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Fulltext Strategies for radiology departments in handling the COVID-19 pandemic

Ashari MA, Zainal IA, Zaki FM

Diagn Interv Radiol, 2020 Jul;26(4):296-300.
PMID: 32352915 DOI: 10.5152/dir.2020.20232

The world is facing an unprecedented global pandemic in the form of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) which has ravaged all aspects of life, especially health systems. Radiology services, in particular, are under threat of being overwhelmed by the sheer number of patients affected, unless drastic efforts are taken to contain and mitigate the spread of the virus. Proactive measures, therefore, must be taken to ensure the continuation of diagnostic and interventional support to clinicians, while minimizing the risk of nosocomial transmission among staff and other patients. This article aims to highlight several strategies to improve preparedness, readiness and response towards this pandemic, specific to the radiology department.
Retrospective analysis of the sonographic and computed tomographic features of gallbladder empyema

Zainal IA, Kew TY, Othman HA

Emerg Radiol, 2021 Nov 23.
PMID: 34811585 DOI: 10.1007/s10140-021-01996-1

OBJECTIVE: Early detection of complicated cholecystitis, particularly gallbladder empyema, is important. Yet only a handful of patients are correctly diagnosed prior to intervention. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the sonographic and computed tomography features associated with gallbladder empyema compared with the intraoperative findings and histopathological examination.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed ultrasound and CT images for 146 patients with clinical suspicion of cholecystitis from January 2013 until December 2018. Ultrasound criteria reviewed included calculus, wall thickening, pericholecystic fluid, gallbladder distension and presence of echogenic material within the gallbladder. For CT, criteria reviewed were wall thickening, gallbladder distension, mucosal enhancement, pericholecystic fluid and hyperdense bile with an attenuation value of more than 20 HU. Association of these findings was made with intraoperative and pathological findings of 85 patients with proven gallbladder empyema.
RESULTS: Sonographic signs that were statistically significantly associated with gallbladder empyema (p < 0.05) were thickened gallbladder wall (mean 5.4 versus 3.0 mm), distended gallbladder (mean 8.5 versus 6.4cm), pericholecystic fluid and echogenic material within the gallbladder. No significant association between gallstones and gallbladder empyema. Scores of two and more out of four significant sonographic findings were found to have an association with higher chances of developing gallbladder empyema (p < 0.05, odds ratio: 10). None of the CT features was found to be significant with gallbladder empyema (p > 0.05).
CONCLUSION: A combination of few ultrasound features has a high significant association with gallbladder empyema. Thus, in the proper clinical setting, these findings should alarm the sonographic operator on the possibility of gallbladder empyema.
Fulltext Gastrocnemius acrometastasis from muscle-invasive urothelial bladder carcinoma: A case report

Roslly MZ, Mustapha AWMM, Zainal IA

Radiol Case Rep, 2021 Aug;16(8):2099-2102.
PMID: 34158902 DOI: 10.1016/j.radcr.2021.04.069

Urinary bladder carcinoma is a common malignancy worldwide. The metastatic disease to distant organs including lung, liver, and bone is well established. However, metastasis to below-knee-level; also known as acrometastasis is a rare occurrence and occurs approximately 0.1% of all bone metastases. It is standard of care to obtain a contrast enhanced computed tomography scan of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis for pretreatment planning, primary staging, and post treatment disease surveillance. This makes the occurrence of acrometastasis harder to detect and may only manifest clinically in advance disease. We report a case of 55 years old gentleman treated as muscle-invasive bladder urothelial carcinoma, presented with chronic left knee pain, and imaging demonstrating tumor in the left knee region. Histopathologic study shows features of metastatic disease from urinary bladder carcinoma to the left gastrocnemius muscle. The attending physician should raise the suspicion of metastatic disease if the patient with known malignancy presented with new soft tissue lesion elsewhere in the body.
Role of pre-operative endovascular embolization of a giant sacrococcygeal teratoma in neonate: a case report

Zainal IA, Fuad NFN, Yang LY, Ismail NAN, Yaacob NY, Zakaria R

J Egypt Natl Canc Inst, 2024 May 13;36(1):15.
PMID: 38736004 DOI: 10.1186/s43046-024-00216-4

BACKGROUND: Giant sacrococcygeal teratomas (SCTs) are at risk of perinatal morbidity and mortality due to their high vascularity. Pre-operative embolization of the feeding arteries, prior to complete surgical resection, may assist in minimizing the intraoperative blood loss by occluding these feeding arteries.
CASE PRESENTATION: We present a case of a highly vascular giant SCT in a neonate, which was successfully embolized through an endovascular approach prior to surgery. The femoral artery approach was chosen, with access established using a Micropuncture introducer as a sheath. Embolization was performed using a combination of microcoils, Gelfoam slurry, and polyvinyl alcohol particles. The patient developed femoral artery spasm post-procedure, which resolved with the application of a glyceryl trinitrate patch.
CONCLUSIONS: Performing pre-operative endovascular embolization on a giant sacrococcygeal teratoma presents particular challenges, primarily due to the difficulty in assessing small vessels and the potential complications associated with this procedure. Nevertheless, this technique proves exceptionally valuable in helping the surgeon minimize blood loss during surgery, thereby reducing the risks of morbidity and mortality. Comprehensive planning for the embolization procedure is essential, encompassing the identification of potential vascular access points and alternatives, along with careful selection of the appropriate catheter.
Fulltext Reproducibility and Repeatability of Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography (CCTA) Image Segmentation in Detecting Atherosclerosis: A Radiomics Study

Yunus MM, Sabarudin A, Karim MKA, Nohuddin PNE, Zainal IA, Shamsul MSM, et al.

