Magnetic resonance diffusion-weighted imaging (MR-DWI) is a functional technology at the molecular level.Compared to other imaging exams (such as DSA,CT,US),DWI is non invasive,has no radiation,and objective.Thus,it is widely accepted in clinical settings.As a means to assess the therapeutic efficacy of intervention,DWI has a promising prospect.In this article,we review the application of MR-DWI in evaluating the therapeutic efficacy of hepatocellular carcinoma intervention.

One hundred patients were diagnosed with coronary heart disease through dual-source CT coronary angiography (DSCTA) in our hospital,including 53 cases aged ≥60 y (elderly group) and 47 cases ＜60 y (middle-aged group).The curved-planar reconstruction (CPR),maximal intensity projection (MIP) and other post-processing reconstruction techniques were used to evaluate the indicators and differences of coronary stenosis ≥ 50％ ; the X-ray coronary angiography (CAG) findings were regarded as the gold standard.The evaluable rates of coronary arteries through DSCTA were 97.0％ and 98.6％ for two groups (P ＞0.05).The positive rate of coronary artery stenosis ≥ 50％ in elderly group was higher than that of middle-age group ( 12.6％ vs 9.0％ P ＜0.05 ).The rates of multi-vessel disease in elderly group (28.3％ ) was also significantly higher than that of middle-age group (6.4％,P ＜0.05 ).The sensitivity,specificity,positive predictive value and negative predictive value in evaluation of coronary artery stenosis ≥ 50％ for elderly patients were 92.3％,98.0％,88.0％ and 98.9％ respectively; those for middle-aged patients were 96.0％,99.0％,90.6％ and 99.6％ respectively ( P ＞0.05 ).DSCTA imaging provides an effective screening and evaluation method for coronary heart disease in elderly and middle-aged patients.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the diagnostic value of high-frequency ultrasonography for dorsal wrist cyst.MethodsThe ultrasonographic characteristics of 136 dorsal wrist cysts were retrospectively studied and compared with the pathological results, the locations and the imaging characteristics of the cysts were analysed, hence to conclude the diagnostic value of high-frequency ultrasonography.ResultsBased on the anatomical location diagnosed by high frequency ultrasound, the 136 dorsal cysts were divided into three types: extensor retinaculum cysts, synovial tendon sheath cysts and dorsal interosseous ligament cysts, each accounted for 1.5% (2/136), 24.3% (33/136) and 74.2% (101/136) of the study group. The most frequently detected locations for dorsal cysts were dorsal scapholunate ligament,tendinous sheath of extensor digitorum and extensor indicis, as well as tendinous sheath of extensor carpi radialis longus and brevis,each accounted for 60.3% (82/136), 8.1% (11/136) and 6.6% (9/136) of all dorsal wrist cysts respectively. Dorsal wrist cysts had typical ultrasonographic features on 2-D gray-scale ultrasonography, the extensor retinaculum cyst demonstrated as a well-marginated, small-sized and oval anechoic area, which was commonly located in the oedematous extensor retinaculum, but it had no adjunction with the extensor tendon, and it was accompanied with dorsal scapholunate ligment cyst frequently. Synovial tendon sheath cyst demonstrated as a oval or eggplant-shaped anechoic area which was usually winding around the extensor tendon, but it had no adjunction with the dorsal interosseous ligament and the extensor retinaculum. Meanwhile, the dorsal interosseous ligament appeared to be normal strip-like echo texture with a smooth and clear margin. Dorsal interosseous ligament cyst demonstrated as a out-of-shape anechoic area and located superior to the injured ligament. Meanwhile, the impaired ligament was thickened with uneven margin and decreased echo texture. No blood lfow signals was detected in all dorsal wrist cysts by color doppler lfow imaging.ConclusionHigh-frequency ultrasonography can be used to diagnosis dorsal wrist cysts, and can be served as the preferred imaging modelity to guide the clinical treatment.

Objective To evaluate the CT features of primary adrenal lymphoma and its relationship with pathology.Methods Pathologically proven primary adrenal lymphoma 6 cases were reviewed.There were 4 males and 2 females.The age was 18-62 years,average age was 51 years.5 cases was single tomur in unilateral,1 case was bilateral disease.The main clinical manifestations were abdominal pain,abdominal discomfort.All patients had CT scan and were treated surgically.Results CT scan showed the characters of adrenal little low-density soft tissue mass:the maximum diameter of 3-11 cm,irregularly shaped or ovalshaped,multi-state a clear,homogeneous or slightly inhomogeneous density,CT value was 30-40 HU.Lesions could be embedded or close to blood vessels and the ipsilateral kidney.The lesions were not enhanced arterial phase enhancement,CT value was 39-50 HU.The lesions showed vein phase of mild to moderate enhancement,CT value was 47-66 HU.At the delay of continuing to strengthen phase,CT value was 60-78 HU.The pathology charaters showed that:Diffuse of tumor cells under light microscope dense,more uniform size,and a large,granular chromatin,tumor stromal components was relatively small.There was no significant bleeding,necrosis and calcification.one lesion showed sheet,tumor cell necrosis.Conclusions CT scan characteristics and pathological features of primary adrenal lymphoma might have a certain correlation.

