@phdthesis{KlinnertVlachopoulou2023, author = {Klinnert Vlachopoulou, Cristina Maria}, title = {Comparison between Dual-Energy-CT perfusion imaging and perfusion-weighted SElf-gated Non-Contrast-Enhanced FUnctional MR imaging of the lung in patients with pulmonary artery embolism}, doi = {10.25972/OPUS-31303}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-313034}, school = {Universit{\"a}t W{\"u}rzburg}, year = {2023}, abstract = {Pulmonary artery embolism (PE) is a common condition and an even more common clinical suspect. The computed tomography pulmonary angiogram (CTPA) is the main medical imaging tool used to diagnose a suspected case of PE. To gain a better impression of the effects of a PE on the perfusion and hence the gas exchange, a functional imaging method is beneficial. One approach for functional imaging using radiation exposure is the generation of color-coded iodine perfusion maps acquired by Dual-Energy Computed Tomography (DECT), which enable the detection of perfusion defects in the pulmonary parenchyma. In contrast to the existing approach of DECT with iodine color-coded maps, the SElf-gated Non-Contrast-Enhanced FUnctional Lung (SENCEFUL) MRI technique offers the possibility to interpret perfusion maps without any radiation exposure or application of contrast agents. The measurement in SENCEFUL MRI can be performed during conditions of free breathing and without electrocardiogram triggering. The purpose of this study was to determine whether PE can be diagnosed on the basis of visible perfusion defects in the perfusion maps of SENCEFUL MRI and in the iodine-coded maps of DECT and to compare the diagnostic performance of these methods. Both SENCEFUL-MRI and iodine distribution maps from DECT have been compared with the CTPA of ten patients with PE. Additionally, the functional images were compared with each other on a per-patient basis. The iodine perfusion maps of DECT had a sensitivity of 84.2 \% and specificity of 65.2 \% for the diagnosis of PE. The SENCEFUL technique in MRI showed a sensitivity of 78.9 \% and a specificity of 26.1 \%. When comparing the whole lung depicted in both series of functional images, the main perfusion defect location matched in four of ten patients (40 \%). In conclusion, this work found that DECT iodine maps have higher sensitivity and specificity in the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism compared with SENCEFUL MRI.}, subject = {Lungenembolie}, language = {en} } @article{ThurnerAugustinBleyetal.2022, author = {Thurner, Annette and Augustin, Anne Marie and Bley, Thorsten Alexander and Kickuth, Ralph}, title = {2D-perfusion angiography for intra-procedural endovascular treatment response assessment in chronic mesenteric ischemia: a feasibility study}, series = {BMC Medical Imaging}, volume = {22}, journal = {BMC Medical Imaging}, doi = {10.1186/s12880-022-00820-7}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-301131}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Background Endovascular revascularization has become the first-line treatment of chronic mesenteric ischemia (CMI). The qualitative visual analysis of digital subtraction angiography (DSA) is dependent on observer experience and prone to interpretation errors. We evaluate the feasibility of 2D-Perfusion Angiography (2D-PA) for objective, quantitative treatment response assessment in CMI. Methods 49 revascularizations in 39 patients with imaging based evidence of mesenteric vascular occlusive disease and clinical signs of CMI were included in this retrospective study. To assess perfusion changes by 2D-PA, DSA-series were post-processed using a dedicated, commercially available software. Regions of interest (ROI) were placed in the pre- and post-stenotic artery segment. In aorto-ostial disease, the inflow ROI was positioned at the mesenteric artery orifice. The ratios outflow to inflow ROI for peak density (PD), time to peak and area-under-the-curve (AUC) were computed and compared pre- and post-interventionally. We graded motion artifacts by means of a four-point scale. Feasibility of 2D-PA and changes of flow parameters were evaluated. Results Motion artifacts due to a mobile vessel location beneath the diaphragm or within