How to Report: Wrist MRI.

Knowledge of the imaging anatomy of the wrist is essential for reporting magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). This familiarity should include the carpal bones, tendons (extensor and flexor compartments), triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC), intrinsic and extrinsic ligaments, and nerves, especially the median and ulnar nerves. Limitations of MRI in visualizing these structures, particularly the intrinsic ligaments and the TFCC, need to be considered. This article outlines the main features to comment on when reporting common conditions of the wrist on MRI, with some examples of terminology that can be used to describe these abnormalities.

High accuracy of ultrasound in diagnosing the presence and type of groin hernia.

BACKGROUND: To evaluate the accuracy of ultrasound (US) in diagnosing the the presence and type of groin hernia. METHODS: We retrospectively studied the results of 172 US examinations of the groin in 151 patients (101 men and 50 women; mean age, 59 years) who had undergone US examination for suspected groin hernia. In total, 119 of the groin hernias had been diagnosed on US, and 108 (91%) had required subsequent surgery. All patients who had had positive results for hernia on US and did not undergo surgery (n = 11) and most of the patients whose US results had been negative for hernia (n = 48) underwent limited MRI or CT scanning. We determined the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of US in diagnosing the presence and type of groin hernia. To identify any change in the accuracy of US over time at our institution, we compared the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of its use from January 2002 through December 2010 (n = 54 groins) with those from January 2011 through December 2012 (n = 118 groins). RESULTS: The overall rates of sensitivity and specificity of US for diagnosing the presence of groin hernia were 96% and 96%. These rates reflect improvements from 92% and 88% prior to 2011 to 98% and 100% beginning in 2011. In addition, the overall accuracy of US for diagnosing the type of groin hernia was 96%. This also improved over time at our center from 91% prior to 2011 to 98% beginning in 2011. CONCLUSIONS: US is highly accurate at diagnosing the presence and type of groin hernia.

Imaging of the anterior cruciate ligament.

The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is an important structure in maintaining the normal biomechanics of the knee and is the most commonly injured knee ligament. However, the oblique course of the ACL within the intercondylar fossa limits the visualization and assessment of the pathology of the ligament. This pictorial essay provides a comprehensive and illustrative review of the anatomy and biomechanics as well as updated information on different modalities of radiological investigation of ACL, particularly magnetic resonance imaging.

Morphometry of the corpus callosum in Chinese children: relationship with gender and academic performance.

BACKGROUND: The corpus callosum has been widely studied, but no study has demonstrated whether its size and shape have any relationship with language and calculation performance. OBJECTIVE: To examine the morphometry of the corpus callosum of normal Chinese children and its relationship with gender and academic performance. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred primary school children (63 boys, 37 girls; age 6.5-10 years) were randomly selected and the standardized academic performance for each was ascertained. On the mid-sagittal section of a brain MRI, the length, height and total area of the corpus callosum and its thickness at different sites were measured. These were correlated with sex and academic performance. RESULTS: Apart from the normal average dimension of the different parts of the corpus callosum, thickness at the body-splenium junction in the average-to-good performance group was significantly greater than the below-average performance group in Chinese language (P=0.005), English language (P=0.02) and mathematics (P=0.01). The remainder of the callosal thickness showed no significant relationship with academic performance. There was no significant sex difference in the thickness of any part of the corpus callosum. CONCLUSIONS: These findings raise the suggestion that language and mathematics proficiency may be related to the morphometry of the fibre connections in the posterior parietal lobes.