Possibilities of the ultrasonography in the diagnosis of craniosynostosis in children of the first year of life

Craniosynostosis is a premature closure of the skull sutures, manifested by deformation of the head requiring surgical treatment. An instrumental examination of the state of the cranial sutures is necessary for the differential diagnosis of craniosynostosis and benign positional deformities of the skull in infants. Traditionally, radiation methods, such as X-ray and computed tomography with three-dimensional reconstruction, are used for this purpose. Over the past two decades, we have accumulated a large amount of data on the high information content of the ultrasound method in assessing the state of the cranial sutures in children. Ultrasound examination is widely available, easy to perform, reproducible; it does not require sedation of the patient and does not carry radiation exposure, which is especially important when examining young children. A negative result of the study makes it possible to exclude the diagnosis of craniosynostosis, while the detection of suture fusion serves as an indication for referring the child to visit a surgeon and further examination. The ultrasound method should be more widely used as a screening method for detecting head deformity and suspicion of craniosynostosis in children of the first year of life.

Ultrasound in the Diagnosis of Perinatal Ischemic Strokes (Literature Review with Their Own Clinical Observations)

The issues of early diagnosis of perinatal arterial stroke (PAII) continue to be discussed in the domestic and foreign literature. Along with MRI, the ultrasound method allows to identify foci of ischemia of different localization and sizes in newborns. During ultrasound, we identified 29 cases of PAIA of different localization in children of different gestational and postnatal age. Analysis of our own and published data showed that up to 32 weeks of gestational development, AII develops in the lenticular-striar basin, and later in the cortical-subcortical region. Diagnostic capabilities of ultrasound in PAII can be significantly expanded by using ultrasound duplex scanning of brain vessels. Our observations showed that the nature of changes in Doppler parameters depends on the localization of the affected vascular basin and on the duration of cerebrovascular disorders

Green Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles using Datura metel Flower Extract Assisted by Ultrasound Method and Its Antibacterial Activity

Background: Green synthesis method of nanoparticles has been developed for several years. Besides providing an environmental-friendly process, the green synthesis of nanoparticles using plant extract provides a synergistic effect of the secondary metabolite. In recent times, the study involving the intensification process in nanoparticle formation also attracts great attention. This research deals with the green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Datura metel flower extract as an antibacterial agent. The use of an ultrasound-assisted method for the synthesis is also investigated in this study. Methods: Synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using Datura metel flower extract under ultrasound-assisted method has been conducted. Evaluation of the successful synthesis was done using UV-visible spectrophotometry, particle size analyzer, x-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. The prepared AgNPs were tested as antibacterial against S. aureus, K. pneumoniae, S. pyogenes, and E. coli. Results: The ultrasound-assisted synthesis of AgNPs produces particles ranging from 25-70 nm in size; meanwhile, the reflux method demonstrated the size of 50-170 nm. These particle sizes represent the effect of the antibacterial activity as the ultrasound-assisted synthesized Ag NPs have a higher inhibition zone towards all tested bacteria. Subsequently, these data presented the applicability of Ag NPs synthesis using an ultrasound method as a potential candidate for biomedical applications. Conclusion: The profile of UV-Visible spectra and particle size analyses demonstrated the applicability of the ultrasound technique to produce a smaller size of the nanoparticles with higher antibacterial activity.

Serous borderline ovarian tumors: modern possibilities of ultrasound diagnostics in monitoring the course of the disease after organ-preserving operations

