BACKGROUND Pulse wave velocity, conventionally determined between the carotid and femoral arteries, is a useful measure to estimate stiffness of the aorta. We investigated local pulse wave velocity (LPWV) in different segments in the aorta with relatively early-stage atherosclerosis in relation to the extent and severity of atherosclerotic lesions. METHODS Pressure waves were recorded in eigh...

PURPOSE Respiratory motion causes substantial artifacts in reconstructed PET images when using helical CT as the attenuation map in PET/CT imaging. In this study, we aimed to reduce the respiratory artifacts in PET/CT images of patients with lung tumors using an abdominal compression device. METHODS Twelve patients with lung cancer located in the middle or lower lobe of the lung were recruite...

Hydatid disease (HD) is an infectious disease caused by echinococcosis. Hydatid cyst (HC) most commonly invades the liver (60-70%) and the lungs (20-25%). However, other parts of the body and even unusual locations can be infected, mimicking a benign lesion that could be easily missed. Primary HC of the chest wall is extremely rare, even in countries where echinococcosis is endemic. We he...

Aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) is an independent determinant of cardiovascular risk. Although aortic stiffening with age is well documented, the interaction between aging and regional aortic PWV is still a debated question. We measured global and regional PWV in the descending aorta of 56 healthy subjects aged 25-76 years using a one-dimensional, interleaved, Fourier velocity encoded pulse se...

This study was conducted to determine if there is a difference in the calcium handling mechanism of the thoracic and abdominal aortic regions of the rabbit aorta. Isolated segments of aorta from both regions were studied in HEPES buffer at 37 degrees C and bubbled with 100% oxygen using identical procedures. Intracellular calcium levels were determined after segments had been exposed to 45Ca-la...

The use of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) in pediatric patients has been steadily increasing in recent years. However, its use for diagnosing and treating abdominal tumors in children is still limited compared with adults, especially when malignancy is a matter of debate. Here, we describe the experience at our center with pediatric abdominal tumors to show the safety and feasibility of MIS.B...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Previous studies have suggested an association between aortic aneurysms and intracranial aneurysms with a higher prevalence of intracranial aneurysms in patients with aortic aneurysms. The aims of the present study were to evaluate the incidence of intracranial aneurysms in a large cohort of patients with aortic aneurysms and to identify potential risk factors for intracr...

The purpose of this study was to determine the usefulness of large rabbits for basic vascular interventional radiology (IR) experiments. We used 5 Akita large rabbits (Akita) and 5 Japanese white rabbits (JW). We conducted measurements of vessel diameters such as the aorta, and the iliac, renal, superior mesenteric, celiac, and proper hepatic arteries, and of the growth rates of VX2 liver tumor...

Because of its physiological importance in the rapid growth rate of birds and the continous air flow that provided it the lungs in both inspiration and expiration, the present study was performed to examine the air sac system on twelve mature turkeys of both sexes and different weight . Seven air sacs were demonstrated associated with the two lungs and characteristic for the turkey. They compri...