We developed a visual ranking system by combining the parenchymal perfusion deficits (PPD) and hyperintense vessel signals (HVS) on arterial spin labeling (ASL) imaging. This study aimed to assess the performance of this ranking system by correlating with subtypes classified based on dynamic susceptibility contrast (DSC) imaging for evaluating the perfusion disturbance observed in patients with ischemic stroke. 32 patients with acute or subacute infarcts detected by DSC imaging were reviewed. Each patient's brain was divided into 12 areas. ASL ranks were defined by the presence (+) or absence (-) of PPD/HVS as follows; I:-/-, II:-/+, III: +/+, and IV: +/-. DSC imaging findings were categorized based on cerebral blood flow (CBF) and time to peak (TTP) as normal (normal CBF/TTP), mismatched (normal CBF/delayed TTP), and matched (decreased CBF/delayed TTP). Two reviewers rated perfusion abnormalities in the total of 384 areas. The four ASL ranks correlated well with the DSC subtypes (Spearman's r = 0.82). The performance of ASL ranking system was excellent as indicated by the area under the curve value of 0.94 using either matched or mismatched DSC subtype as the gold standard and 0.97 using only the matched DSC subtype as the gold standard. The two methods were in good-to-excellent agreement (maximum κ-values, 0.86). Inter-observer agreement was excellent (κ-value, 0.98). Although the number of patients was small and the number of dropouts was high, our proposed, ASL-based visual ranking system represented by PPD and HVS provides good, graded estimates of perfusion disturbance that agree well with those obtained by DSC perfusion imaging.
The purpose of this study was to investigate the feasibility of shear wave ultrasound elastography for differentiating superficial benign soft tissue masses through a comparison of their shear moduli.We retrospectively analyzed 48 masses from 46 patients from February 2014 to May 2016. Surgical excision, fine-needle aspiration, and clinical findings were used for the differential diagnosis. The ultrasonographic examinations were conducted by a single musculoskeletal radiologist, and the ultrasonographic findings were reviewed by two other radiologists who were blinded to the final diagnosis. Conventional ultrasonographic features and the median shear modulus were evaluated. We compared the median shear moduli of epidermoid cysts, ganglion cysts, and lipomatous tumors using the Kruskal-Wallis test. Additionally, the Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare two distinct groups.Significant differences were found in the median shear moduli of epidermoid cysts, ganglion cysts, and lipomatous tumors (23.7, 5.8, and 9.2 kPa, respectively; P=0.019). Epidermoid cysts showed a greater median shear modulus than ganglion cysts (P=0.014) and lipomatous tumors (P=0.049).Shear wave elastography may contribute to the differential diagnosis of superficial benign soft tissue masses through a direct quantitative analysis.
지면 근처에 존재하는 뭉뚝한 물체의 유동장 이해는 자동차 및 항공 업계에 매우 중요한 분야이다. 이를 위해 비압축성 평균 Navier-Stokes 방정식에 $\varepsilon{-SST}$ 난류 모델을 적용하여 정사각주와 이동 지면의 간극 유동을 해석하였다. 비정상 진동을 억제하기 위하여 사각주 하부에 수직/수평의 펜스 설치 효과를 연구하였다. 지면이 운동할 경우에는 지면의 박리 전단층의 강도가 약화되어 사각주 상/하부의 박리 전단층 상호 작용을 촉진시키므로 고정 지면에 비하여 더 낮은 간극에서도 와류 배출이 발생한다. Understanding of the flow past a bluff body close to a moving ground is very important in automobile and aeronautical fields because of aerodynamic characteristic and instability induced by unsteady vortex shedding. The passive control method that mounted the vertical and horizontal plates at the lower surface of the cylinder is studied to suppress the unsteady oscillation motion. When the grounds moves, the diminish of the shear layer on the ground promotes the interaction between the lower and the upper separated shear layers of the cylinder, hence vortex shedding occurs at the lower gap height than the stationary ground.
