients. Univariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated a significant association between CSA of all MMs and sarcopenia. In the multivariate logistic regression model, only masseter CSA, lateral pterygoid CSA, age, and gender were marked as predictors of sarcopenia. These parameters were combined in a regression equation, which showed excellent sensitivity and specificity in predicting sarcopenia. The masseter and lateral pterygoid CSA can be used to predict sarcopenia in healthy aging subjects with a high accuracy

Demographic and imaging features of oral squamous cell cancer in Serbia: a retrospective cross-sectional study

Abstract Background The mortality of oral squamous cell cancer (OSCC) in Serbia increased in the last decade. Recent studies on the Serbian population focused mainly on the epidemiological aspect of OSCC. This study aimed to investigate the demographic and imaging features of OSCC in the Serbian population at the time of diagnosis. Methods We retrospectively analyzed computed tomography (CT) images of 276 patients with OSCC diagnosed between 2017 and 2022. Age, gender, tumor site, tumor volume (CT-TV, in cm3), depth of invasion (CT-DOI, in mm), and bone invasion (CT-BI, in %) were evaluated. TNM status and tumor stage were also analyzed. All parameters were analyzed with appropriate statistical tests. Results The mean age was 62.32 ± 11.39 and 63.25 ± 11.71 for males and females, respectively. Male to female ratio was 1.63:1. The tongue (36.2%), mouth floor (21.0%), and alveolar ridge (19.9%) were the most frequent sites of OSCC. There was a significant gender-related difference in OSCC distribution between oral cavity subsites (Z=-4.225; p < 0.001). Mean values of CT-TV in males (13.8 ± 21.5) and females (5.4 ± 6.8) were significantly different (t = 4.620; p < 0.001). CT-DOI also differed significantly (t = 4.621; p < 0.001) between males (14.4 ± 7.4) and females (10.7 ± 4.4). CT-BI was detected in 30.1%, the most common in the alveolar ridge OSCC. T2 tumor status (31.4%) and stage IVA (28.3%) were the most dominant at the time of diagnosis. Metastatic lymph nodes were detected in 41.1%. Conclusion Our findings revealed significant gender-related differences in OSCC imaging features. The predominance of moderate and advanced tumor stages indicates a long time interval to the OSCC diagnosis