Evaluation of Vascular Malformations on SWI in Patients Presented with Acute Stroke in 3T MRI

Background: Susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) had high spatial resolution 3D gradient-echo MRI sequence with phase post-processing that accentuates the paramagnetic properties of blood products.Aim: Significance of SWI sequence in detecting occult vascular lesions in patients with acute stroke.Method: A prospective study of 75 patients done in the department of Radio-diagnosis at tertiary care centre. Patients who were having symptoms of stroke and suspected vascular malformations of the brain were advised MRI Brain. Stroke Profile with SWAN, FLAIR, DWI & ADC done on 3T MR machine. SWI images were retrospectively examined by 2 independent radiologists. Their findings were then compared to study the efficacy of SWI in better detection and characterization of lesions.Results: Of 75 cases, 61 had microbleeds, 9 patients had cavernomas, venous angiomas in 4 patients and Arterio-venous malformation in one patient. SWI was highly sensitive and specific towards the detection of vascular malformations of the brain. Conclusion: SWI images are fast sequences requiring not more than a total scan time of about 3 minutes. Inclusion of this sequence as a part of brain pathology can play an important role in diagnosing different brain lesions without missing hemorrhagic lesions thus avoiding inappropriate therapeutics

Anatomical variations of posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA) on digital subtraction angiography (DSA)

Introduction: The posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA) often exhibits anatomical variations at the craniovertebral junction. Few studies investigated variations of the posterior inferior cerebellar artery, and the prevalence of other variations has not been reported. The study aimed to identify variations of the posterior inferior cerebral artery using cerebral Digital Subtraction Angiography (DSA). Method: 50 patients underwent 64-slice cerebral Digital Subtraction Angiography. Four types of variations were observed. Results: Out of a total of 50 patients, 23 (46%) were males and 27 (54%) females (all age groups). Our study has shown the utility of the 2 sequences - fluoroscopy and cine. All 2 sequences have their significance in evaluating anatomical variations in PICA. Only 20% of the 50 patients had all the posterior inferior cerebellar artery without anatomical variations. Anatomic variations commonly involve the distal segment of the vertebral artery (VA). Most of them are seen arising from the C1, C2, and both C1 and C2 origins. Anatomic variations involve arising from the C1 origin in 9 patients, C2 origin in 11 patients, C1 & C2 origin in 8 patients, and other variations observed in 12 patients. Conclusion: Variations of the posterior inferior cerebellar artery can be easily evaluated by cerebral Digital Subtraction Angiography (CDSA). Recognizing and reporting them at cerebral CDSA may be clinically important. Surgeons should be mindful of this variation during operations

Extrusion-based additive manufacturing with cement-based materials – Production steps, processes, and their underlying physics: A review

This article offers a comprehensive overview of the underlying physics relevant to an understanding of materials processing during the various production steps in extrusion-based 3D concrete printing (3DCP). Understanding the physics governing the processes is an important step towards the purposeful design and optimization of 3DCP systems as well as their efficient and robust process control. For some processes, analytical formulas based on the relevant physics have already enabled reasonable predictions with respect to material flow behavior and buildability, especially in the case of relatively simple geometries. The existing research in the field was systematically compiled by the authors in the framework of the activities of the RILEM Technical Committee 276 “Digital fabrication with cement-based materials”. However, further research is needed to develop reliable tools for the quantitative analysis of the entire process chain. To achieve this, experimental efforts for the characterization of material properties need to go hand in hand with comprehensive numerical simulation

Daylight photodynamic therapy with 5-aminolevulinic acid 5% gel for the treatment of mild-to-moderate inflammatory acne

Acne vulgaris is a chronic inflammatory disease that frequently occurs in adolescence. This common condition is often treated with topical or systemic therapies according to severity. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) with topical delta-aminolevulinic acid is a novel drugsparing, but time-consuming approach. Recently, sunlight exposure has been considered a quicker, safer, cheaper and more agreeable alternative light source for PDT, but efficacy has only been proven in the oncological field. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of daylight PDT (DL-PDT) for the treatment of inflammatory acne vulgaris of face, chest and trunk lesions