Desmoplastic infantile ganglioglioma: MRI and histological findings case report.

Desmoplastic infantile gangliogliomas (DIG) are rare intracranial tumors occurring during the 1st year of life. They arise invariably in the supratentorial region and have a great size at presentation, commonly involving more than one lobe. They are composed of a solid peripheral component of variable size, which involves the superficial cerebral cortex and the leptomeninges, and a large cystic part. Despite the great size at presentation and occasional mitotic activity in the variable undifferentiated component, this entity constitutes a distinct clinicopathological entity with benign prognosis. We hereby present the MRI and histological findings of two cases of DIG in infants aged 9 and 10 months, respectively.

Sonographic measurement of the abdominal esophagus length in infancy: a diagnostic tool for gastroesophageal reflux.

OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to provide exact sonographic measurements of the abdominal esophagus length in neonates and infants with and without gastroesophageal reflux (GER) and to investigate its diagnostic value. GER severity and hiatal hernia presence were also evaluated and correlated with esophageal length. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective case-control study comprised 258 neonates and infants (150 without reflux and 108 with reflux). There were 50 children without reflux in each of three age categories: less than 1 month, 1-6 months, and 6-12 months. Of the children with reflux, 42 were less than 1 month old; 34, 1-6 months; and 32, 6-12 months. The abdominal esophagus was measured from its entrance into the diaphragm to the base of gastric folds in fed infants. The number of refluxes during a 10-min period were recorded; GER was categorized as mild, one to three refluxes; moderate, three to six refluxes; and severe, more than six refluxes. Presence of hiatal hernia was recorded. RESULTS: Neonates and infants with reflux had a significantly shorter abdominal esophagus than subjects without reflux: the mean difference in neonates, 4.8 mm; 1-6 months, 4.5 mm; 6-12 months, 3.4 mm. Children with severe reflux had a shorter esophagus compared with those with mild and moderate reflux only in the neonate group. In contrast, children with reflux associated with hiatal hernia had a significantly shorter esophagus compared with children with mild reflux in all three age groups. Sonographic sensitivity was 94%. CONCLUSION: Sonographic measurement of the abdominal esophagus length is highly diagnostic for GER in neonates and infants. In neonates, it can also indicate GER severity. Hiatal hernia is associated with a significantly shorter abdominal esophagus.

Hemorrhage in the cavum septi pellucidi, and a brief review of the literature.

The aim of this study is to present the cases of four neonates with hemorrhage within the cavum septi pellucidi (CSP). The sonographic findings of this rare location of intracranial hemorrhage, the related pathology and the possible underlying mechanisms are discussed, with a brief review of the literature. Three out of four of the neonates were premature and the fourth was a full-term infant with Down's syndrome. In all the patients the hemorrhage in the CSP was associated with severe intracranial hemorrhage.

Evaluation of the anatomical and functional properties of deglutition with various kinetic high-speed MRI sequences.

We evaluated various fast MR sequences for obtaining anatomical and dynamic functional information during deglutition. Seven healthy volunteers underwent MRI of the oropharynx during swallowing of an oral positive-contrast agent. Single-slice imaging was performed in the median sagittal plane while subjects were in a supine position. Twenty serial images were obtained using EPI, FLASH, and turbo-FLASH sequences. The dynamic (movement-related) information and the anatomical resolution of the soft tissues were evaluated during deglutition. The FLASH sequence provided high-quality images at rest. During swallowing, however, the images were significantly degraded by movement artifacts and had inferior temporal resolution. The EPI evidenced better temporal resolution, but was degraded by strong distortions and movement artifacts. The turbo-FLASH sequence provided the best temporal resolution and sufficient spatial resolution during motion. This sequence proved optimal for the investigation of swallowing function, and is expected to be of value for the documentation of functional disturbances in patients with oropharyngeal pathology.