Applications of Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Thorax in Pleural Diseases: A State-of-the-Art Review.

The aim of this review was to present the main aspects of pleural diseases seen with conventional and advanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques. This modality is considered to be the gold standard for the evaluation of the pleural interface, characterization of complex pleural effusion, and identification of exudate and hemorrhage, as well as in the analysis of superior sulcus tumors, as it enables more accurate staging. The indication for MRI of the thorax in the identification of these conditions is increasing in comparison to computerized tomography, and it can also be used to support the diagnosis of pulmonary illnesses. This literature review describes the morphological and functional aspects of the main benign and malignant pleural diseases assessed with MRI, including mesothelioma, metastasis, lymphoma, fibroma, lipoma, endometriosis, asbestos-related pleural disease, empyema, textiloma, and splenosis.

Cocaine-induced pulmonary changes: HRCT findings.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate HRCT scans of the chest in 22 patients with cocaine-induced pulmonary disease. METHODS: We included patients between 19 and 52 years of age. The HRCT scans were evaluated by two radiologists independently, discordant results being resolved by consensus. The inclusion criterion was an HRCT scan showing abnormalities that were temporally related to cocaine use, with no other apparent causal factors. RESULTS: In 8 patients (36.4%), the clinical and tomographic findings were consistent with "crack lung", those cases being studied separately. The major HRCT findings in that subgroup of patients included ground-glass opacities, in 100% of the cases; consolidations, in 50%; and the halo sign, in 25%. In 12.5% of the cases, smooth septal thickening, paraseptal emphysema, centrilobular nodules, and the tree-in-bud pattern were identified. Among the remaining 14 patients (63.6%), barotrauma was identified in 3 cases, presenting as pneumomediastinum, pneumothorax, and hemopneumothorax, respectively. Talcosis, characterized as perihilar conglomerate masses, architectural distortion, and emphysema, was diagnosed in 3 patients. Other patterns were found less frequently: organizing pneumonia and bullous emphysema, in 2 patients each; and pulmonary infarction, septic embolism, eosinophilic pneumonia, and cardiogenic pulmonary edema, in 1 patient each. CONCLUSIONS: Pulmonary changes induced by cocaine use are varied and nonspecific. The diagnostic suspicion of cocaine-induced pulmonary disease depends, in most of the cases, on a careful drawing of correlations between clinical and radiological findings.

Cocaine-induced pulmonary changes: HRCT findings / Alterações pulmonares induzidas pelo uso de cocaína: avaliação por TCAR de tórax

AbstractObjective: To evaluate HRCT scans of the chest in 22 patients with cocaine-induced pulmonary disease.Methods: We included patients between 19 and 52 years of age. The HRCT scans were evaluated by two radiologists independently, discordant results being resolved by consensus. The inclusion criterion was an HRCT scan showing abnormalities that were temporally related to cocaine use, with no other apparent causal factors.Results:In 8 patients (36.4%), the clinical and tomographic findings were consistent with "crack lung", those cases being studied separately. The major HRCT findings in that subgroup of patients included ground-glass opacities, in 100% of the cases; consolidations, in 50%; and the halo sign, in 25%. In 12.5% of the cases, smooth septal thickening, paraseptal emphysema, centrilobular nodules, and the tree-in-bud pattern were identified. Among the remaining 14 patients (63.6%), barotrauma was identified in 3 cases, presenting as pneumomediastinum, pneumothorax, and hemopneumothorax, respectively. Talcosis, characterized as perihilar conglomerate masses, architectural distortion, and emphysema, was diagnosed in 3 patients. Other patterns were found less frequently: organizing pneumonia and bullous emphysema, in 2 patients each; and pulmonary infarction, septic embolism, eosinophilic pneumonia, and cardiogenic pulmonary edema, in 1 patient each.Conclusions: Pulmonary changes induced by cocaine use are varied and nonspecific. The diagnostic suspicion of cocaine-induced pulmonary disease depends, in most of the cases, on a careful drawing of correlations between clinical and radiological findings.