Diagnostics (Basel), 2022 Aug 19;12(8).
PMID: 36010355 DOI: 10.3390/diagnostics12082007

Atherosclerosis is known as the leading factor in heart disease with the highest mortality rate among the Malaysian population. Usually, the gold standard for diagnosing atherosclerosis is by using the coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) technique to look for plaque within the coronary artery. However, qualitative diagnosis for noncalcified atherosclerosis is vulnerable to false-positive diagnoses, as well as inconsistent reporting between observers. In this study, we assess the reproducibility and repeatability of segmenting atherosclerotic lesions manually and semiautomatically in CCTA images to identify the most appropriate CCTA image segmentation method for radiomics analysis to quantitatively extract the atherosclerotic lesion. Thirty (30) CCTA images were taken retrospectively from the radiology image database of Hospital Canselor Tuanku Muhriz (HCTM), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. We extract 11,700 radiomics features which include the first-order, second-order and shape features from 180 times of image segmentation. The interest vessels were segmentized manually and semiautomatically using LIFEx (Version 7.0.15, Institut Curie, Orsay, France) software by two independent radiology experts, focusing on three main coronary blood vessels. As a result, manual segmentation with a soft-tissuewindowing setting yielded higher repeatability as compared to semiautomatic segmentation with a significant intraclass correlation coefficient (intra-CC) 0.961 for thefirst-order and shape features; intra-CC of 0.924 for thesecond-order features with p < 0.001. Meanwhile, the semiautomatic segmentation has higher reproducibility as compared to manual segmentation with significant interclass correlation coefficient (inter-CC) of 0.920 (first-order features) and a good interclass correlation coefficient of 0.839 for the second-order features with p < 0.001. The first-order, shape order and second-order features for both manual and semiautomatic segmentation have an excellent percentage of reproducibility and repeatability (intra-CC > 0.9). In conclusion, semi-automated segmentation is recommended for inter-observer study while manual segmentation with soft tissue-windowing can be used for single observer study.
Prognostic value of pulse wave velocity for cardiovascular disease risk stratification in diabetic patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Cheong SS, Samah N, Che Roos NA, Ugusman A, Mohamad MSF, Beh BC, et al.

J Diabetes Complications, 2024 Oct 19;38(12):108894.
PMID: 39531755 DOI: 10.1016/j.jdiacomp.2024.108894

AIM: Arterial stiffness, a significant cardiovascular risk marker, is particularly important in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). Pulse wave velocity (PWV), a non-invasive measure of arterial stiffness, has emerged as an independent predictor of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. However, its precise prognostic value in DM patients for cardiovascular risk stratification remains unclear. To address this, a systematic review was conducted.
METHOD: A thorough search of Ovid and Scopus databases was performed for cohort studies on PWV measurements for cardiovascular risk stratification in DM patients. Nine studies were included, examining the relationship between PWV and cardiovascular events or composite endpoints in DM patients asymptomatic of cardiovascular diseases (CVD).
RESULTS: The review revealed that optimal PWV cutoffs to predict composite cardiovascular events ranged from 10 to 12.16 m/s (aortic PWV) and 14 to 16.72 m/s (brachial-ankle PWV). In addition, meta-analysis yielded a HR of 1.15 (95 % CI 1.07-1.24, p
The performance of ultrasound and upper gastrointestinal study in diagnosing malrotation in children, with or without volvulus

Mohamed Burhan MS, Hamid HA, Zaki FM, Ning CJ, Zainal IA, Ros IAC, et al.

Emerg Radiol, 2024 Apr;31(2):151-165.
PMID: 38289574 DOI: 10.1007/s10140-024-02201-9

BACKGROUND: Rapid diagnosis is crucial for pediatric patients with midgut volvulus and malrotation to prevent serious complications. While the upper gastrointestinal study (UGIS) is the traditional method, the use of ultrasound (US) is gaining prominence.
OBJECTIVES: To assess the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of US compared to UGIS for malrotation and midgut volvulus.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was performed on 68 pediatric patients who underwent US and/or UGIS before surgery for suspected midgut volvulus or malrotation in Kuala Lumpur (PPUKM and HTA), referencing surgical outcomes as the gold standard.
RESULTS: US demonstrated a higher specificity (100%) than UGIS (83%) for diagnosing malrotation, with a slightly lower sensitivity (97% vs. 100%). For midgut volvulus, US surpassed UGIS in sensitivity (92.9% vs. 66.7%) while maintaining comparable specificity. The SMA/SMV criteria showed better sensitivity (91.1%) than the D3 assessment (78.9%) on US, though both had high specificity.
CONCLUSION: US is equivalent to UGIS for identifying malrotation and is more sensitive for detecting midgut volvulus, supporting its use as a primary diagnostic tool. The study advocates for combined US and UGIS when either yields inconclusive results, optimizing diagnostic precision for these conditions.