the mesenteric root, branch vessel superimposition and inadequate contrast enhancement at the inflow ROI during manually conducted DSA-series via selective catheters owing to steep vessel angulation, necessitated exclusion of 26 measurements from quantitative flow evaluation. The feasibility rate was 47\%. In 23 technically feasible assessments, PD\(_{outflow}\)/PD\(_{inflow}\) increased by 65\% (p < 0.001) and AUC\(_{outflow}\)/AUC\(_{inflow}\) increased by 85\% (p < 0.001). The time to peak density values in the outflow ROI accelerated only minimally without reaching statistical significance. Age, BMI, target vessel (celiac trunk, SMA or IMA), stenosis location (ostial or truncal), calcification severity, plaque composition or the presence of a complex stenosis did not reach statistical significance in their distribution among the feasible and non-feasible group (p > 0.05). Conclusions Compared to other vascular territories and indications, the feasibility of 2D-PA in mesenteric revascularization for CMI was limited. Unfavorable anatomic conditions contributed to a high rate of inconclusive 2D-PA results.}, language = {en} } @article{TraubGrondeyGassenmaieretal.2022, author = {Traub, Jan and Grondey, Katja and Gassenmaier, Tobias and Schmitt, Dominik and Fette, Georg and Frantz, Stefan and Boivin-Jahns, Val{\´e}rie and Jahns, Roland and St{\"o}rk, Stefan and Stoll, Guido and Reiter, Theresa and Hofmann, Ulrich and Weber, Martin S. and Frey, Anna}, title = {Sustained increase in serum glial fibrillary acidic protein after first ST-elevation myocardial infarction}, series = {International Journal of Molecular Sciences}, volume = {23}, journal = {International Journal of Molecular Sciences}, number = {18}, issn = {1422-0067}, doi = {10.3390/ijms231810304}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-288261}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Acute ischemic cardiac injury predisposes one to cognitive impairment, dementia, and depression. Pathophysiologically, recent positron emission tomography data suggest astroglial activation after experimental myocardial infarction (MI). We analyzed peripheral surrogate markers of glial (and neuronal) damage serially within 12 months after the first ST-elevation MI (STEMI). Serum levels of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and neurofilament light chain (NfL) were quantified using ultra-sensitive molecular immunoassays. Sufficient biomaterial was available from 45 STEMI patients (aged 28 to 78 years, median 56 years, 11\% female). The median (quartiles) of GFAP was 63.8 (47.0, 89.9) pg/mL and of NfL 10.6 (7.2, 14.8) pg/mL at study entry 0-4 days after STEMI. GFAP after STEMI increased in the first 3 months, with a median change of +7.8 (0.4, 19.4) pg/mL (p = 0.007). It remained elevated without further relevant increases after 6 months (+11.7 (0.6, 23.5) pg/mL; p = 0.015), and 12 months (+10.3 (1.5, 22.7) pg/mL; p = 0.010) compared to the baseline. Larger relative infarction size was associated with a higher increase in GFAP (ρ = 0.41; p = 0.009). In contrast, NfL remained unaltered in the course of one year. Our findings support the idea of central nervous system involvement after MI, with GFAP as a potential peripheral biomarker of chronic glial damage as one pathophysiologic pathway.}, language = {en} } @article{WoznickiLaquaBleyetal.2022, author = {Woznicki, Piotr and Laqua, Fabian and Bley, Thorsten and Baeßler, Bettina}, title = {AutoRadiomics: a framework for reproducible radiomics research}, series = {Frontiers in Radiology}, volume = {2}, journal = {Frontiers in Radiology}, issn = {2673-8740}, doi = {10.3389/fradi.2022.919133}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-284813}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Purpose Machine learning based on radiomics features has seen huge success in a variety of clinical applications. However, the need for standardization and reproducibility has been increasingly recognized as a necessary step for future clinical translation. We developed a novel, intuitive open-source framework to facilitate all data analysis steps of a radiomics workflow in an easy and reproducible manner and evaluated it by reproducing classification