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Objectives: This study aimed to develop an ultrasound‐guided high‐intensity‐focused ultrasound (USgHIFU) probe for arterial sonication and to evaluate vascular contraction. Methods: The USgHIFU probe comprised two confocal spherical transducers for sonication and a US color Doppler flow imaging probe for guidance. A vessel‐mimicking phantom was sonicated in two directions. In the vascular radial direction, an isolated rabbit aorta embedded in ex vivo pork liver was sonicated at different acoustic powers (245 and 519 W), flow rates (25, 30, and 50 mL/minute), and sonication energies (519, 980, and 1038 J). Changes in the postsonication vessels were evaluated using US imaging, microscopic observation, and histopathological analysis. Results: Beam focusing along the vascular radial direction caused significant deformation of both tube walls (n = 4), whereas focusing along the axial direction only affected the contraction of the anterior wall (n = 4). The contraction index (Dc) of the vessel sonicated at 245 W and 980 J was 56.2 ± 9.7% (n = 12) with 25 mL/minute. The Dc of the vessel sonicated at 519 W and 1038 J was 56.5 ± 7.8% (n = 17). The Dc of the vessel sonicated at 519 J total energy was 18.3 ± 5.1% (n = 12). Conclusion: The developed USgHIFU probe induced greater vascular contractions by covering a larger area of the vessel wall in the radial direction. Sonication energy affects vascular contraction through temperature elevation of the vessel wall. When the acoustic power was high, an increase in acoustic power, even with comparable sonication energy, did not result in greater vessel contraction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aim: The present study aimed to analyze the correlation between carotid atherosclerotic plaque (CAP) and/or subclavian atherosclerotic plaque (SAP) and coronary atherosclerosis disease (CASD). Methods: A total of 1343 patients hospitalized for chest pain or tightness due to coronary atherosclerotic disease and underwent initial coronary angiography (CAG) were evaluated by color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) for CAP and SAP. The patients were divided into four groups: non-CAP & non-SAP, only-SAP, only-CAP, or CAP & SAP. Finally, 1,242 patients were included in this study. Results: The incidence of CASD and main coronary artery disease in the CAP & SAP group was higher than that in the CAP-only group. Moreover, the detection rate of three-vessel disease (3-VD) in the CAP & SAP group was significantly higher than that in the CAP group (p < 0.05). The incidence of main coronary artery branch lesions in patients with CAP & SAP was approximately 1.5 times higher than in those with only CAP. Male gender, hypertension, and diabetes were independent risk factors for main coronary artery branch lesions. If the patient had CAP & SAP lesions and more than three cardiovascular disease risk factors, coronary artery main artery disease incidence was about 81.7% Conclusion: Based on the CDFI screening and combined with cardiovascular disease risk factors, the combined evaluation of CAP and SAP showed higher CASD prediction values than the CAP group alone. Early detection of coronary atherosclerotic stenosis and timely clinical intervention is expected to reduce the incidence of ischemic heart disease events caused by coronary atherosclerotic stenosis [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Research investigating the potential link between gingival microvascular blood flow and inflammatory status is scarce. This study aims to assess color doppler flow imaging (CDFI) and micro-flow imaging (MFI) as tools for the assessment of gingival papilla blood flow (GPBF) and to examine their diagnostic utility as a noninvasive means of detecting gingival bleeding. Methods: CDFI and MFI were used to assess the GPBF grade (0–4) of 140 anterior gingival papilla sites in advanced periodontitis patients. Correlations between GPBF grades and periodontal characteristics were examined, and diagnostic performance as a means of predicting bleeding on probing (BOP) was examined using receiver operating characteristic curves. Results: GPBF grades 0 and 1 assessed by the MFI were 14.29% and 15.71% respectively, lower than the 28.57% and 24.29% assessed by the CDFI. In contrast, MFI detected a higher frequency of GPBF grade 2 sites (40.71%) relative to CDFI (22.14%). The CDFI and MFI provided consistent results in 62.14% of the sites, while the MFI demonstrated higher ratings in rest 37.86% of the sites. A significant positive correlation was detected between GPBF grade and the modified gingival index (MGI), bleeding index (BI), BOP, and probing depth (PD). It showed high accuracy for CDFI or MFI to diagnosing BOP with a sensitivity of 80.51% and 96.43% and a specificity of 77.27% and 57.14%, respectively. Area under the receiver operator characteristic curve values when predicting BOP based on the GPBF grade determined using CDFI and MFI approaches 0.887 (95% CI 0.833–0.942) and 0.917 (95% CI 0.862–0.972), respectively, and there were no significant differences between these values (Z = − 1.502, p = 0.133). Conclusions: Both MFI and CDFI can be employed for the evaluation of GPBF, and MFI is better suited to detecting mild inflammation. Trial registration ChiCTR2200066021 (Date of registration: 22/11/2022). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report a case of metastatic melanoma of the gallbladder diagnosed by contrast‐enhanced ultrasound and systematically review the characteristics of transabdominal ultrasound, clinical manifestations, and treatment methods of gallbladder metastatic melanoma in order to provide reference ideas for the diagnosis and treatment of metastatic melanoma of gallbladder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background and aim The present study aimed to analyze the correlation between carotid atherosclerotic plaque (CAP) and/or subclavian atherosclerotic plaque (SAP) and coronary atherosclerosis disease (CASD). Methods A total of 1343 patients hospitalized for chest pain or tightness due to coronary atherosclerotic disease and underwent initial coronary angiography (CAG) were evaluated by color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) for CAP and SAP. The patients were divided into four groups: non-CAP & non-SAP, only-SAP, only-CAP, or CAP & SAP. Finally, 1,242 patients were included in this study. Results The incidence of CASD and main coronary artery disease in the CAP & SAP group was higher than that in the CAP-only group. Moreover, the detection rate of three-vessel disease (3-VD) in the CAP & SAP group was significantly higher than that in the CAP group (p

Abstract Background Research investigating the potential link between gingival microvascular blood flow and inflammatory status is scarce. This study aims to assess color doppler flow imaging (CDFI) and micro-flow imaging (MFI) as tools for the assessment of gingival papilla blood flow (GPBF) and to examine their diagnostic utility as a noninvasive means of detecting gingival bleeding. Methods CDFI and MFI were used to assess the GPBF grade (0–4) of 140 anterior gingival papilla sites in advanced periodontitis patients. Correlations between GPBF grades and periodontal characteristics were examined, and diagnostic performance as a means of predicting bleeding on probing (BOP) was examined using receiver operating characteristic curves. Results GPBF grades 0 and 1 assessed by the MFI were 14.29% and 15.71% respectively, lower than the 28.57% and 24.29% assessed by the CDFI. In contrast, MFI detected a higher frequency of GPBF grade 2 sites (40.71%) relative to CDFI (22.14%). The CDFI and MFI provided consistent results in 62.14% of the sites, while the MFI demonstrated higher ratings in rest 37.86% of the sites. A significant positive correlation was detected between GPBF grade and the modified gingival index (MGI), bleeding index (BI), BOP, and probing depth (PD). It showed high accuracy for CDFI or MFI to diagnosing BOP with a sensitivity of 80.51% and 96.43% and a specificity of 77.27% and 57.14%, respectively. Area under the receiver operator characteristic curve values when predicting BOP based on the GPBF grade determined using CDFI and MFI approaches 0.887 (95% CI 0.833–0.942) and 0.917 (95% CI 0.862–0.972), respectively, and there were no significant differences between these values (Z = − 1.502, p = 0.133). Conclusions Both MFI and CDFI can be employed for the evaluation of GPBF, and MFI is better suited to detecting mild inflammation. Trial registration ChiCTR2200066021 (Date of registration: 22/11/2022).

