MR arthrography: correlation between anatomic intraarticular variants of the long head of the biceps tendon (long head biceps tendon) and superior labral anterior to posterior (SLAP) lesions.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this work is to characterize the anatomy of the intraarticular portion of the long head of the biceps tendon (long head biceps tendon) using magnetic resonance (MR) arthrography by investigating whether anatomical variants may facilitate the onset of a supraequatorial lesion (superior labral anterior to posterior, SLAP). MATERIALS AND METHODS: In 482 shoulder MR arthrographies, we considered the anatomical variants of the intraarticular portion of the long head of the biceps tendon classified according to Dierickx's arthroscopic classification; lesions of supraequatorial structures were considered in the data analysis. For each anatomical variant, correlation with SLAP and the odd ratio were statistically evaluated, using Fisher's exact (or chi-squared) test and logistic regression analysis, respectively. RESULTS: In the mesotenon-type variant, the SLAP frequency was higher than expected [χ2 (df = 4) = 14.9, p = 0.005] with a higher risk of developing a type I SLAP (p = 0.0003). In the adherent-type variant, the type II SLAP frequency was higher than expected [χ2 (df = 3) = 18.1, p = 0.0004] with a higher risk of developing type II SLAP (p = 0.0001). Two cases of "split" (SPL) long head biceps tendon had III and type IV SLAP, respectively. These patients have a higher risk for type IV SLAP [odds ratio (OR) 19.562, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.604-238.541, p = 0.001]. An increased risk of developing SLAP type II was calculated for male subjects (OR 3.479, 95% CI 1.013-11.951, p = 0.019). CONCLUSIONS: It is possible that adherence of the long head biceps tendon to the supraspinatus more often predisposes to a lesion of the superior glenoid labrum (SLAP), in view of the close relationships between the fibrocartilage and the bicipital anchor, probably related to the limited excursion of the intraarticular long head biceps tendon.

Intra-articular long head of the biceps tendon: magnetic resonance-arthrography classification and review of literature.

PURPOSE: Anatomical variants of the long head of the biceps (LHB) and diseases of the rotator interval structures may contribute to shoulder instability. The rotator interval and the LHB tendon are closely associated anatomic structures that confer stability to the shoulder. Anatomical variants around the origins of the long head of the biceps (LHB) are reported to occur with a frequency of 1.9-7.4%. In the past years, many authors have proposed different approaches for the identification and characterization of LHB and rotators interval. Magnetic resonance (MR) arthrography is considered the reference standard in imaging to diagnose superior shoulder diseases. However, few authors have analysed the anatomical variants and the relation between those and shoulder instability. This study aimed to identify the frequency of variants observed during arthroscopic shoulder surgeries, and to classify them based on the Dierickx classification system. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In 326 MR arthrograms we investigated the incidence of LHB anatomical variations and their association with shoulder diseases. RESULTS: We found 252/326 (77.3%) cases of LHB free, 40/326(12.26%) cases of LHB adherent, 31/326(9.50%) cases of mesotenon, and 3/326(0.9%) cases of split biceps. The prevalence of rotator interval synovitis in the mesotenon group was greater than in the LHB-free group. Moreover, in the LHB-adherent group we observed increased incidence of sublabral recess and SLAP lesions compared with the LHB-free group. CONCLUSIONS: MR-arthrography is useful in the evaluation of superior shoulder structures. A relationship exists between LHB anomalies and superior shoulder instability.

Diverticulum of common hepatic duct leading to obstructive jaundice, a case report.

Choledochal cyst is a dilation of the intrahepatic and/or extrahepatic biliary tree. The pathogenesis is unknown and potentially is multifactorial. In 1977, Todani classified the cysts under five different types according to their morphology, number and distribution along the biliary tree. Presenting symptoms of Choledocal cysts which include upper abdominal pain, acute cholangitis and jaundice, although often they are clinically silent and discovered as an incidental finding. Biliary complications include cholangitis, biliary stones, pancreatitis, portal hypertension and cholangiocarcinoma. We describe a case of a rare Type II Todani cyst located on the right side of the common hepatic duct characterised by a clinical presentation similar to that observed in Mirizzi Syndrome. The treatment of a Type II choledochal cyst consists in cystic excision.

