Projection radiography of the ankle; the views used for different indications vary between medical imaging departments

Plain radiographs are used for initial evaluation of many conditions of the ankle. Many different radiographic views are described in positioning textbooks but evidence on which views to use, in which case, is scarce. The aim of this study was to map imaging procedures related to four indications for ankle projection radiography. A questionnaire was sent to all medical imaging departments in Iceland with questions about acquisition technique for ankle radiography views and which views were used for selected indications. Answer was received from 14 of the 28 departments. All departments gave very similar descriptions of the four most common views. In the case of trauma, all but one department used four views but for control of trauma or operation, four different combinations of views were found using from two to four images. For detrition and osteomyelitis, four views were more common in the larger departments but there was not a statistically significant difference. Eight different combinations of the number of views for the four indications were found. The study indicates that there is a need for standardization in image acquisition protocols. More studies are needed to support decisions about how many views are necessary for the most common ankle radiography indications.

Fluorescence Microscopy—An Outline of Hardware, Biological Handling, and Fluorophore Considerations

Fluorescence microscopy has become a critical tool for researchers to understand biological processes at the cellular level. Micrographs from fixed and live-cell imaging procedures feature in a plethora of scientific articles for the field of cell biology, but the complexities of fluorescence microscopy as an imaging tool can sometimes be overlooked or misunderstood. This review seeks to cover the three fundamental considerations when designing fluorescence microscopy experiments: (1) hardware availability; (2) amenability of biological models to fluorescence microscopy; and (3) suitability of imaging agents for intended applications. This review will help equip the reader to make judicious decisions when designing fluorescence microscopy experiments that deliver high-resolution and informative images for cell biology.

A Review of Doses for Dental Imaging in 2010–2020 and Development of a Web Dose Calculator

Dental imaging is one of the most common types of diagnostic radiological procedures in modern medicine. We introduce a comprehensive table of organ doses received by patients in dental imaging procedures extracted from literature and a new web application to visualize the summarized dose information. We analyzed articles, published after 2010, from PubMed on organ and effective doses delivered by dental imaging procedures, including intraoral radiography, panoramic radiography, and cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), and summarized doses by dosimetry method, machine model, patient age, and technical parameters. Mean effective doses delivered by intraoral, 1.32 (0.60–2.56) μSv, and panoramic, 17.93 (3.47–75.00) μSv, procedures were found to be about1% and 15% of that delivered by CBCT, 121.09 (17.10–392.20) μSv, respectively. In CBCT imaging, child phantoms received about 29% more effective dose than the adult phantoms received. The effective dose of a large field of view (FOV) (>150 cm2) was about 1.6 times greater than that of a small FOV (<50 cm2). The maximum CBCT effective dose with a large FOV for children, 392.2 μSv, was about 13% of theeffective dose that a person receives on average every year from natural radiation, 3110 μSv. Monte Carlo simulations of representative cases of the three dental imaging procedures were then conducted to estimate and visualize the dose distribution within the head. The user-friendly interactive web application (available at http://dentaldose.org) receives user input, such as the number of intraoral radiographs taken, and displays total organ and effective doses, dose distribution maps, and a comparison with other medical and natural sources of radiation. The web dose calculator provides a practical resource for patients interested in understanding the radiation doses delivered by dental imaging procedures.

Management of Two Unusual Patients With Vascular Anomalies

Vascular anomalies form a significant portion of congenital defects and venous malformations are the most prevalent type among adults. Multiple imaging modalities have been proposed for pre-operation assessments. Although some studies have reported Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) as the most valuable modality, in many situations, CT scan remains the equipment of choice due to its availability. In each case, a precise assessment of the malformation is needed. In two cases mentioned in our study, prior to the operations, only a monophasic CT scan was performed that resulted in missing evidence of severity and extent of venous malformation. One of the imaging procedures is a three-phase CT scan. Although in the monophasic CT scans, a delay of 65 seconds is applied, in three-phase CT, both filling in and washing out are notable, which gives three-phase CT a more predictive value about flow pattern over monophasic CT.

Trends in contrast media research the last 100 years

This review focuses on the trends in contrast media (CM) research published in Acta Radiologica during the last 100 years, since the first edition in 1921. The main topics covered are the developments of iodine- and gadolinium-based CM. Other topics include manganese-based CM for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and barium for the investigation of the alimentary tract. From a historic point of view, special CM for use in cholegraphy and myelography are addressed in the review. Today, these imaging procedures are obsolete due to the development of computed tomography, MRI, and ultrasound. The historical use of radioactive thorium-based CM for angiography is also addressed. Furthermore, publications on adverse reactions to CM are reviewed.

Knowledge, attitude, and behavior of Turkish dentists about radiation protection and radiation safety

Objectives: Dentists use dental imaging methods frequently in the diagnosis and treatment of dental diseases. This study aimed to determine dentists' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors about radiation protection during dental imaging procedures. Methods: Dentists from two major dental health centres in İzmir province were asked to participate in this study. The participants replied to a questionnaire that consisted of questions on the use of radiographic devices, knowledge on the radiation protection of patients and staff, and attitudes and behaviors regarding radiation protection. The questionnaire also included questions about the socio-demographic characteristics of the participants. Descriptive statistics of data were performed using the SPSS software program. Results: Sixty-six dentists participated in the survey. The mean knowledge score of dentists on dental imaging, radiation, and radiation protection was 8.3 ± 2.6 out of 17, while the mean attitude and behavior score was 8.3 ± 2.1 out of 27.97% of the participants stated that medical imaging technicians should carry out imaging procedures. The use of rectangular collimators was 9.1%, and using E/F film was 56.3% among dentists. 23.3% of participants stated that they applied the bisecting angle technique during dental imaging, 23.8% stated that they wear a lead apron during imaging, and 37.8% stated that they always used thyroid shields on the patients. In addition, 37.2% of the dentists stated that the patient holds the film during preapical radiography, and 81.5% used the same imaging parameters for adult and pediatric patients. 62% of dentists stated that they question the pregnancy of female patients before imaging. Conclusion: Findings of the study suggest that the knowledge of dentists about dental imaging procedures and radiation protection needs to be improved. The implementation and the follow-up of quality training programs in accordance with the standards set by the national authority will be of great importance.