Objectives: Our study aims to investigate the impact of B‐mode ultrasound (B‐US) imaging, color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI), strain elastography (SE), and patient age on the prediction of molecular subtypes in breast lesions. Methods: Totally 2272 multimodal ultrasound imaging was collected from 198 patients. The ResNet‐18 network was employed to predict four molecular subtypes from B‐US imaging, CDFI, and SE of patients with different ages. All the images were split into training and testing datasets by the ratio of 80%:20%. The predictive performance on testing dataset was evaluated through 5 metrics including mean accuracy, precision, recall, F1‐scores, and confusion matrix. Results: Based on B‐US imaging, the test mean accuracy is 74.50%, the precision is 74.84%, the recall is 72.48%, and the F1‐scores is 0.73. By combining B‐US imaging with CDFI, the results were increased to 85.41%, 85.03%, 85.05%, and 0.84, respectively. With the integration of B‐US imaging and SE, the results were changed to 75.64%, 74.69%, 73.86%, and 0.74, respectively. Using images from patients under 40 years old, the results were 90.48%, 90.88%, 88.47%, and 0.89. When images from patients who are above 40 years old, they were changed to 81.96%, 83.12%, 80.5%, and 0.81, respectively. Conclusion: Multimodal ultrasound imaging can be used to accurately predict the molecular subtypes of breast lesions. In addition to B‐US imaging, CDFI rather than SE contribute further to improve predictive performance. The predictive performance is notably better for patients under 40 years old compared with those who are 40 years old and above. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Jing Ning,1 Fang Wang,1 Shui-Qing Liu,2 Ru-Zhi Zhang,3 Dan-Min Liu,1 Yan Li1 1Department of Dermatology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Changzhou, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Ultrasound in Medicine, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Changzhou, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Dermatology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical College, Wuhu, Anhui, 240000, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Ru-Zhi Zhang, Email zhangruzhi628@163.comBackground: Hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether (HMME) is a promising photosensitizer for photodynamic therapy (PDT) and has found wide application in the treatment of port-wine stains (PWS).Objective: This study aims to observe and analyze the clinical efficacy and safety of HMME-PDT in the treatment of PWS patients. It also aims to evaluate the usefulness of color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI), an ultrasound technique for detecting blood flow in skin lesions, in assessing clinical efficacy.Methods: Thirty-three patients with PWS underwent HMME-PDT at our dermatology outpatient clinic between January 2019 and March 2020. Data on patient demographics, lesion location, lesion type (pink, purple, nodular thickening), treatment frequency, and pre- and post-treatment images were collected and retrospectively analyzed. CDFI was performed on three patients.Results: All patients received intravenous HMME and underwent irradiation with 532 nm green LED light. Of these, 5 patients received 1 session of HMME-PDT, 14 received 2 sessions, 9 received 3 sessions and the remaining 5 patients received more than 3 sessions. Of the 33 patients, 9 were cured (27.27%), 10 showed improvement (30.30%), 11 experienced a reduction in symptoms (33.33%), and 3 showed no significant improvement (9.09%). Most patients reported local pain and oedema, and no systemic adverse effects were observed. Clinical efficacy correlated with lesion type and total number of treatment sessions. CDFI appears to be an excellent technique for assessing clinical efficacy.Conclusion: HMME-PDT is a safe and effective method for the treatment of PWS. CDFI examination appears to be a promising assessment tool. However, further validation with larger sample sizes is warranted.Keywords: port-wine stains, hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether, photodynamic therapy, color Doppler flow imaging

Background: Pilomatricoma has various manifestations on color Doppler ultrasound, and a differential diagnosis is challenging. The objective of this study was to investigate which characteristics of skin lesions on color Doppler ultrasound are effective in distinguishing pilomatricoma from epidermoid cyst and dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans. Materials and methods: Records of patients with pilomatricomas (n = 63), epidermoid cysts (n = 76), and dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans (n = 19) who underwent color Doppler ultrasound evaluation and surgical excision were reviewed. The anatomical distribution and color Doppler ultrasound characteristics of these lesions were analyzed. The 63 pilomatricomas were categorized into five types based on their color Doppler ultrasound characteristics, and the roles of these five types in the differential diagnosis of the aforementioned diseases were studied. Results: Pilomatricomas, epidermoid cysts, and dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans exhibited some similar characteristics. Dominantly markedly hyperechoic or hyperechoic appearance, posterior acoustic shadowing, and the presence of vascularity were the major characteristics of pilomatricomas. The pilomatricomas could be categorized into five types, with type II having a diagnostic performance of sensitivity of 65.08%, specificity of 98.95%, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.743, positive predictive value of 97.62%, and negative predictive value of 81.03% for the diagnosis of the aforementioned skin diseases. Conclusion: A combination of dominantly markedly hyperechoic or hyperechoic appearance, posterior acoustic shadowing, and the presence of vascularity exhibits higher diagnostic performance for the differential diagnosis of pilomatricomas, epidermoid cysts, and dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Artificial intelligence (AI)-based radiomics has attracted considerable research attention in the field of medical imaging, including ultrasound diagnosis. Ultrasound imaging has unique advantages such as high temporal resolution, low cost, and no radiation exposure. This renders it a preferred imaging modality for several clinical scenarios. This review includes a detailed introduction to imaging modalities, including Brightness-mode ultrasound, color Doppler flow imaging, ultrasound elastography, contrast-enhanced ultrasound, and multi-modal fusion analysis. It provides an overview of the current status and prospects of AI-based radiomics in ultrasound diagnosis, highlighting the application of AI-based radiomics to static ultrasound images, dynamic ultrasound videos, and multi-modal ultrasound fusion analysis.