Role of MRI and added value of diffusion-weighted and gadolinium-enhanced MRI for the diagnosis of local recurrence from rectal cancer.

PURPOSE: To evaluate whether the addition of gadolinium-enhanced MRI and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) improves T2 sequence performance for the diagnosis of local recurrence (LR) from rectal cancer and to assess which approach is better at formulating this diagnosis among readers with different experience. METHODS: Forty-three patients with suspected LR underwent pelvic MRI with T2 weighted (T2) sequences, gadolinium fat-suppressed T1 weighted sequences (post-contrast T1), and DWI sequences. Three readers (expert: G, intermediate: E, resident: V) scored the likelihood of LR on T2, T2 + post-contrast T1, T2 + DWI, and T2 + post-contrast T1 + DWI. RESULTS: In total, 18/43 patients had LR; on T2 images, the expert reader achieved an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 0.916, sensitivity of 88.9%, and specificity of 76%; the intermediate reader achieved values of 0.890, 88.9%, and 48%, respectively, and the resident achieved values of 0.852, 88.9%, and 48%, respectively. DWI significantly improved the AUC value for the expert radiologist by up to 0.999 (p = 0.04), while post-contrast T1 significantly improved the AUC for the resident by up to 0.950 (p = 0.04). For the intermediate reader, both the T2 + DWI AUC and T2 + post-contrast T1 AUC were better than the T2 AUC (0.976 and 0.980, respectively), but with no statistically significant difference. No statistically significant difference was achieved by any of the three readers by comparing either the T2 + DWI AUCs to the T2 + post-contrast T1 AUCs or the AUCs of the two pairs of sequences to those of the combined three sequences. Furthermore, using the T2 sequences alone, all of the readers achieved a fair number of "equivocal" cases: they decreased with the addition of either DWI or post-contrast T1 sequences and, for the two less experienced readers, they decreased even more with the three combined sequences. CONCLUSIONS: Both DWI and T1 post-contrast MRI increased diagnostic performance for LR diagnosis compared to T2; however, no significant difference was observed by comparing the two different pairs of sequences with the three combined sequences.

Magnetic resonance imaging in locally advanced rectal cancer: quantitative evaluation of the complete response to neoadjuvant therapy.

PURPOSE: To assess the diagnostic performance of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) for the discrimination of complete responder (CR) from the non-complete responder (n-CR) in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) undergoing chemotherapy and radiation (CRT). MATERIAL AND METHODS: Between December 2009 and January 2014, 32 patients (33 lesions: one patient had two synchronous lesions) were enrolled in this retrospective study. All patients underwent a pre- and post-CRT conventional MRI study completed with DWI. For both data sets (T2-weighted and DWI), the pre- and post-CRT tumour volume (VT2; VDWI) and the tumour volume reduction ratio (ΔV%) were determined as well as pre- and post-CRT apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and ADC change (ΔADC%). Histopathological findings were the standard of reference. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were generated to compare performance of T2-weighted and DWI volumetry, as well as ADC. RESULTS: The area under the ROC curve (AUC) revealed a good accuracy of pre- and post-CRT values of VT2 (0.86; 0.91) and VDWI (0.82; 1.00) as well as those of ΔVT2% (0.84) and ΔVDWI% (1.00) for the CR assessment, with no statistical difference. The AUC of pre- and post-CRT ADC (0.53; 0.54) and that of ΔADC% (0.58) were significantly lower. CONCLUSIONS: Both post-CRT VDWI and ΔVDWI% (AUC = 1) are very accurate for the assessment of the CR, in spite of no significant differences in comparison to the conventional post-CRT VT2 (AUC = 0.91) and ΔVT2% (AUC = 0.84). On the contrary, both ADC and ΔADC% values are not reliable.