Objective To investigate the effects and mechanisms of electroacupuncture at Tinggong and Yifeng on the local expression of insulin like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and glucose metabolism in the auditory cor‐tex of guinea pig .Methods Eighteen Adult pigmented guinea pigs were randomly divided into 3 groups .Guinea pigs in electroacupuncture at auricular points group (EAPG ,n= 7) were electroacupunctured at Tinggong and Yifeng acupoints simultaneously for 15 minutes every day ,and electroacupunctur lasted 7 days .The electroacupuncture at non acupoint group (ENAG ,n=6) was electroacupunctured at non acupoints for the same time .The control group (CG ,n=5) received no treatment .After anesthetized ,guinea pigs were injected 18 F-FDG via dorsocuboidal vein , and scanned by PET/CT .PET image and CT image were processed and reconstructed in the workstation to observe the uptake of imaging agent in the brain of guinea pigs .The maximum SUV values and its ratios between auditory cortex and cerebellum were measured .The expression of IGF-1 mRNA were detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR .The results were analyzed by the one-way ANOVA and P<0 .05 means statistical significance . Results 1 .Changes in glucose energy metabolism in the auditory cortex .The ratios of the maximum SUV value betweenthe auditory cortex and cerebellum were 0 .75 ± 0 .06 ,0 .84 ± 0 .05 and 0 .71 ± 0 .06 for CG ,EAPG and ENAG re‐spectively .There was a significant difference between the CG and EAPG (P=0 .042) ,the EAPG and ENAG (P=0 .009) ,and no significant difference between the CG and ENAG (P=0 .361) .2 .The fold changes in IGF-1 mR‐NA were 1 .34 ± 0 .24 ,2 .03 ± 0 .36 and 0 .92 ± 0 .23 for CG ,EAPG and ENAG respectively .There was a significant increase in IGF-1 mRNA expression in auditory cortex of the EAPG (P=0 .002 ,compared with the CG) ,and a significant difference between the EAPG and ENAG groups (P<0 .001) .Conclusion 1 .Acupuncturing at Tinggong and Yifeng point can improve glucose metabolism in the auditory cortex of guinea pig . 2 . Acupuncturing at Tinggong and Yifeng point can result in increase of the local expression of IGF-1 in the auditory cortex of guinea pig .

Objective To determine the optimal volume proportion of iodize d oil (Lipiodol)-ethanol mixture by comparing the clinical efficacy of transhepatic arterial embolization-ablation therapy using different volume proportion of Lipiodol-ethanol mixture in treating experimental rabbit models with VX 2 liver cancer. Methods VX2 tumor was implanted in eighteen adult male New Zealand white rabbits. The 18 VX 2 rabbit models were randomly and equally divided into the following six groups according to the Lipiodol-ethanol volume ratio ∶ group A (3 ∶ 1), group B (2 ∶ 1), group C (1 ∶ 1), group D (1 ∶ 2), group E (1 ∶ 3) and group F (1 ∶ 4). One week after the treatment, all the rabbits were sacrificed and their livers were removed and sent for pathologic examination. The tumor growth rate, the microvascular density, the apoptosis index (AI) of tumor tissues and the injury of the hepatic tissue adjacent to the tumor were evaluated. Results After the treatment, the tumor’s size was increased in group A, E and F. The tumor growth rate of group A was significantly higher than that of the other five groups , and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). The tumor’s size of groups B, C and D was decreased, although the difference was not significant when compared with the tumor’s size of groups E and F (P > 0.05). The proportion of ethanol in Lipiodol ∶ethanol mixture bore a negative relationship to the microvascular density counts (R2= 0.840, F = 89.432, P < 0.001). AI of group A was strikingly lower than that of groups C, D, E and F (P < 0.05). The difference in AI between group A and group B was not significant (P > 0.05), while the difference in AI between group B and group C or between group B and group F was statistically significant (P<0.05), and no significant difference in AI existed between each other among other groups (P > 0.05). The injury extent of the hepatic tissue adjacent to the tumor in group A and B was remarkably milder than that of other groups (P < 0.05). Conclusion When considered in terms of safety, the optimal volume proportion of Lipiodol-ethanol mixture should be 2 ∶ 1. Successful super-selective catheterization of the tumor feeding artery, strict and close fluoroscopic monitoring of the injection and proper increase in the proportion of ethanol can definitely improve the therapeutic efficacy.