results in eight available open-source datasets from different clinical entities. Methods The framework performs image preprocessing, feature extraction, feature selection, modeling, and model evaluation, and can automatically choose the optimal parameters for a given task. All analysis steps can be reproduced with a web application, which offers an interactive user interface and does not require programming skills. We evaluated our method in seven different clinical applications using eight public datasets: six datasets from the recently published WORC database, and two prostate MRI datasets—Prostate MRI and Ultrasound With Pathology and Coordinates of Tracked Biopsy (Prostate-UCLA) and PROSTATEx. Results In the analyzed datasets, AutoRadiomics successfully created and optimized models using radiomics features. For WORC datasets, we achieved AUCs ranging from 0.56 for lung melanoma metastases detection to 0.93 for liposarcoma detection and thereby managed to replicate the previously reported results. No significant overfitting between training and test sets was observed. For the prostate cancer detection task, results were better in the PROSTATEx dataset (AUC = 0.73 for prostate and 0.72 for lesion mask) than in the Prostate-UCLA dataset (AUC 0.61 for prostate and 0.65 for lesion mask), with external validation results varying from AUC = 0.51 to AUC = 0.77. Conclusion AutoRadiomics is a robust tool for radiomic studies, which can be used as a comprehensive solution, one of the analysis steps, or an exploratory tool. Its wide applicability was confirmed by the results obtained in the diverse analyzed datasets. The framework, as well as code for this analysis, are publicly available under https://github.com/pwoznicki/AutoRadiomics.}, language = {en} } @article{HerzbergDornTrummetal.2022, author = {Herzberg, Moriz and Dorn, Franziska and Trumm, Christoph and Kellert, Lars and Tiedt, Steffen and Feil, Katharina and K{\"u}pper, Clemens and Wollenweber, Frank and Liebig, Thomas and Zimmermann, Hanna}, title = {Middle cerebral artery M2 thrombectomy: safety and technical considerations in the German Stroke Registry (GSR)}, series = {Journal of Clinical Medicine}, volume = {11}, journal = {Journal of Clinical Medicine}, number = {15}, issn = {2077-0383}, doi = {10.3390/jcm11154619}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-286052}, year = {2022}, abstract = {There is ongoing debate concerning the safety and efficacy of various mechanical thrombectomy (MT) approaches for M2 occlusions. We compared these for MT in M2 versus M1 occlusions. Subgroup analyses of different technical approaches within the M2 MT cohort were also performed. Patients were included from the German Stroke Registry (GSR), a multicenter registry of consecutive MT patients. Primary outcomes were reperfusion success events. Secondary outcomes were early clinical improvement (improvement in NIHSS score > 4) and independent survival at 90 days (mRS 0-2). Out of 3804 patients, 2689 presented with M1 (71\%) and 1115 with isolated M2 occlusions (29\%). The mean age was 76 (CI 65-82) and 77 (CI 66-83) years, respectively. Except for baseline NIHSS (15 (CI 10-18) vs. 11 (CI 6-16), p < 0.001) and ASPECTS (9 (CI 7-10) vs. 9 (CI 8-10, p < 0.001), baseline demographics were balanced. Apart from a more frequent use of dedicated small vessel stent retrievers (svSR) in M2 (17.4\% vs. 3.0; p < 0.001), intraprocedural aspects were balanced. There was no difference in ICH at 24 h (11\%; p = 1.0), adverse events (14.4\% vs. 18.1\%; p = 0.63), clinical improvement (62.5\% vs. 61.4 \%; p = 0.57), mortality (26.9\% vs. 22.9\%; p = 0.23). In M2 MT, conventional stent retriever (cSR) achieved higher rates of mTICI3 (54.0\% vs. 37.7-42.0\%; p < 0.001), requiring more MT-maneuvers (7, CI 2-8) vs. 2 (CI 2-7)/(CI 2-2); p < 0.001) and without impact on efficacy and outcome. Real-life MT in M2 can be performed with equal safety and efficacy as in M1 occlusions. Different recanalization techniques including the use of svSR did not result in significant differences regarding safety, efficacy and outcome.