Artificial intelligence (AI)-based radiomics has attracted considerable research attention in the field of medical imaging, including ultrasound diagnosis. Ultrasound imaging has unique advantages such as high temporal resolution, low cost, and no radiation exposure. This renders it a preferred imaging modality for several clinical scenarios. This review includes a detailed introduction to imaging modalities, including Brightness-mode ultrasound, color Doppler flow imaging, ultrasound elastography, contrast-enhanced ultrasound, and multi-modal fusion analysis. It provides an overview of the current status and prospects of AI-based radiomics in ultrasound diagnosis, highlighting the application of AI-based radiomics to static ultrasound images, dynamic ultrasound videos, and multi-modal ultrasound fusion analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate and compare the value of conventional ultrasound-based superb microvascular imaging (SMI) and color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) in the diagnosis of malignant thyroid nodule by meta-analysis. Methods: The literature included in the Cochrane Library, PubMed, and Embase were searched by using "superb microvascular imaging (SMI), color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI), ultrasound, thyroid nodules" as the keywords from inception through February 1, 2023. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, the clinical studies using SMI and CDFI to diagnose thyroid nodules were selected, and histopathology of thyroid nodules was used as reference standard. The diagnostic accuracy research quality assessment tool (QUADAS-2) was used to evaluate the quality of included literature, and the Review Manager 5.4 was used to make the quality evaluation chart. The heterogeneity test was performed on the literature that met the requirements, the combined sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, and negative likelihood ratio were pooled, and a comprehensive ROC curve analysis was performed. Meta-DiSc version 1.4, StataSE 12, and Review Manager 5.4 software were used. Results: Finally, 13 studies were included in this meta-analysis. A total of 815 thyroid malignant nodules were assessed. All thyroid nodules were histologically confirmed after SMI or CDFI. The combined sensitivity, specificity, PLR, NLR, DOR, and area under the SROC curve of SMI for the diagnosis of malignant thyroid nodules were 0.80(95%CI: 0.77-0.83), 0.79(95%CI: 0.77-0.82), 4.37(95% CI: 3.0-6.36), 0.23(95%CI: 0.15-0.35), 22.29(95%CI: 12.18-40.78), and 0.8944, respectively; the corresponding values of CDFI were 0.62(95%CI: 0.57-0.67), 0.81(95%CI: 0.78-0.85), 3.33(95%CI: 2.18-5.07), 0.41(95%CI: 0.27-0.64), 8.93 (95%CI: 3.96-20.16), and 0.8498. Deek funnel pattern showed no significant publication bias. Conclusion: The diagnostic efficiency of SMI for malignant thyroid nodules is better than CDFI, and SMI technology can provide significantly more information on vascularity, make up for the deficiency of CDFI, and has better clinical application value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To study the prenatal ultrasonographic findings of absent ductus venosus (ADV) and its relationship with pregnancy outcomes. Methods Sonograms and clinical data of 21 ADV cases who visited ultrasound diagnosis department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Fudan University from Jan 2017 to Feb 2020 were retrospectively reviewed. The cases of ADV were analyzed according to the new classification of Achiron, et al’s： Type Ⅰ was umbilical-systemic shunt (USS)； Type Ⅱ was ductus venosus-systemic shunt (DVSS)； Type Ⅲ was divided into Type Ⅲa,intrahepatic portal-systemic shunt (IHPSS) and Type Ⅲ b, extrahepatic portal systemic shunt (EHPSS). Fetomaternal clinical characteristics and outcomes (postnatal follow-ups to 42 days) were investigated by means of medical files, imaging documentation and telephone interviews (live birth, postpartum ultrasound, liver function, or routine physical examination results) with the mothers. Results A total of 21 cases were identified in 3 types：10(47.6%) with Type Ⅰ,7(33.3%) with Type Ⅱand 4(19.0%) with Type Ⅲa. There were 6 cases (60%) combined with cardiomegaly in type Ⅰ,2 cases (50%) combined with cardiomegaly in Type Ⅲ a, and there was no case combined with cardiomegaly in Type Ⅱ (P=0.012). A total of 16 cases (76.2%) were combined with intracardiac and extracardiac malformations, i. e.,9 cases (90%),4 cases (57.1%) and 3 cases (75%) in the three types, respectively (P=0.288). There were 3 cases with fetal growth restriction, accounting for 10%,28.6% and 0 in the three types, respectively (P=0.309). Pregnancy outcomes：5 cases were lost to follow-up；9 cases with severe malformations were terminated of pregnancy； the remaining 7 cases were born lively,1 case (10%),4 cases (57.1%) and 2 cases (50%) in the three types, respectively (P=0.077). Conclusion In this study, there were significant ultrasonographic findings in three types of ADV. The incidences of cardiomegaly and intracardiac and extracardiac malformations were higher in USS type cases with poor outcomes. Postnatal outcome was associated with the types of ADV,the presence and severity of cardiomegaly, and associated malformations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To evaluate the value of simultaneous display of contrast‐enhanced ultrasound and micro‐flow imaging technology (CEUS‐MFI) in intra‐tumoral vessel detection and hepatic tumor diagnosis. Methods: A total of 82 patients with 82 focal liver lesions were enrolled in this study. Each patient received ultrasound exams including color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI), micro‐flow imaging (MFI), contrast‐enhanced ultrasound (CEUS), and CEUS‐MFI with a Philips EPIQ7 ultrasound imaging system. The intra‐tumoral vessels detected by CDFI, MFI, and CEUS‐MFI were compared, respectively. The accuracy and confidence of using CEUS and CEUS‐MFI in diagnosing hepatic tumors were also compared. Results: CEUS‐MFI was capable of detecting more hepatic intra‐tumoral vessels than MFI (P =.000) and CDFI (P =.000). Compared with CEUS, CEUS‐MFI improved the diagnostic accuracy of hepatic lesions (P =.009). Particularly, among the correctly diagnosed hepatic lesions, the number of cases where radiologists diagnosed with great confidence was increased from 88.4% (61/69) with CEUS only to 92.4% (73/79) with CEUS‐MFI (P =.041). Conclusions: CEUS‐MFI is sensitive in detecting hepatic intra‐tumoral vessels and can improve the accuracy and confidence of radiologists in diagnosing hepatic lesions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the ultrasonographic features of primary hepatic undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma (UPS) to increase the rate of accurate clinical diagnosis. Methods: We analyzed all (n = 7) primary hepatic UPS cases who attended Our Hospital from 2010 to 2021 in terms of morphology, size, echogenicity, borders, blood flow signal, posterior echoes, and other ultrasonographic features. Results: All studied masses were solitary and mainly invaded one lobe of the liver. All the masses had diameters exceeding 5.0 cm and were nonencapsulated. They mostly had clear borders and regular morphologies (6 of 7 [85.7%]). Echogenicity was hypoechoic (2 of 7 [28.6%]) or heterogeneous (5 of 7 [71.4%]). Echogenicity was enhanced at the posterior aspect in all cases. None of the cases exhibited calcification, but some showed mass liquefaction (2 of 7 [28.6%]). Blood flow signal from the mass was rich (2 of 7 [28.6%]), mild (2 of 7 [28.6%]) or minimal (3 of 7 [42.9%]). One case in this study underwent CEUS. The margins and the internal septa, and mural or septal nodules of the mass showed mild hyperenhancement in the arterial phase and portal venous phase, but mild hypoenhancement in late phase. There were large nonenhancing areas in all three phases. Conclusion: When ultrasonography reveals a solitary, relatively large, regular, and nonencapsulated mass, primary hepatic UPS should be a differential diagnosis. Combining clinical findings with imaging modalities can increase the likelihood of an accurate diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ObjectiveIn this paper, we retrospectively analyzed the ultrasonographic features of paratesticular leiomyoma to help doctors correctly diagnose the disease before operation and guide surgical treatment. Methods From 2013 to 2020, 16 cases of paratesticular leiomyomas confirmed by pathology in our hospital were retrospectively analyzed. The retrospective analysis included the ultrasound and color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) of paratesticular leiomyoma which were evaluated by two experienced radiologists based on the features of ultrasound images of lesions. Results All the 16 paratesticular leiomyoma presented as hypoechoic masses with a clear boundary and round shape. The echotexture of 6 large leiomyomas showed a typical vortex appearance. In the remaining 10 small leiomyomas, thin cord-like hyper-echogenic appearance was found. Color Doppler flow imaging showed that the blood flow signal within a large leiomyoma mass (n = 1) was significantly higher than that of surrounding testis while the blood flow signals of the smaller leiomyomas (n = 5) had significantly less flow signals compared with the testis. The remaining leiomyoma masses (n = 10) had similar flow signals to the testicular blood flow. Conclusion Sonography can be used to detect testicular tumors and to differentiate extratesticular from intratesticular masses. The ultrasound features of paratesticular leiomyoma included hypo- and hyperechoic mass, a round or typical vortex shape as well as various vascularity based on the size of the tumors.