ResumoObjetivo:Avaliar achados em TCAR de tórax de 22 pacientes com doença pulmonar induzida pelo uso de cocaína.Métodos:Foram incluídos pacientes com idades variando de 19 a 52 anos. As TCAR foram avaliadas por dois radiologistas, de forma independente, e os casos discordantes foram resolvidos por consenso. O critério de inclusão foi a presença de anormalidades na TCAR temporalmente relacionadas ao uso de cocaína, sem outros fatores causais justificáveis.Resultados:Oito pacientes (36,4%) apresentavam quadro clínico-tomográfico compatível com "pulmão de crack", e esses casos foram estudados separadamente. Os achados tomográficos predominantes nesse subgrupo de pacientes foram opacidades em vidro fosco, em 100% dos casos; consolidações, em 50%; e sinal do halo, em 25%. Em 12,5% dos casos, observou-se espessamento septal liso, enfisema parasseptal, nódulos centrolobulares e padrão de árvore em brotamento. Dentre os outros 14 pacientes (63,6%), observou-se barotrauma em 3 casos, apresentando-se como pneumomediastino, pneumotórax, e hemopneumotórax, respectivamente. Talcose foi diagnosticada em 3 pacientes, caracterizada como massas conglomeradas peri-hilares, distorção arquitetural e enfisema. Outros padrões encontrados com menor frequência foram pneumonia em organização e enfisema bolhoso, observados em 2 pacientes cada; e infarto pulmonar, embolia séptica, pneumonia eosinofílica e edema pulmonar cardiogênico, em 1 paciente cada.Conclusões:As alterações pulmonares induzidas pelo uso de cocaína são múltiplas e inespecíficas, e sua suspeita diagnóstica depende, na maioria dos casos, de uma cuidadosa correlação clínico-radiológica.

Magnetic resonance imaging of the chest in the evaluation of cancer patients: state of the art.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has several advantages in the evaluation of cancer patients with thoracic lesions, including involvement of the chest wall, pleura, lungs, mediastinum, esophagus and heart. It is a quite useful tool in the diagnosis, staging, surgical planning, treatment response evaluation and follow-up of these patients. In the present review, the authors contextualize the relevance of MRI in the evaluation of thoracic lesions in cancer patients. Considering that MRI is a widely available method with high contrast and spatial resolution and without the risks associated with the use of ionizing radiation, its use combined with new techniques such as cine-MRI and functional methods such as perfusion- and diffusion-weighted imaging may be useful as an alternative tool with performance comparable or complementary to conventional radiological methods such as radiography, computed tomography and PET/CT imaging in the evaluation of patients with thoracic neoplasias.

A ressonância magnética (RM) possui diversas vantagens na avaliação de pacientes oncológicos portadores de lesões torácicas, sejam elas lesões de parede, pleurais, pulmonares, mediastinais, esofagianas, cardíacas ou linfonodais. É uma ferramenta bastante útil no manejo destes pacientes, seja no diagnóstico, no estadiamento, no planejamento cirúrgico, na avaliação de resposta ou no seguimento. No presente artigo os autores contextualizam a importância da RM na avaliação das lesões torácicas de pacientes oncológicos. Por se tratar de um equipamento disponibilizado universalmente, sem os riscos da irradiação ionizante, com elevada resolução de contraste e espacial, aliada a novas técnicas como a cine-RM, a perfusão e a difusão, a RM pode atuar como uma ferramenta alternativa, economicamente viável, e com performance comparável ou complementar aos métodos radiológicos convencionais como a radiografia simples, a tomografia computadorizada e a PET/CT na avaliação dos pacientes portadores de neoplasias torácicas.

Magnetic resonance imaging of the chest in the evaluation of cancer patients: state of the art / Ressonância magnética do tórax na avaliação dos pacientes oncológicos: estado da arte

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has several advantages in the evaluation of cancer patients with thoracic lesions, including involvement of the chest wall, pleura, lungs, mediastinum, esophagus and heart. It is a quite useful tool in the diagnosis, staging, surgical planning, treatment response evaluation and follow-up of these patients. In the present review, the authors contextualize the relevance of MRI in the evaluation of thoracic lesions in cancer patients. Considering that MRI is a widely available method with high contrast and spatial resolution and without the risks associated with the use of ionizing radiation, its use combined with new techniques such as cine-MRI and functional methods such as perfusion- and diffusion-weighted imaging may be useful as an alternative tool with performance comparable or complementary to conventional radiological methods such as radiography, computed tomography and PET/CT imaging in the evaluation of patients with thoracic neoplasias.