Objective To assess the clinical value of dual-energy CT (DECT) Volume software in quantitative analysis of urate crystals.Methods The DECT data of 60 gout patients based on the American College of Rheumatology diagnostic criteria were analyzed retrospectively.The volumes of urate crystals were quantitatively analyzed by using Volume software with two senior radiologists.The results were statistically analyzed.Results Seventy-two joints of 60 gout patients were scanned by DECT.40 of 43 joints had urate crystals in foot and ankle with the average volume of (0.621±0.742) cm3;18 of 19 joints had urate crystals in knee with the average volume of (0.842±1.086) cm3;10 of 10 joints had urate crystals in hand and wrist with the average volume of (0.796±0.583) cm3.There was no statistical difference for volume measurement between two doctors (P>0.05).The volumes of urate crystals in 4 patients with regular medication were reduced.Conclusion Volume software of DECT can quantitatively analyze urate crystals with a good repeatability, which has high application value in clinical diagnosis and treatment monitoring of gout.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between serum HGF levels and clinical severity of essential hypertension (EH). Methods: The serum HGF concentrations of 44 patients with EH were measur ed by ELISA. Results: The serum HGF levels in patients with EH w ere higher than that in control. Furthermore, the serum HGF levels of EH patient s with coronary atherosclerosis (CAS) were significantly higher than those of EH patients without CAS ［(920.8±250.0） pg/ml vs （747.9±132.1） pg/ml, P <0.01］ or control ［（643.8±98.2） pg/ml, P<0.01)］.The changes of HGF l evel were correlated with the clinical courses (r=0.63, P<0.01) and stag es (r=0.69, P<0.01) of hypertension. Conclusion: HGF may be considered as a new index for the severity of hypertension and an useful bio chemical parameter for estimating the development of atherosclerosis.

Objective To find an effective CT-MRI image fusion protocol in brain tumor by analyzing the registration accuracy of different methods. Methods The simulation CT scan and MRI T1 WI imaging of 10 brain tumor patients obtained with same position were registered by Tris-Axes landmark 、Tris-Axes landmark + manual adjustment、 mutual information and mutual information + manual adjustment method. The clinical tumor volume (CTV) were contoured on both CT and MRI images respectively. The accuracy of image fusion was assessed by the mean distance of five bone markers ( d1-5 ), central position of CTV ( dCTV ) the percentage of CTV overlap ( PCT-MRI ) between CT and MRI images. The difference between different methods was analyzed by Freidman M non-parameter test. Results The difference of the means d1-5 between the Tris-Axes landmark、Tris-Axes landmark plus manual adjustment、mutual information and mutual information plus manual adjustment methods were 0. 28 cm ±0. 12 cm, 0. 15 cm ±0.02 cm, 0. 25 cm± 0. 19 cm, 0. 10 cm ± 0. 06 cm, ( M = 14. 41, P = 0. 002 ). the means dCTV were 0. 59 cm ± 0. 28 cm,0. 60 cm± 0. 32 cm, 0. 58 cm ± 0. 39 cm, 0. 42 cm± 0. 30 cm( M = 9. 72, P = 0. 021 ), the means PCT-MRI were 0.69% ±0. 18%, 0.68% ±0. 16%, 0.66% ±0. 17%, 0.74% ±0. 14% (M = 14.82,P=0.002),respectively. Conclusions Mutual information plus manual adjustment registration method was the preferable fusion method for brain tumor patients.

This study investigated the "homing" phenomenon in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The "homing" specificity of endothelial progenitor cells (EPC) by establishing an orthotopic implantation model in nude mice. EPCs harvested from the marrow cells were separated by density gradient centrifugation. Fluorescence microscope, flow cytometry (FCM) and double fluorescence staining with FITC-UEA-I and DiI-ac-LDL, were employed to identify the cells. 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) labelling and real-time PCR were used for detecting the expression of CD133 and chemokines to trace and observe the distribution of EPCs. Our results showed that the distribution rate of EPCs was obviously higher than that in other important organs and the negative control group. Detection of CD133 and chemokines yielded similar results in difference tissues. Our experiment confirmed that the chemotaxis of EPCs does exist in HCC. Moreover, HIF-1α, SDF-1 and VEGF might play important roles in the "homing" of EPCs in HCC. EPCs might be a potential candidate for targeting vector of HCC for gene therapy.