Objective: &#xD;Blood flow sensitivity is a crucial metric for appraising the effectiveness of color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI). Color Doppler velocity maps based on classic autocorrelation techniques are widely used in clinical practice. However, these techniques often produce twinkling artifacts in noisy regions due to the inherent randomness of noise phases. To mitigate artifacts and improve image quality, Power Mask (PoM) technology becomes imperative. Nevertheless, PoM technology unintentionally filters out small flow signals that have similar power and frequency characteristics to noise signals, thereby reducing the imaging system's sensitivity to flow. &#xD;Approach:&#xD;To address this issue, a novel Flow Recycling Algorithm (FRA) based on phase anomaly is introduced in this study. This algorithm, excavating small flow signals from noise, aims to enhance the small flow signals with low-velocity by the phase characteristics of the color Doppler flow information. &#xD;Main results: &#xD;Experiments in multi-organ imaging have shown that the FRA-CDFI approach is more effective in suppressing twinkling artifacts in noisy regions, preserving intricate small flow signals, and markedly improving small blood flow sensitivity. This novel approach provides adequate technical support for clinical ultrasound imaging of organs with dense small blood vessels, such as the brain, kidneys, liver, and more. &#xD;Significance: &#xD;As a novel post-processing method, FRA-CDFI holds significant potential for future deployment in clinical high-frame-rate ultrasound imaging devices., (© 2024 Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine. All rights, including for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies, are reserved.)

Introduction and Objectives: Different degrees of testicular torsion result in varying degrees of testicular damage, which influences treatment options and outcomes. Therefore, establishing a testicular torsion model with different degrees is necessary for clinical diagnosis., Materials and Methods: Rabbits were randomly divided into four groups and their spermatic cords were twisted at 0 °, 180 °, 360 °, and 720 °, respectively. Color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) were performed to evaluate the blood supply in testicles. The twisted testicles were surgically removed at six hours post-operation and were evaluated by morphological observation and Hematoxylin and Eosin staining., Results: CDFI signals were gradually decreased as the degree of testicular torsion increased, and scores of CDFI in the 360 ° and 720 ° groups were significantly decreased at postoperative six hours compared to pre-surgery. Compared to the sham, the testicle in the 180 ° group exhibited slight congestion, whereas the testicles in the 360 ° and 720 ° groups were dark red in color and had severe congestion and unrecognizable vessels. Hematoxylin and Eosin staining showed mild spermatogenic cell reduction and testicular interstitial hemorrhage in the 180 ° group. In the 360 ° and 720 ° groups, disordered seminiferous tubules, shed spermatogenic cells in tubules, inflammatory cell infiltration, and severe hemorrhage were found. In comparison with the sham, interstitial hemorrhage scores in the 360 ° and 720 ° groups were significantly higher, and scores of germinal epithelial cell thickness in the three testicular torsion groups were significantly decreased., Conclusions: Collectively, we successfully constructed a testicular torsion model with different degrees in rabbits., (Copyright © 2024 AEU. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Abstract Background To explore the value of quantitative shear wave elastography (SWE) plus the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) in the identification of solid breast masses. Methods A total of 108 patients with 120 solid breast masses admitted to our hospital from January 2019 to January 2020 were enrolled in this study. The pathological examination served as the gold standard for definitive diagnosis. Both SWE and BI-RADS grading were performed. Results Out of the 120 solid breast masses in 108 patients, 75 benign and 45 malignant masses were pathologically confirmed. The size, shape, margin, internal echo, microcalcification, lateral acoustic shadow, and posterior acoustic enhancement of benign and malignant masses were significantly different (all P 0.05). The percentage of Adler grade II-III of the benign masses was lower than that of the malignant masses (P

Jin-qiao Liu, Wen-juan Chen, Meng-jie Zhou, Wen-feng Li, Ju Tang Department of Ultrasound, Hunan Children’s Hospital, Changsha City, Hunan Province, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Wen-juan ChenDepartment of Ultrasound, Hunan Children’s Hospital, No. 86 Ziyuan Road, Changsha City, Hunan Province, 410007, People’s Republic of ChinaTel + 86-13707484196Email cwj299979@aliyun.comBackground: Ischemic-type biliary lesions (ITBL) are accepted as the most incomprehensible biliary complications after living-donor liver transplantation (LDLT). Early predicting the development of ITBL in pediatric patients permits more preventive strategies. However, few studies have focused on the early prediction of ITBL.Objective: This study aimed to establish a nomogram including ultrasound-based multimodal imaging to predict ITBL in children with biliary atresia (BA) within 2 years after receiving LDLT.Methods: The records of 94 BA children with at least one year of follow-up after LDLT were reviewed retrospectively. They were randomly divided into a training cohort for constructing a nomogram (n=64) and a validation cohort (n=30). In the training cohort, patients diagnosed as ITBL were included in the ITBL group and those without any vascular and biliary complication were included in the non-ITBL group. Multivariate Cox regression was used for the establishment of the nomogram in predicting the risk of ITBL within 2 years post-LDLT. The discrimination and calibration of the nomogram were internally and externally validated. The performances of the nomogram and the individual components were compared by the area under the curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve.Results: In the training cohort, 18 BA children were included in the ITBL group and 46 were in the non-ITBL group. Last pediatric end-stage liver disease (PELD) score, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT), resistive index (RI), and liver stiffness measurement (LSM) were the independent predictors for the development of ITBL within 2 years post-LDLT. The nomogram incorporating these independent predictors showed good discrimination and calibration by the internal and external validation. Its performance was better than any individual component in predicting the prognosis (P < 0.05).Conclusion: The established nomogram may be used to predict the risk of ITBL within 2 years post-LDLT in BA children.Keywords: ischemic-type biliary lesions, living-donor liver transplantation, pediatric patients, biliary atresia, color Doppler flow imaging, liver stiffness measurement

Purpose:Superb microvascular imaging (SMI) has led to new advances in vascular imaging applications. This study aimed to explore the blood supply and feeding arteries of carotid body tumors (CBTs) on SMI to improve the accuracy of information available to surgeons.MethodsTwenty-six CBT lesions were subjected to color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) and SMI and were later confirmed by pathology. The blood flow patterns and feeding arteries of the CBTs on CDFI and SMI were graded and compared.ResultsThe feeding arteries of two CBT lesions, which were not visible on CDFI, were identified as the internal carotid artery (ICA) on SMI. The feeding arteries of three CBTs were judged to stem from both the ICA and the external carotid artery (ECA) (MIX) based on SMI compared to the ICA or ECA on CDFI. We classified the feeding arteries of CBTs as originating from the ICA or others (including the ECA and MIX). One hundred percent (3/3) of the CBT lesions stemming from the ICA had Adler I or Adler II blood flow patterns, and 100% (23/23) of the CBT lesions stemming from other arteries had Adler II or Adler III blood flow patterns. Higher Adler categories were assigned based on SMI than CDFI (P < 0.001).ConclusionSMI may be superior to CDFI in detecting the vascularity of CBTs, and SMI revealed more potential feeding arteries of CBTs than CDFI. CBTs originating from the ICA are less vascular than those originating from the ECA.