A 13-year-old boy, complained of an intermittent suddenly aggravated severe abdominal pain and diarrhea, was diagnosed as a small bowel volvulus without an intestinal malrotation, due to mesenteric lymphangioma. He took abdominal ultrasonography, abdominal CT scanning, upper gastrointestinal study and got an operation. The small bowel volvulus with cystic lymphangioma was confirmed by gross and pathologic findings.
Abstract Rationale: Tolosa-Hunt syndrome (THS) is rare condition characterized by painful ophthalmoplegia that usually responds well to corticosteroid. About a half of THS patients experience recurrence within intervals of months to years from initial presentation. Recurrence is more common in younger patients, and can be ipsilateral, contralateral, or bilateral. Cyclosporine, azathioprine, methotrexate, mycophenolate mofetil, infliximab, and radiotherapy can be considered as second-line treatment. However, there is insufficient evidence for treatments preventing recurrence of THS. Patient concerns: We experienced two patients with THS that recurred twice while tapering or after ceasing corticosteroid administration. Diagnosis: Both patients were diagnosed as recurrent THS. Interventions: Methotrexate was treated with a combination of corticosteroid after THS recurred twice with corticosteroid therapy alone. Outcomes: After adding methotrexate to the steroid regimen, their symptoms were successfully regulated and ceased to recur Lessons: These cases add to the evidence for the use of methotrexate as a second-line therapeutic agent for those patients with recurrent THS attacks. Further studies are in need to prove the risk and benefits of second-line treatments in THS.
The purposes of the study were to determine whether there are differences in texture analysis parameters between tonsil cancers and normal tonsils, and to correlate texture analysis with 18 F-FDG PET/CT to investigate the relationship between texture analysis and metabolic parameters. Sixty-four patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the palatine tonsil were included. A ROI was drawn, including all slices, to involve the entire tumor. The contralateral normal tonsil was used for comparison with the tumors. Texture analysis parameters, mean, standard deviation (SD), entropy, mean positive pixels, skewness, and kurtosis were obtained using commercially available software. Parameters were compared between the tumor and the normal palatine tonsils. Comparisons were also performed among early tonsil cancer, advanced tonsil cancer, and normal tonsils. An ROC curve analysis was performed to assess discrimination of tumor from normal tonsils. Correlation between texture analysis and 18 F-FDG PET/CT was performed. Compared to normal tonsils, the tumors showed a significantly lower mean, higher SD, higher entropy, lower skewness, and higher kurtosis on most filters (p<0.001). On comparisons among normal tonsils, early cancers, and advanced tonsil cancers, SD and entropy showed significantly higher values on all filters (p<0.001) between early cancers and normal tonsils. The AUC from the ROC analysis was 0.91, obtained from the entropy. A mild correlation was shown between texture parameters and metabolic parameters. The texture analysis parameters, especially entropy, showed significant differences in contrast-enhanced CT results between tumor and normal tonsils, and between early tonsil cancers and normal tonsils. Texture analysis can be useful as an adjunctive tool for the diagnosis of tonsil cancers.
Silane-functionalized graphene oxides (sGOs) were fabricated with four different self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) to reinforce an epoxy adhesive, with the aim of improving the bonding strength of carbon/epoxy composites. The oxygen-containing groups on the surface of GO were converted by the SAMs to amine, epoxy, or alkyl groups. The successful reaction between the silane molecules of the SAMs and functional groups of GO was evidenced by the results of different characterization methods such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction, and synchrotron-radiation photoemission spectroscopy. It was found that the average thickness of the sGO flakes was higher than that of GO flakes regardless of the SAM used, which also suggested the presence of silane-functionalized groups on the GO sheets. The bonding strength of a carbon fiber/epoxy composite, tested with a single lap joint bonded with an epoxy adhesive, was increased by 53% after the addition of a sGO that contained amine groups. These results show that sGOs, especially those containing amine functional groups, can strengthen the interfacial bonding between the carbon fibers and epoxy adhesive. Therefore, it is thought that sGOs could be used in adhesive bonding applications to increase the bonding strength. Acknowledgements This research was supported by the Mid-Career Research Program (2014-1051098) through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF), which is funded by the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology.