Can Radiological Visceral Adiposity Analysis in Acute Pancreatitis Aid in Identifying Underlying Etiology? Assessing the Clinical Potential of Quantitative Radiological Analyses of Visceral Adiposity

Purpose: This study aims to investigate the relationship between visceral adiposity and the possible etiologies of acute pancreatitis. Obesity creates low-grade inflammation and evidence supports an association between obesity and inflammatory conditions such as pancreatitis. CT imaging is utilized in assessing pancreatitis severity and complications but also offers the chance to quantitatively measure visceral fat area (VFA) and subcutaneous fat area (SFA). Given the metabolic role that fat plays, we hypothesized that different body fat distributions, as measured by these areas, may be associated with different etiologies. Further, this also allows us to explore a relationship between severity, etiology, and the fat distributions in patients with acute pancreatitis.  Method: Retrospective observational cohort study of all patients admitted to a single center. The VFA, SFA, their ratio (VFA/SFA) and total fat area (TFA) were calculated using a semi-automatic algorithm.  Results: 518 patients were admitted with acute pancreatitis over a three-year period. 177 patients underwent CT imaging. Gallstone pancreatitis patients had higher VFA and TFA measurements while alcoholic pancreatitis patients had lower measurements. Patients with pancreatitis with no clear cause had the lowest VFA/SFA ratio. Increasing VFA was associated with increasing severity in a univariate logistic regression model (p = 0.01) but this association diminished in a multivariate model accounting for etiology (p = 0.09). Conclusion: The pattern of fat distribution differs amongst the etiologies of acute pancreatitis, as this likely reflects multiple contributing pathogenic mechanisms. Patients with gallstone pancreatitis had disproportionately more visceral fat, alcohol had the least overall fat, and those without a clear cause had the lowest VFA/SFA ratio. Etiology is strongly associated with body fat distribution. Severity is associated with increased visceral fat, but much less so when etiology is controlled for. The radiological assessment of fat distribution thus can give clues to associated etiology

Szimulációk futtatása proton tomográfiához

INST: L_200A proton (nehézion) terápia sokkal pontosabb és gyorsabb kezelés a ma általánosan alkalmazott besugárzásos terápiához képest. Azonban alkalmazását behatárolja, hogy a CT-vel készített felvételek nem adnak megfelelő helyzetmeghatározást a protonnyaláb pontos beállításához. Az openGate kollaboráció által fejlesztett GATE programot használtam, hogy bemutassam a szimulált detektorrendszer műkődésének alapjául szolgáló proton tomográfiás eljárás néhány tulajdonságát

Venous thrombotic, thromboembolic, and mechanical complications after retrievable inferior vena cava filters for major trauma

Background The ideal thromboprophylaxis in patients at risk of bleeding is uncertain. This retrospective cohort study assessed the risk factors for complications after using retrievable inferior vena cava (IVC) filters for primary or secondary thromboembolism prophylaxis in patients after major trauma. Methods Using data from radiology, trauma and death registries, the incidence of and risk factors for subsequent deep venous thrombosis (DVT), venous thromboembolism (VTE), and mechanical complications related to retrievable IVC filters in patients, admitted between 2007 and 2012, were assessed in a single trauma centre. Results Of the 2940 major trauma patients admitted during the study period, a retrievable IVC filter was used in 223 patients (7.6%). Thirty-six patients (16%) developed DVT or VTE subsequent to placement of IVC filters (median 20 days, interquartile range 9-33), including 27 with lower limb (DVT), 8 upper limb DVT, and 4 pulmonary embolism. A high Injury Severity Score, tibial/fibular fractures, and a delay in initiating pharmacological thromboprophylaxis after insertion of the filters (14 vs 7 days, P=0.001) were significant risk factors. Thirty patients were lost to follow-up (13%) and their filters were not retrieved. Mechanical complications - including filters adherent to the wall of IVC (4.9%), IVC thrombus (4.0%), and displaced or tilted filters (2.2%) - were common when the filters were left in situ for >50 days. Conclusions A delay in initiating pharmacological thromboprophylaxis or filter removal were associated with an increased risk of subsequent DVT, VTE, and mechanical complications of retrievable IVC filters in patients after major trauma

CT grading scales for splenic injury: Why can\u27t we agree?

Introduction: Computed tomography (CT) has been proven to be able to accurately diagnose splenic injury. Many have published CT splenic injury grading scales to quantify the extent of injury. However, these scales have failed at predicting clinical outcomes and therefore cannot be used to accurately predict the need for intervention. We hypothesised that low interrater reliability is the reason why these scales have failed at predicting clinical outcomes. Methods and Materials: This is a retrospective study of patients who were admitted to the Royal Perth Hospital with blunt splenic injury as coded in the trauma registry. The abdominal CT images of these patients were reviewed by three consultant radiologists and were graded using the six different splenic injury grading scales. We assessed interrater reliability between each of the scales using generalised kappa and proportion of agreement calculations. Results: The images of 64 patients were reviewed. The interrater reliability yielded a generalised kappa score of 0.32–0.60 and proportion of agreement ranging from 34.4% to 65.5%. Conclusion: The six studied CT splenic injury grading scales did not have a high enough interrater reliability to be adequate for clinical use. The poor interrater reliability is likely to contribute to the failure of the scales at predicting clinical outcomes. Further research to improve the interrater reliability is recommended