This article explored the application of CT angiography (CTA) imaging combined with color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) in the repair of soft tissue injuries of the upper and lower extremities with external perforator flaps. Fifty-eight patients planned to undergo anterolateral thigh perforator flap (ALTPF) transplantation were selected in this hospital and divided into CTA group and CDFI group, each with 29 cases. CTA and CDFI were used for skin grafting before surgery. The flap design and the positioning of the anterior and outer perforating branches of the bone, observe the repair of the subjects. The results showed that the skin temperature of the flaps in the CTA group and the CDFI group was higher in 1 case, and the other temperatures were in the normal range. There was no risk of blood vessels and all survived; the average flow velocity and the maximum value of the descending branch of the lateral femoral circumflex artery in the CTA group and the CDFI group. There was no significant difference in flow rate (P^>0.05). Both CDFI and CTA can be applied to the anterior thigh and outer perforator flap to meet the needs of reconstructing soft tissues in the upper and lower limbs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Chinese Medical Equipment Journal is the property of Chinese Medical Equipment Journal Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Purpose: To explore the performance of ultrasound biomicroscopy (UBM) and color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) in the diagnosis of primary lacrimal canaliculitis. Methods: Subjects with relevant symptoms of canaliculitis were prospectively recruited. UBM and CDFI were performed for presumptive diagnosis. Microbiology and histopathology were performed for definitive diagnosis. Results: A total of 37 cases were recruited, including 25 cases of canaliculitis and 12 cases of non-canaliculitis. Pathogens were isolated in 13 canaliculitis cases, and the leading pathogens were Actinomyces (4 cases) and Streptococcus (4 cases). UBM and CDFI identified 24 canaliculitis cases (sensitivity = 96%) and 11 non-canaliculitis cases (specificity = 92%). The predictive factors for canaliculitis were lumen wall thickness >0.25 mm (P =.019) and intracanalicular concretions (P =.010). Other typical features were enlarged lumen (2.16 ± 0.25 mm) and hot-wheel sign-on CDFI (84%). These image findings were congruent with histopathologic changes. Conclusion: Ultrasonography is a valuable tool to assist the diagnosis of canaliculitis. (Clinical trial registration number: ChiCTR1900025411) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Imaging Science & Photochemistry is the property of Imaging Science & Photochemistry Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objective To investigate the ability of superb-microvascular imaging (SMI) to detect microvascular characteristics of focal liver lesions (FLL) and analyze the relationship between vascular index (VI) and microvascular density (MVD) and Ki-67 levels. Methods The imaging data of patients diagnosed as FLLA at Tianjin Medical University Cancer Hospital in 2018 were collected. A total of 166 FLLA patients were divided into non-hepatocellular liver cancer (non-HCC group, 96) and HCC group (70), respectively. The whole SMI The group of patients were subjected to color I examination. The patient's Adler's semi-quantitative Doppler mading (0 to 3 blood Пом imaging (CDFI) and 3 levels) and vascular morphological characteristics (a-f type) were analyzed. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the detection ability of HCC with SMI and CDFT blood flow characteristics, The Pearson correlation analysis was used to evaluate the correlation between HCC patients VI and MVD and the Spearman correlation analysis was used to evaluate the correlation between VI and Ki-67. Results In HCC group, SMI detected 50 cases of high-level blood flow (Adler's semi-quantitative grade 2 to 3) patients, higher than 22 cases of CDFI (P=0.033). In HCC group, SMI detected 52 cases of blood-rich mode (e, f type), higher than 18 cases of CDFT (P<0.001). In non-HCC group, the difference of blood flow characteristics detection between CDFI and SMI was not statistically significant. In HCC group, SMI detected 52 cases of rich blood supply patterns, which was higher than 14 cases of non-HCC group (P<0.001). The area under the curve of SMI was 0.760 (sensitivity was 74,3%, specificity was 85.4%), and the SMI rich blood supply mode had the best diagnostic effect on HCC based on the blood-rich mode as the HCC diagnostic standard. In HCC group, VI was positively correlated with MVD and Ki-67 (r=0.698 and r = 0.669 respectively, P< 0.05). Conclusions SMI has better detection ability than CDFI for HCC microvascular characteristics, HCC has more blood-rich mode than non-HCC. In HCC, VI is positively correlated with MVD and Ki-67 expression levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Imaging Science & Photochemistry is the property of Imaging Science & Photochemistry Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Hematoporphyrin Monomethyl Ether (HMME) is a promising photosensitizer for photodynamic therapy (PDT) and has been widely applied in the treatment of port-wine stains (PWS). Patients with PWS were treated with HMME-PDT, and efficacy was evaluated by comparing photographs and CDFI examination. 9 of the 33 cases were cured (27.27%), 10 indicated a good efficacy (30.30%), 11 showed alleviation (33.33%), while 3 had no obvious efficacy (9.09%). The efficacy was related to the types of lesions and the total number of therapeutic sessions. More sessions the purple type and nodular thickening type received, better clinical cosmetic results were. CDFI may be an excellent technique to evaluate efficacy. HMME-PDT serves as a safe and effective approach for improving PWS. The clinical therapeutic effect is affected by the type of lesions and the total number of therapeutic sessions. CDFI examination may be an excellent evaluation method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Purpose To investigate the capacity of Superb Microvascular Imaging (SMI) to detect microvascular details and to explore the different SMI features in various focal liver lesions (FLLs) and the correlation between SMI and microvessel density (MVD). Method: Eighty-three liver lesions were enrolled in our study, including 35 hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) and 48 non-HCCs. All patients underwent color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) and SMI examination and were categorized into subgroups according to Adler semiquantitative grading (grade 0–3) or the microvascular morphologic patterns (pattern a-f). The correlation between SMI blood flow signal percentage and MVD was assessed. Results Compared with CDFI, SMI detected more high-level blood flow signals (grade 2–3) and more hypervascular supply patterns (pattern e-f) in HCCs (p

Congenital heterotopic colon and pancreas localized to the neck has not been reported. Herein, we describe an extremely uncommon case of congenital heterotopic colon and pancreas aberrantly presented within a cyst on the neck, and the thickened wall of the cyst on ultrasound may represent an important ultrasonic feature.

