Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance-Based Tissue Characterization in Patients With Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a common hereditable cardiomyopathy that affects between 1:200 to 1:500 of the general population. The role of cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging in the management of HCM has expanded over the past 2 decades to become a key informant of risk in this patient population, delivering unique insights into tissue health and its influence on future outcomes. Numerous mature CMR-based techniques are clinically available for the interrogation of tissue health in patients with HCM, inclusive of contrast and noncontrast methods. Late gadolinium enhancement imaging remains a cornerstone technique for the identification and quantification of myocardial fibrosis with large cumulative evidence supporting value for the prediction of arrhythmic outcomes. T1 mapping delivers improved fidelity for fibrosis quantification through direct estimations of extracellular volume fraction but also offers potential for noncontrast surrogate assessments of tissue health. Water-sensitive imaging, inclusive of T2-weighted dark blood imaging and T2 mapping, have also shown preliminary potential for assisting in risk discrimination. Finally, emerging techniques, inclusive of innovative multiparametric methods, are expanding the utility of CMR to assist in the delivery of comprehensive tissue characterization toward the delivery of personalized HCM care. In this narrative review we summarize the contemporary landscape of CMR techniques aimed at characterizing tissue health in patients with HCM. The value of these respective techniques to identify patients at elevated risk of future cardiovascular outcomes are highlighted.

Pneumorrhachis: An uncommon radiological entity.

Pneumorrhachis (PR) is a rare and interesting phenomenon, in which air is present within the spinal canal. The aetiologies are varied, broadly grouped as traumatic, non-traumatic or iatrogenic. Pneumorrhachis secondary to spontaneous pneumomediastinum (SPM) and barotrauma of the lungs is uncommon and even rarer within the paediatric group. This report describes a paediatric patient presenting with a persistent cough who developed a SPM and subsequent PR.

Prostate abscess in a paediatric patient: A rare diagnosis.

Prostate abscess (PA) is an uncommon clinical manifestation that typically presents in the fifth to sixth decade of age and sporadically affects neonates. These characteristics, coupled with the atypical presentation, represent a clinical dilemma and a challenging diagnosis. A detailed history depicting the clinical course and the presence of risk factors is imperative to alert the clinician of the possibility of a PA. In this case report, we present a surgically confirmed PA, a diagnosis that is rarely encountered within the paediatric age group.

Left paraduodenal hernia: Embryological and radiological findings.

Left paraduodenal hernia (PDH), may present as a surgical emergency with an increased risk of strangulation and incarceration. The diagnosis is challenging because of the non-specific presentation. In the absence of common epigastric or upper abdominal pathology and non-resolving symptoms, a high index of suspicion is required to diagnose left PDH. This report describes a case of radiologically diagnosed left paraduodenal hernia and subsequent successful surgery. It also includes a review of midgut embryology, and the anatomy and radiology of left PDH.