}, language = {en} } @article{KippnichDuempertSchorscheretal.2022, author = {Kippnich, Maximilian and Duempert, Maximilian and Schorscher, Nora and Jordan, Martin C. and Kunz, Andreas S. and Meybohm, Patrick and Wurmb, Thomas}, title = {Simultaneous treatment of trauma patients in a dual room trauma suite with integrated movable sliding gantry CT system: an observational study}, series = {Scientific Reports}, volume = {12}, journal = {Scientific Reports}, number = {1}, doi = {10.1038/s41598-022-20491-2}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-299695}, year = {2022}, abstract = {The trauma center of the University Hospital Wuerzburg has developed an advanced trauma pathway based on a dual-room trauma suite with an integrated movable sliding gantry CT-system. This enables simultaneous CT-diagnostics and treatment of two trauma patients. The focus of this study was to investigate the quality of the concept based on defined outcome criteria in this specific setting (time from arrival to initiation of CT scan: tCT; time from arrival to initiation of emergency surgery: tES). We analyzed all trauma patients admitted to the hospital's trauma suite from 1st May 2019 through 29th April 2020. Two subgroups were defined: trauma patients, who were treated without a second trauma patient present (group 1) and patients, who were treated simultaneously with another trauma patient (group 2). Simultaneous treatment was defined as parallel arrival within a period of 20 min. Of 423 included trauma patients, 46 patients (10.9\%) were treated simultaneously. Car accidents were the predominant trauma mechanism in this group (19.6\% vs. 47.8\%, p < 0.05). Prehospital life-saving procedures were performed with comparable frequency in both groups (intubation 43.5\% vs. 39\%, p = 0.572); pleural drainage 3.2\% vs. 2.2\%, p = 0.708; cardiopulmonary resuscitation 5\% vs. 2.2\%, p = 0.387). At hospital admission, patients in group 2 suffered significantly more pain (E-problem according to Advanced Trauma Life Support principles©; 29.2\% vs. 45.7\%, p < 0.05). There were no significant differences in the clinical treatment (emergency procedures, vasopressor and coagulant therapy, and transfusion of red blood cells). tCT was 6 (4-10) minutes (median and IQR) in group 1 and 8 (5-15.5) minutes in group 2 (p = 0.280). tES was 90 (78-106) minutes in group 1 and 99 (97-108) minutes in group 2 (p = 0.081). The simultaneous treatment of two trauma patients in a dual-room trauma suite with an integrated movable sliding gantry CT-system requires a medical, organizational, and technical concept adapted to this special setting. Despite the oftentimes serious and life-threatening injuries, optimal diagnostic and therapeutic procedures can be guaranteed for two simultaneous trauma patients at an individual medical level in consistent quality.}, language = {en} } @article{JordanBroeerFischeretal.2022, author = {Jordan, Martin C. and Br{\"o}er, David and Fischer, Christian and Heilig, Philipp and Gilbert, Fabian and H{\"o}lscher-Doht, Stefanie and Kalogirou, Charis and Popp, Kevin and Grunz, Jan-Peter and Huflage, Henner and Jakubietz, Rafael G. and Erg{\"u}n, S{\"u}leyman and Meffert, Rainer H.}, title = {Development and preclinical evaluation of a cable-clamp fixation device for a disrupted pubic symphysis}, series = {Communications Medicine}, volume = {2}, journal = {Communications Medicine}, number = {1}, doi = {10.1038/s43856-022-00227-z}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-299800}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Background Traumatic separation of the pubic symphysis can destabilize the pelvis and require surgical fixation to reduce symphyseal gapping. The traditional approach involves open reduction and the implantation of a steel symphyseal plate (SP) on the pubic bone to hold the reposition. Despite its widespread use, SP-fixation is often associated with implant failure caused by screw loosening or breakage. Methods To address the need for a more reliable surgical intervention, we developed and tested two titanium cable-clamp implants. The cable served as tensioning device while the clamp secured the cable to the bone. The first implant design included a steel cable anterior to the pubic symphysis to simplify its placement outside the pelvis, and the second design included a cable encircling