Background and Objectives: Thus far, tumor control for choroidal melanoma after teletherapeutic radiation is clinically difficult. In contrast to brachytherapy, the tumor height does not necessarily have to shrink as a result of teletherapy. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate tumor vascularization determined by color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) as a possible approach for monitoring the therapy response after teletherapy of choroidal melanoma. Materials and Methods: A single-center retrospective pilot study of 24 patients was conducted, all of whom had been diagnosed with choroidal neoplasm, treated and followed up. Besides tumor vascularization, the following parameters were collected: age, gender, tumor entity, location, radiation dose, knowledge of relapse, tumor height, radiation-related complications, occurrence of metastases, visual acuity in logMAR. Results: The level of choroidal melanoma vascularization markedly decreased in all included subjects after treatment with the CyberKnife® technology. Initially, the level of vascularization was 2.1 (SD: 0.76 for n = 10); post-therapeutically, it averaged 0.14 (SD: 0.4). Regarding the tumor apex, CDFI sonography also demonstrated a significant tumor regression (mean value pre-therapeutically: 8.35 mm—SD: 3.92 for n = 10; mean value post-therapeutically: 4.86 mm—SD: 3.21). The level of choroidal melanoma vascularization declined in the patient collective treated with ruthenium-106 brachytherapy. The pre-therapeutic level of vascularization of 2 (SD: 0 for n = 2) decreased significantly to a level of 0 (mean: 0—SD: 0). The tumor height determined by CDFI did not allow any valid statement regarding local tumor control. In contrast to these findings, the patient population of the control group without any radiation therapy did not show any alterations in vascularization. Conclusions: Our data suggest that the determination of the tumor vascularization level using CDFI might be a useful and supplementary course parameter in the follow-up care of choroidal melanoma to monitor the success of treatment. This especially applies to robot-assisted radiotherapy using CyberKnife®. Further studies are necessary to validate the first results of this assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, 18 male patients with malignant breast tumors were selected as the research group, while 41 male with benign breast tumors and 50 healthy males in the same period were included as benign control group and healthy control group. Through comparative analysis, it was found that the CDFI parameters[pulse index (PI), resistance index (RI), blood flow velocity (PSV)] of the research group were higher than those of the benign control group and the healthy control group (P<0.05). The combined AUC value of PI, RI and PSV in the diagnosis of male breast malignant tumors was as high as 0.854, which was of a high application value. In the research group, there was a positive correlation between PI, RI, PSV and the level of CXC type chemokine ligand 1 (CXCL1), as well as the level of GRB related protein 2 (Gab2) and microvessel density (MVD) (P<0.05). Our research showed that CDFI had a high application value in identifying benign and malignant breast tumors in men, and it is positively correlated with the expression of CXCL1, Gab2 and MVD in patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BackgroundInadequate accuracy of ultrasound-guided core needle biopsy (US-CNB) urges further improvement for the diagnosis and management of lymphoma to meet with the practitioners’ increased reliance on this mini-invasive approach.MethodsData related to US-CNB of the deep-sited dominant lesions suspicious of lymphoma detected by computer tomography or positron-emission tomography/computer tomography for eligibility assessment of three prospective clinical trials were collected in advance. A retrospective analysis of the prospective data collection was performed, in which Viable-targeting US-CNB that Color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) and/or contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) were employed to select viable area for biopsy target compared with Routine US-CNB that routine procedure of evaluation and guidance using gray-scale ultrasound with CDFI in terms of the yield of clinically actionable diagnosis and safety, and determinants for the successful US-CNB that established an actionable diagnosis were explored. The establishment of final diagnosis was based on surgical pathology or medical response to therapy with follow-up at least 6 months.ResultsA total of 245 patients underwent Routine US-CNB (N = 120) or Viable-targeting US-CNB (N = 125), of which 91 (91/120, 75.8%) and 112 (112/125, 89.6%) were revealed with actionable diagnoses, respectively (p = 0.004, OR 0.846, 95% CI: 0.753–0.952). And 239 patients established final diagnoses. Diagnostic yields of actionable diagnosis according to the final diagnoses were 78.4% (91/116) and 91.1% (112/123) (p = 0.006, OR 0.554, 95% CI: 0.333–0.920), 82.6% (90/109) and 92.5% (111/120) for malignancy, 84.0% (84/100) and 91.8% (101/110) for lymphoma, 85.1% (80/94) and 92.3% (96/104) for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, 66.7% (4/6) and 83.3% (5/6) for Hodgkin Lymphoma in Routine and Viable-targeting CNB groups, respectively. No major complications were observed. Dominant lesions with actionable diagnosis in US-CNB were with higher FDG-avid Standardized Uptake Value. Binomial logistic regression revealed that actionable diagnosis of US-CNB was correlated with group and ancillary studies.ConclusionViable-Targeting US-CNB was superior to routine US-CNB in term of the yield of actionable diagnosis for deep-sited dominant lesions suspicious of lymphoma, which demonstrated a potential to be the initial approach in this setting.

AIM: To investigate the ocular hemodynamic effects of applying a hot compress to the eye. METHODS: The right eyes of five New Zealand white rabbits, both male and female, were hot-compressed for 18min. An independently designed novel ocular contact-type temperature measuring device was used to measure the ocular surface temperature before and after the heating. Relevant retrobulbar hemodynamic parameters such as peak systolic velocity (PSV), end diastolic velocity (EDV), and resistance index (RI) of each of the central retinal artery (CRA), long posterior ciliary artery (LPCA), and ophthalmic artery (OA), as well as the mean velocity (Vm) of the central retinal vein (CRV), were measured using a color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) technique and expressed as mean values with standard deviation (mean±SD). A statistical analysis was conducted based on a paired t-test and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. RESULTS: The employed real-time temperature measuring device was able to accurately measure ocular surface temperature during the hot-compress process. The temperature increased after the hot compress was applied. Analysis showed that the PSV and EDV values of the CRA and LPCA significantly increased after the application of the hot compress, as did the Vm of the CRV. There were no significant changes in the EDV of the OA nor the RI of each artery. CONCLUSION: This experiment, which is the first of its kind, confirms that the retrobulbar blood flow velocities can increase upon heating the ocular surface. This simple method may be useful in the future.

