Magnetic resonance imaging of dilated cardiomyopathy: prognostic benefit of identifying late gadolinium enhancement in Asian patients

INTRODUCTION@#Risk stratification in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is imprecise, relying largely on echocardiographic left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and severity of heart failure symptoms. Adverse cardiovascular events are increased by the presence of myocardial scarring. Late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) on cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging is the gold standard for identifying myocardial scars. We examined the association between LGE on CMR imaging and adverse clinical outcomes during long-term follow-up of Asian patients with DCM.@*METHODS@#Consecutive patients with DCM undergoing CMR imaging at a single Asian academic medical centre between 2005 and 2015 were recruited. Clinical outcomes were tracked using comprehensive electronic medical records and mortality was determined by cross-linkages with national registries. Presence and distribution of LGE on CMR imaging were determined by investigators blinded to patient outcomes. Primary endpoint was a composite of heart failure hospitalisations, appropriate implantable cardioverter-defibrillator shocks and cardiovascular mortality.@*RESULTS@#Of 86 patients, 64.0% had LGE (80.2% male; mean LVEF 30.1% ± 12.7%). Mid-wall fibrosis (71.7%) was the most common pattern of LGE distribution. Over a mean follow-up period of 4.9 ± 3.2 years, 19 (34.5%) patients with LGE reached the composite endpoint compared to 4 (12.9%) patients without LGE (p = 0.01). Presence of LGE, but not echocardiographic LVEF, independently predicted the primary endpoint (hazard ratio 4.15 [95% confidence interval 1.28-13.50]; p = 0.02).@*CONCLUSION@#LGE presence independently predicted adverse clinical events in Asian patients with DCM. Routine use of CMR imaging to characterise the myocardial substrate is recommended for enhanced risk stratification and should strongly influence clinical management.

Intra-articular and Peri-articular Tumours and Tumour Mimics- What a Clinician and Onco-imaging Radiologist Should Know

Definitive determination of the cause of articular swelling may be difficult based on just the clinical symptoms, physical examinations and laboratory tests. Joint disorders fall under the realms of rheumatology and general orthopaedics; however, patients with joint conditions manifesting primarily as intra-articular and peri-articular soft tissue swelling may at times be referred to an orthopaedic oncology department with suspicion of a tumour. In such a situation, an onco-radiologist needs to think beyond the usual neoplastic lesions and consider the diagnoses of various non-neoplastic arthritic conditions that may be clinically masquerading as masses. Differential diagnoses of articular lesions include infectious and non-infectious synovial proliferative processes, degenerative lesions, deposition diseases, vascular malformations, benign and malignant neoplasms and additional miscellaneous conditions. Many of these diseases have specific imaging findings. Knowledge of these radiological characteristics in an appropriate clinical context will allow for a more confident diagnosis.