the pubic symphysis to stabilize the anterior pelvic ring. Using highly reproducible synthetic bone models and a limited number of cadaver specimens, we performed a comprehensive biomechanical study of implant stability and evaluated surgical feasibility. Results We were able to demonstrate that the cable-clamp implants provide stability equivalent to that of a traditional SP-fixation but without the same risks of implant failure. We also provide detailed ex vivo evaluations of the safety and feasibility of a trans-obturator surgical approach required for those kind of fixation. Conclusion We propose that the developed cable-clamp fixation devices may be of clinical value in treating pubic symphysis separation.}, language = {en} } @article{HeinzMellerLuetkensetal.2022, author = {Heinz, Tizian and Meller, Felix and Luetkens, Karsten Sebastian and Horas, Konstantin and Sch{\"a}fer, Thomas and Rudert, Maximilian and Reppenhagen, Stephan and Weißenberger, Manuel}, title = {Can the MRI based AMADEUS score accurately assess pre-surgery chondral defect severity according to the ICRS arthroscopic classification system?}, series = {Journal of Experimental Orthopaedics}, volume = {9}, journal = {Journal of Experimental Orthopaedics}, number = {1}, issn = {2197-1153}, doi = {10.1186/s40634-022-00511-w}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-300781}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Purpose The AMADEUS (Area Measurement And DEpth and Underlying Structures) scoring and grading system has been proposed for the MRI based evaluation of untreated focal chondral defects around the knee. The clinical practicability, its correlation with arthroscopically assessed grading systems (ICRS - International Cartilage Repair Society) and thereby its clinical value in terms of decision making and guiding prognosis was yet to determine. Methods From 2008 to 2019 a total of 89 individuals were indicated for high tibial valgus osteotomy (HTO) due to tibial varus deformity and concomitant chondral defects of the medial compartment of the knee. All patients received a preoperative MRI (1.5 Tesla or 3.0 Tesla) and pre-osteotomy diagnostic arthroscopy. Chondral defects of the medial compartment were scored and graded with the MRI based AMADEUS by three independent raters and compared to arthroscopic defect grading by the ICRS system. Interrater and intrarater reliability as well as correlation analysis with the ICRS classification system were assessed. Results Intraclass correlation coefficients for the various subscores of the AMADEUS showed an overall good to excellent interrater agreement (min: 0.26, max: 0.80). Intrarater agreement turned out to be substantially inferior (min: 0.08, max: 0.53). Spearman correlation revealed an overall moderate correlative association of the AMADEUS subscores with the ICRS classification system, apart from the defect area subscore. Sensitivity of the AMADEUS to accurately identify defect severity according to the ICRS was 0.7 (0.69 for 3.0 Tesla MRI, 0.67 for 1.5 Tesla MRI). The mean AMADEUS grade was 2.60 ± 0.81 and the mean ICRS score 2.90 ± 0.63. Conclusions Overall, the AMADEUS with all its subscores shows moderate correlation with the arthroscopic chondral grading system according to ICRS. This suggests that chondral defect grading by means of the MRI based AMADEUS is well capable of influencing and guiding treatment decisions. Interrater reliability shows overall good agreement.}, language = {en} } @article{GrunzSailerLangetal.2022, author = {Grunz, Jan-Peter and Sailer, Lukas and Lang, Patricia and Sch{\"u}le, Simone and Kunz, Andreas Steven and Beer, Meinrad and Hackenbroch, Carsten}, title = {Dual-energy CT in sacral fragility fractures: defining a cut-off Hounsfield unit value for the presence of traumatic bone marrow edema in patients with osteoporosis}, series = {BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders}, volume = {23}, journal = {BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders}, number = {1}, doi = {10.1186/s12891-022-05690-2}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-301125}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Background Demographic change entails an increasing incidence