1,720,983 research outputs found

    The Influence of Gd-EOB-DTPA on T2 Signal Behavior: An Example from Clinical Routine

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    In the literature, it has repeatedly been stated that the introduction of hepatospecific contrast agents in Magnetic Resonance Imaging prolongs the acquisition time due to the hepatobiliary phase, normally acquired 15–20 min after injection. Many efforts have been made to shorten the time-consuming protocols, and it was demonstrated that T2-Weighted Images (T2WI) and Diffusion-Weighted Images (DWI) acquired after Gd-EOB-DTPA show a comparable diagnostic capability to pre-contrast T2WI and DWI in the detection and characterization of hepatic tumors. Therefore, T2WI and DWI are usually acquired after the acquisition of vascular phases, in the dead time until the acquisition of the hepatobiliary phase. Unfortunately, contrast agents, especially Gd-EOB-DTPA, reduce the hydrogen nuclei’s relaxation time and modify signal intensity. We report a case in which, due to these limitations of the acquisition protocol, two hemangiomas showed an inhomogeneous, low signal on T2WI and DWI that was not visible in a follow-up scan a few days later. In conclusion, when liver lesions of unknown nature must be characterized, and there is a lack of previous radiological investigations, it could be useful to acquire pre-contrast T2WI and DWI to avoid diagnostic confusion, especially in non-tertiary centers

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

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    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    Variations on the Author

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    “Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship

    Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis

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    We provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis

    Contrast-enhanced ultrasonography to diagnose complicated acute cholecystitis

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    Gangrenous cholecystitis and perforation are severe complications of acute cholecystitis, which have a challenging preoperative diagnosis. Early identification allows better surgical management. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography (ceCT) is the current diagnostic gold standard. Contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) is a promising tool for the diagnosis of gallbladder perforation, but data from the literature concerning efficacy are sparse. The aim of the study was to evaluate CEUS findings in pathologically proven complicated cholecystitis (gangrenous, perforated gallbladder, pericholecystic abscess). A total of 8 patients submitted to preoperative CEUS, and with subsequent proven acute complicated cholecystitis at surgical inspection and pathological analysis, were retrospectively identified. The final diagnosis was gangrenous/phlegmonous cholecystitis (n. 2), phlegmonous/ulcerative changes plus pericholecystic abscess (n. 2), perforated plus pericholecystic abscess (n. 3), or perforated plus pericholecystic biliary collection (n. 1). Conventional US findings revealed irregularly thickened gallbladder walls in all 8 patients, with vaguely defined walls in 7 patients, four of whom also had striated wall thickening. CEUS revealed irregular enhancing gallbladder walls in all patients. A distinct wall defect was seen in six patients, confirmed as gangrenous/phlegmonous cholecystitis at pathology in all six, and in four as perforation at macroscopic surgical inspection. CEUS is a non-invasive easily repeatable technique that can be performed at the bedside, and is able to accurately diagnose complicated/perforated cholecystitis. Despite the limited sample size in the present case series, CEUS appears as a promising tool for the management of patients with the clinical possibility of having an acute complicated cholecystitis

    State-of-the-art review on the correlations between pathological and magnetic resonance features of cirrhotic nodules

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    Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has become the second greatest cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide and the newest advancements in liver imaging have improved the diagnosis of both overt malignancies and premalignant lesions, such as cirrhotic or dysplastic nodules, which is crucial to improve overall patient survival rate and to choose the best treatment options. The role of Computed Tomography (CT) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) has grown in the last 20 years. In particular, the introduction of hepatospecific contrast agents has strongly increased the definition of precursor nodules and detection of high-grade dysplastic nodules and early HCCs. Nevertheless, the diagnosis of liver tumours in cirrhotic patients sometimes remains challenging for radiologists, thus, in doubtful cases, biopsy and histological analysis become critical in clinical practice. This current review briefly summarizes the history of imaging and histology for HCC, covering the newest techniques and their limits. Then, the article discusses the links between radiological and pathological characteristics of liver lesions in cirrhotic patients, by describing the multistep process of hepatocarcinogenesis. Explaining the evolution of pathologic change from cirrhotic nodules to malignancy, the list of analyzed lesions provides regenerative nodules, low-grade and high-grade dysplastic nodules, small HCC and progressed HCC, including common subtypes (steatohepatitic HCC, scirrhous HCC, macrotrabecular massive HCC) and more rare forms (clear cell HCC, chromophobe HCC, neutrophil-rich HCC, lymphocyte-rich HCC, fibrolamellar HCC). The last chapter covers the importance of the new integrated morphological-molecular classification and its association with radiological features

    Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts

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    We conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more sophisticated methods

    Author Index

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    koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist

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    We have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
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