Copyright of Chinese Medical Equipment Journal is the property of Chinese Medical Equipment Journal Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Inadequate accuracy of ultrasound-guided core needle biopsy (US-CNB) urges further improvement for the diagnosis and management of lymphoma to meet with the practitioners' increased reliance on this mini-invasive approach. Methods: Data related to US-CNB of the deep-sited dominant lesions suspicious of lymphoma detected by computer tomography or positron-emission tomography/computer tomography for eligibility assessment of three prospective clinical trials were collected in advance. A retrospective analysis of the prospective data collection was performed, in which Viable-targeting US-CNB that Color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) and/or contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) were employed to select viable area for biopsy target compared with Routine US-CNB that routine procedure of evaluation and guidance using gray-scale ultrasound with CDFI in terms of the yield of clinically actionable diagnosis and safety, and determinants for the successful US-CNB that established an actionable diagnosis were explored. The establishment of final diagnosis was based on surgical pathology or medical response to therapy with follow-up at least 6 months. Results: A total of 245 patients underwent Routine US-CNB (N = 120) or Viable-targeting US-CNB (N = 125), of which 91 (91/120, 75.8%) and 112 (112/125, 89.6%) were revealed with actionable diagnoses, respectively (p = 0.004, OR 0.846, 95% CI: 0.753–0.952). And 239 patients established final diagnoses. Diagnostic yields of actionable diagnosis according to the final diagnoses were 78.4% (91/116) and 91.1% (112/123) (p = 0.006, OR 0.554, 95% CI: 0.333–0.920), 82.6% (90/109) and 92.5% (111/120) for malignancy, 84.0% (84/100) and 91.8% (101/110) for lymphoma, 85.1% (80/94) and 92.3% (96/104) for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, 66.7% (4/6) and 83.3% (5/6) for Hodgkin Lymphoma in Routine and Viable-targeting CNB groups, respectively. No major complications were observed. Dominant lesions with actionable diagnosis in US-CNB were with higher FDG-avid Standardized Uptake Value. Binomial logistic regression revealed that actionable diagnosis of US-CNB was correlated with group and ancillary studies. Conclusion: Viable-Targeting US-CNB was superior to routine US-CNB in term of the yield of actionable diagnosis for deep-sited dominant lesions suspicious of lymphoma, which demonstrated a potential to be the initial approach in this setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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AIM: To explored the treatment effects of retinal laser photocoagulation and the applications of color Doppler flow imaging(CDFI)in the diabetic retinopathy.METHODS: We collected 60 patients(120 eyes)with diabetic retinopathy(Ⅲ～Ⅳstage)from February 2013 to February 2014 in Anyang Eye Hospital admitted in fundus disease department. The health control(HC)group of 55 normal people was established simultaneously. Ocular blood flow velocity of the 55 normal people(110 eyes)and the 60 patients(120 eyes)was examined by CDFI of central retinal artery(CRA)and posterior ciliary artery(PCAs)using the PHILIPS HD6. Peak systolic velocity(PSV)was recorded. The examinations of CDFI, electroretinogram(ERG)and the vision were performed in pre-operation, 1,7d, 1, 3 and 6mo postoperatively. RESULTS: Compared the PSV of CRA of the DR group before and after photocoagulation to the data of the HC group, there was a significant difference(PPPPP>0.05). Compared the aA and bA of ERG of the DR group before and after photocoagulation to the data of the HC group, there was a significant difference(PPP>0.05). The vision of 49 cases(98 eyes)was improved 1 to 3 rows, the effective rate was 82%.The vision of 11 cases(22 eyes)remained constant.CONCLUSION: Retinal laser photocoagulation is an effective treatment to diabetic retinopathy patients, which can significantly reduce the peak systolic velocity of the central retinal artery, improve and stabilize the condition, protect visual function in long-term clinical effect. Color doppler flow imaging can observe the changes of ocular vessel flow velocity in diabetic' eyes noninvasively, repeatedly and in real time, providing a basis for clinical treatments.

Stylocarotid artery syndrome (SAS) is a type of Eagle syndrome, which is caused by the compression of the internal or external carotid artery (along with their perivascular sympathetic fibers) by an elongated styloid process, resulting in neurological symptoms including transient ischemic attack (TIA) and cervicofacial pain along the distribution of the artery. The authors describe the case of a 56-year-old man with a history of TIA of unknown origin, who underwent color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) that detected an elongated styloid process and transcranial Doppler (TCD) monitoring that revealed changes in intracranial blood flow when turning his head. To the best of our knowledge, this report is the first to describe the combination of CDFI and TCD to assess changes in extracranial and intracranial blood flow in patients with suspected SAS.

Background and Objectives: Thus far, tumor control for choroidal melanoma after teletherapeutic radiation is clinically difficult. In contrast to brachytherapy, the tumor height does not necessarily have to shrink as a result of teletherapy. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate tumor vascularization determined by color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) as a possible approach for monitoring the therapy response after teletherapy of choroidal melanoma. Materials and Methods: A single-center retrospective pilot study of 24 patients was conducted, all of whom had been diagnosed with choroidal neoplasm, treated and followed up. Besides tumor vascularization, the following parameters were collected: age, gender, tumor entity, location, radiation dose, knowledge of relapse, tumor height, radiation-related complications, occurrence of metastases, visual acuity in logMAR. Results: The level of choroidal melanoma vascularization markedly decreased in all included subjects after treatment with the CyberKnife® technology. Initially, the level of vascularization was 2.1 (SD: 0.76 for n = 10); post-therapeutically, it averaged 0.14 (SD: 0.4). Regarding the tumor apex, CDFI sonography also demonstrated a significant tumor regression (mean value pre-therapeutically: 8.35 mm—SD: 3.92 for n = 10; mean value post-therapeutically: 4.86 mm—SD: 3.21). The level of choroidal melanoma vascularization declined in the patient collective treated with ruthenium-106 brachytherapy. The pre-therapeutic level of vascularization of 2 (SD: 0 for n = 2) decreased significantly to a level of 0 (mean: 0—SD: 0). The tumor height determined by CDFI did not allow any valid statement regarding local tumor control. In contrast to these findings, the patient population of the control group without any radiation therapy did not show any alterations in vascularization. Conclusions: Our data suggest that the determination of the tumor vascularization level using CDFI might be a useful and supplementary course parameter in the follow-up care of choroidal melanoma to monitor the success of treatment. This especially applies to robot-assisted radiotherapy using CyberKnife®. Further studies are necessary to validate the first results of this assessment.

Objective: To elucidate classification of coiling of the umbilical cord around fetal neck (CUFN) by ultrasound and forming factors of entanglement angle of CUFN.Methods: From January 2006 to December 2012, color Doppler ultrasonic was used to observe the blood flow vector of umbilical artery, and prospective descriptive observation was made for entanglement direction and type of 707 single fetuses taking prenatal examination in our hospital during the middle and late trimester of pregnancy and having umbilical cord echo around the neck. The relationship of position of fetus, position of placenta and entanglement direction of umbilical cord with the entanglement angle of umbilical cord is analyzed.Results: Among the 707 fetuses, 634 had one circle of coiling, 43 had two circles of coiling, two had three circles of coiling, and 28 had CUFN. According to entanglement direction, 361 had entanglement from left to right and 318 had entanglement from right to left According to entanglement type, 305 were C-shaped type (43.14%), 85 were O-shaped type (12.02%), 289 were α-shaped type (40.88%), and 28 were L-shaped type (3.96%).Conclusion: Color Doppler ultrasound was used to detect the entanglement direction of umbilical cord and establish the five-type classification of umbilical cord around the neck, laying the foundation for the feasibility of establishing the normalization of diagnostic standard of umbilical cord around the neck. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PURPOSE: To evaluate micro-flow imaging (MFI) in depicting the vascular architecture of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and other focal liver lesions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 81 hepatic lesions were enrolled in this study. Each patient underwent CDFI, MFI, and CEUS examinations. The blood flow was first graded into three types (grade 1, 2 and 3) based on its richness with Adeler classification method. The differences in the grade of blood flow in liver tumors were compared between CDFI and MFI. With respect to the presented morphology, the blood flow was further classified into five types (Type I, II, III, IV and V). The morphological differences in blood flow shown by MFI between malignant and benign hepatic tumors were then analyzed. RESULTS: For the total 81 lesions, MFI detected 61 lesion cases (75.31%) with blood flow grade 2 and 3, which obviously outperformed CDFI which detected 28 cases (34.57%) of grade 2 and 3 (χ2 = 35.27, P = 0.000). The MFI also showed that the most common blood flow morphology of HCC is Type-III (21/48, 43.75%) while the hepatic hemangioma (HEM) is mostly presented as Type V (5/10, 50%). Moreover, the grade of blood flow in MFI varied with different pathological subtypes of HCC (χ2 = 5.610, P = 0.018). CONCLUSIONS: Compared with traditional CDFI, MFI reveals more blood vessels in liver lesions with clearer view of blood flow distribution. Besides, MFI technology can demonstrate grade of blood flow for various differentiation stages of malignant liver tumors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the factors influencing the late diastolic vortex in normal and abnormal ventricles. Methods: Color Doppler data in left ventricle (LV) were acquired from apical long‐axis view and analyzed using vector flow mapping in 57 patients with coronary artery disease, 57 patients with dilated cardiomyopathy, and 53 healthy volunteers. Results: In normals, corrected area and flux of the end‐diastolic vortex were positively correlated with transmitral A velocity and heart rate. Subjects with E/A <1 had higher vortex flux than those with E/A >1. Heart rate was the only independent predictor of corrected vortex area (R2 = .170, P = .004), and transmitral A velocity and heart rate were the independent predictors of corrected vortex flux (R2 = .490, P < .001). Patients with various mitral filling patterns showed significant differences in vortex area and flux. The vortex area and flux were positively correlated with transmitral i velocity and a′. Transmitral A velocity was the only independent predictor of corrected vortex area (R2 = .180, P < .001), while transmitral A velocity, heart rate, LV end‐systolic short diameter, and end‐diastolic long diameter were the independent determinants of corrected vortex flux (R2 = .593, P < .001). Conclusions: The end‐diastolic vortex is formed and mainly affected by the late LV filling. The compensatory atrial contraction may enhance the end‐diastolic vortex that facilitates coupling between diastole and systole. LV size can influence the end‐diastolic vortex in patients with LV dysfunction and enlargement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To explore the clinical value of color Doppler ultrasonography in screening neonatal hypothyroidism （CH） . Methods 500 neonates born in our hospital from 2016 to 2018 were randomly selected. The size, shape and internal echo of thyroid gland were observed. The elastic velocity of each diameter and shear wave were measured. The blood flow in gland was observed by color Doppler flow imaging. The results were compared with FT3， FT4 and TSH. Results 198 cases of CH were diagnosed， accounting for 39.6%. Among them， goiter accounted for 50.5%. Ultrasonography was basically normal in 24.2%. Thyroid nodules or cysts accounted for 10.6%. Thyroid dysplasia accounted for 5.6%. Ectopic thyroid accounted for 5.0%. Congenital absence of thyroid accounted for 4.0%. Color Doppler flow imaging（CDFI） showed rich blood flow or "sea of fire" sign, accounting for 47.8%. Thyroid diameter and blood flow richness in CH group were significantly higher than those in normal newborns； There was no significant difference in thyroid elasticity between CH and normal newborns （ P＞0.05） . Conclusion Color Doppler ultrasonography can diagnose thyroid dysplasia， ectopic or absent thyroid at an early date， and provide reference for clinical treatment. It has the advantages of simplicity， rapidity， economy，non-trauma， non-radiation，real-time dynamic and good repeatability. It is the preferred method for CH examination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of China Medical University is the property of Journal of China Medical University Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Aims: The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical features and ultrasonographic findings of uterine carcinosarcoma (UCS).Methods: Seventy-five patients (mean age, 58.6 years) with pathologically proven UCS who were treated at our hospital from January 2003 to December 2015 were retrospectively recruited. The clinical features and preoperative findings on transvaginal sonography (TVS) were investigated.Results: Eighty percent of the patients were postmenopausal. The primary symptoms were postmenopausal abnormal uterine bleeding (57.3%), irregular menstruation (18.7%), vaginal discharge (10.7%) and the presence of a uterine mass or others (13.3%). The tumor marker CA125 was evaluated in 43 women and was found to be elevated in 15 (34.9%); in 60% of those women (9/15), the CA125 level was lower than 200U/ml. According to the frequency of the different types of lesions observed by ultrasonic imaging, we decided to categorize the lesions into 3 different groups as follows: Group I, intrauterine tumors (73.33%); group II, intra-myometrial tumors (13.33%); and group III, intra-endometrial tumors (13.33 %).Conclusion: Combined with the clinical features, the characteristics demonstrated by TVS provide evidence for an indication of the presence of UCS and could contribute to clinical decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Conventional imaging techniques are not sensitive enough to reveal detailed structures of lacrimal drainage system (LDS) and its surrounding tissue (ST). Our study aimed to explore utility of ultrasound biomicroscopy (UBM) in assessment of small masses at the medial canthal region and compare performance of UBM with conventional imaging techniques. Methods: We prospectively recruited cases with small mass (long axis < 1 cm) at the medial canthal region (upper LDS-located area) from June 2017 to October 2018. UBM ± color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) and conventional imaging techniques (computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and dacryocystography) were conducted by four independent practitioners. Results were analyzed against gold standards with Cohen's kappa test in three aspects including LDS patency, mass location, and presumptive diagnosis. Corresponding gold standards were syringe and dacryocystography, intraoperative findings, and pathological/empirical diagnosis. Results: Seventy-two cases were recruited, including 20 cases of LDS lesions and 52 cases of ST lesions. Female (odds ratio 7.14) and age ≥ 37 (odds ratio 9.80) were risk factors for LDS lesion, and age range of 15–25 (odds ratio 9.17) was a risk factor for inflammatory ST lesion. In terms of LDS patency, UBM results were reliable for the detection of pre-saccal obstruction (kappa = 0.920), but were not reliable for intra-saccal and post-saccal obstruction (kappa = 0.106). In terms of mass location, the UBM (kappa = 0.766) performed better than conventional techniques (except for dacryocystography) to sort out ST lesions, with sensitivity of 93.8% and specificity of 83.3%. In terms of diagnosis, the UBM (kappa = 0.882) outweighed conventional techniques (except for magnetic resonance imaging) to distinguish cysts from nodules, with sensitivity of 93.8% and specificity of 94.4%. Notably, the UBM + CDFI achieved better performance than the UBM when screen out inflammatory lesions (kappa = 0.926 vs kappa = 0.689) and LDS-adjacent lesions (kappa = 0.815 vs kappa = 0.673), resulting in sensitivity of 91.7% and specificity of 100% for both testing items. If deep lesions (at the lacrimal sac–harbored area) were excluded, UBM reliability to detect inflammatory lesions (kappa = 0.915) and LDS-adjacent lesions (kappa = 0.770) improved, achieving sensitivity of 90.0% and 88.9%, and specificity of 100.0% and 92.7%, respectively. Conclusions: The UBM is a valuable tool to assess superficial masses at the medial canthal region regarding pre-saccal obstruction, mass location, and presumptive diagnosis. Trial registration: This work was registered on Chinese Clinical Trial Registry website with registration number ChiCTR1800018956. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]