of fragility fractures. Dual-energy CT (DECT) with virtual non-calcium (VNCa) reconstructions has been introduced as a promising diagnostic method for evaluating bone microarchitecture and marrow simultaneously. This study aims to define the most accurate cut-off value in Hounsfield units (HU) for discriminating the presence and absence of bone marrow edema (BME) in sacral fragility fractures. Methods Forty-six patients (40 women, 6 men; 79.7 ± 9.2 years) with suspected fragility fractures of the sacrum underwent both DECT (90 kVp / 150 kVp with tin prefiltration) and MRI. Nine regions-of-interest were placed in each sacrum on DECT-VNCa images. The resulting 414 HU measurements were stratified into "edema" (n = 80) and "no edema" groups (n = 334) based on reference BME detection in T2-weighted MRI sequences. Area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was calculated to determine the desired cut-off value and an associated conspicuity range for edema detection. Results The mean density within the "edema" group of measurements (+ 3.1 ± 8.3 HU) was substantially higher compared to the "no edema" group (-51.7 ± 21.8 HU; p < 0.010). Analysis in DECT-VNCa images suggested a cut-off value of -12.9 HU that enabled sensitivity and specificity of 100\% for BME detection compared to MRI. A range of HU values between -14.0 and + 20.0 is considered indicative of BME in the sacrum. Conclusions Quantitative analysis of DECT-VNCa with a cut-off of -12.9 HU allows for excellent diagnostic accuracy in the assessment of sacral fragility fractures with associated BME. A diagnostic "one-stop-shop" approach without additional MRI is feasible.}, language = {en} } @article{GietzenKunzLuetkensetal.2022, author = {Gietzen, Carsten Herbert and Kunz, Andreas Steven and Luetkens, Karsten Sebastian and Huflage, Henner and Christopoulos, Georgios and van Schoonhoven, J{\"o}rg and Bley, Thorsten Alexander and Schmitt, Rainer and Grunz, Jan-Peter}, title = {Evaluation of prestyloid recess morphology and ulnar-sided contrast leakage in CT arthrography of the wrist}, series = {BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders}, volume = {23}, journal = {BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders}, number = {1}, doi = {10.1186/s12891-022-05241-9}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-301113}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Background In wrist arthrograms, aberrant contrast material is frequently seen extending into the soft tissue adjacent to the ulnar styloid process. Since the prestyloid recess can mimic contrast leakage in CT arthrography, this study aims to provide a detailed analysis of its morphologic variability, while investigating whether actual ulnar-sided leakage is associated with injuries of the triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC). Methods Eighty-six patients with positive wrist trauma history underwent multi-compartment CT arthrography (40 women, median age 44.5 years). Studies were reviewed by two board-certified radiologists, who documented the morphology of the prestyloid recess regarding size, opening type, shape and position, as well as the presence or absence of ulnar-sided contrast leakage. Correlations between leakage and the presence of TFCC injuries were assessed using the mean square contingency coefficient (r\(_{ɸ}\)). Results The most common configuration of the prestyloid recess included a narrow opening (73.26\%; width 2.26 ± 1.43 mm), saccular shape (66.28\%), and palmar position compared to the styloid process (55.81\%). Its mean length and anterior-posterior diameter were 6.89 ± 2.36 and 5.05 ± 1.97 mm, respectively. Ulnar-sided contrast leakage was reported in 29 patients (33.72\%) with a mean extent of 12.30 ± 5.31 mm. Leakage occurred more often in patients with ulnar-sided TFCC injuries (r\(_{ɸ}\) = 0.480; p < 0.001), whereas no association was found for lesions of the central articular disc (r\(_{ɸ}\) = 0.172; p = 0.111). Conclusions Since ulnar-sided contrast leakage is more common in patients with peripheral TFCC injuries, distinction between an atypical configuration of the prestyloid recess and actual leakage is important in CT arthrography of the wrist.}, language = {en} }