A ressonância magnética (RM) possui diversas vantagens na avaliação de pacientes oncológicos portadores de lesões torácicas, sejam elas lesões de parede, pleurais, pulmonares, mediastinais, esofagianas, cardíacas ou linfonodais. É uma ferramenta bastante útil no manejo destes pacientes, seja no diagnóstico, no estadiamento, no planejamento cirúrgico, na avaliação de resposta ou no seguimento. No presente artigo os autores contextualizam a importância da RM na avaliação das lesões torácicas de pacientes oncológicos. Por se tratar de um equipamento disponibilizado universalmente, sem os riscos da irradiação ionizante, com elevada resolução de contraste e espacial, aliada a novas técnicas como a cine-RM, a perfusão e a difusão, a RM pode atuar como uma ferramenta alternativa, economicamente viável, e com performance comparável ou complementar aos métodos radiológicos convencionais como a radiografia simples, a tomografia computadorizada e a PET/CT na avaliação dos pacientes portadores de neoplasias torácicas. .

High-resolution computed tomographic findings of cocaine-induced pulmonary disease: a state of the art review.

Cocaine is the most commonly used illicit drug among patients presenting at hospital emergency departments and the most frequent cause of drug-related deaths reported by medical examiners. Various respiratory problems temporally associated with cocaine use have been reported. Acute and chronic uses also are responsible for lung complications, such as pulmonary edema, alveolar hemorrhage, pulmonary hypertension, organizing pneumonia, emphysema, barotrauma, infection, cancer, eosinophilic disease, and aspiration pneumonia. Although most imaging findings are nonspecific, they may raise suspicion of a cocaine-related etiology when considered together with patients' profiles and medical histories. This literature review describes cocaine-induced diseases with pulmonary involvement, with an emphasis on high-resolution chest computed tomographic findings and patterns.

Endometriose pleural: achados na ressonância magnética / Pleural endometriosis: findings on magnetic resonance imaging

A endometriose é uma doença ginecológica benigna associada à dor pélvica e infertilidade que afeta principalmente mulheres em idade reprodutiva. A endometriose torácica afeta o parênquima pulmonar ou a pleura. Relatamos os casos de duas pacientes com endometriose pleural que apresentaram pneumotórax recorrente. Em ambos os casos, a ressonância magnética de tórax mostrou hidropneumotórax à direita e nódulos redondos, bem definidos, na superfície pleural à direita. A ressonância magnética é uma boa opção para a caracterização dos nódulos de endometriose pleural e de derrame pleural hemorrágico.

Endometriosis is a benign gynecological disorder associated with pelvic pain and infertility, primarily affecting women of reproductive age. Thoracic endometriosis affects the pulmonary parenchyma or pleura. We report the cases of two patients with pleural endometriosis who presented with recurrent pneumothorax. In both cases, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the chest showed right hydropneumothorax and well-defined, rounded nodules on the pleural surface in the right hemithorax. We conclude that MRI is a good option for the characterization of pleural endometriotic nodules and hemorrhagic pleural effusion.

Chemical-shift MRI of pulmonary hamartomas: initial experience using a modified technique to assess nodule fat.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to show the usefulness of chemical-shift MRI in the diagnosis of intranodular fat in seven patients with pulmonary hamartomas and indeterminate CT findings. CONCLUSION: In the setting of chemical-shift MRI, the average nodule signal intensity index of pulmonary hamartomas was 45.3% (SD = 25.5%). The correlation between average nodule signal intensity and CT attenuation in Hounsfield units was -0.94. Chemical-shift MRI could be an important tool for the detection of fat in pulmonary hamartomas with inconclusive CT findings.

Pleural endometriosis: findings on magnetic resonance imaging.

Endometriosis is a benign gynecological disorder associated with pelvic pain and infertility, primarily affecting women of reproductive age. Thoracic endometriosis affects the pulmonary parenchyma or pleura. We report the cases of two patients with pleural endometriosis who presented with recurrent pneumothorax. In both cases, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the chest showed right hydropneumothorax and well-defined, rounded nodules on the pleural surface in the right hemithorax. We conclude that MRI is a good option for the characterization of pleural endometriotic nodules and hemorrhagic pleural effusion.