Relevance. Borderline ovarian tumors (BOT) occur mainly in women of reproductive age and account for 20% of all neoplasms of the female genital organs. Currently, there is an increase in the incidence of ВОТ. One of the reasons for the increase in morbidity is the improvement of knowledge and experience in relation to the morphological diagnosis of tumors of low malignancy potential. Nevertheless, the results of a preliminary instrumental assessment of the nature of the disease and the final diagnosis formed by histological examination are not always satisfactory, since borderline tumors are a thin layer that occupies an intermediate position between benign and malignant tumors. And, in spite of the fact that ВОТ is an independent nosological form in the histological classification, nevertheless, they have signs of both benign and malignant neoplasms. In this regard, the complexity of both instrumental and morphological diagnostics of ВOT becomes understandable, and, therefore, difficulties arise in determining the tactics of treatment, choosing the optimal operation, and the need for drug therapy. All these issues are directly related to the patients quality of life, and, most importantly, to survival. Because an incorrectly established diagnosis entails incorrect treatment and unsatisfactory results. Thus, the study of the peculiarities of ВOT diagnostics is extremely important. The ultrasound computed tomography method is simple, relatively cheap and affordable. Considering that almost all patients with ovarian neoplasms undergo this type of examination, it is extremely important and interesting to assess the role of the ultrasound method in the diagnosis of ВОТ. Moreover, at present more and more gynecological oncologists are resorting to organ-preserving surgical interventions for ВOТ. Therefore, it is especially important to study the possibility of ultrasound diagnostics in monitoring the course of the disease after breast-conserving operations, identifying recurrences of the disease in the ovary, differentiating recurrence and cystic formations of the ovaries. Aim. To determine the effectiveness of computer-assisted ultrasound diagnostics in monitoring the course of BOT after breast-conserving operations. Materials and methods. At Blokhin National Medical Research Center of Oncology carried out a retrospective and prospective analysis of 405 patients with serous BOT for the period 19702013. The age of the patients varied in a wide range, the minimum was 15, the maximum was 78 years, the median corresponded to 38 years. Before the start of treatment, the patients underwent an ultrasound examination (ultrasound) of the abdominal organs, the pelvic organs and the retroperitoneal space. The studies were carried out on expert ultrasonic systems Siemens ACUSON S2000, Hitachi ARIETTA V70 and Philips EPIQ 5. Results. We studied the capabilities of the ultrasound method for diagnosing serous BOT based on the analysis of morpho-ultrasound comparisons in patients after conservative and ultra-conservative operations. Conclusion. It has been established that ultrasound diagnostics is of decisive importance both in the initial diagnosis and in the dynamic observation of patients with conservative and ultra-conservative surgery for serous BOT. Echography makes it possible to diagnose a tumor in the ovary in 83.3% of cases and to reject the diagnosis in 86.7% of cases.

Near-occlusion is difficult to diagnose with common carotid ultrasound methods

Purpose To assess the sensitivity and specificity of common carotid ultrasound method for carotid near-occlusion diagnosis. Methods Five hundred forty-eight patients examined with both ultrasound and CTA within 30 days of each other were analyzed. CTA graded by near-occlusion experts was used as reference standard. Low flow velocity, unusual findings, and commonly used flow velocity parameters were analyzed. Results One hundred three near-occlusions, 272 conventional ≥50% stenosis, 162 <50% stenosis, and 11 occlusions were included. Carotid ultrasound was 22% (95%CI 14–30%; 23/103) sensitive and 99% (95%CI 99–100%; 442/445) specific for near-occlusion diagnosis. Near-occlusions overlooked on ultrasound were found misdiagnosed as occlusions (n = 13, 13%), conventional ≥50% stenosis (n = 65, 63%) and < 50% stenosis (n = 2, 2%). No velocity parameter or combination of parameters could identify the 65 near-occlusions mistaken for conventional ≥50% stenoses with >75% sensitivity and specificity. Conclusion Near-occlusion is difficult to diagnose with commonly used carotid ultrasound methods. Improved carotid ultrasound methods are needed if ultrasound is to retain its position as sole preoperative modality.

The Presentation of Clinical Results of Radiolabelling of 99mTc-MIBI Complex Using Ultrasound Technique for Myocardial Perfusion Scanning (MPS)

Background The initial objective and opinion of this study is introducing the clinical results of the 99mTc-MIBI complex radiolabelling utilizing ultrasound method as an approach for labeling MIBI kits with 99mTc instead of applying a boiling water bath as a usual and standard method. Materials and methods Twenty MIBI kits were bought for twenty patient volunteers. 555–3330 MBq (15–90 mCi) freshly eluted solution of Na+ 99mTcO4− was added to freeze-dry MIBI Kits. Moreover, ten kits were labeled applying ultrasound radiation method as an alternative approach (The vials were sonicated in thermo noted bath (Elma, P = 50 W, Germany) at 60\(\text{℃}\) and for 60 seconds), and other kits were provided applying boiling water bath method as a standard approach. Twenty patient volunteers (8 men and 12 women; age range 30–72, median 52.45 years) took part in this research. These people had gone to the hospital for myocardial perfusion imaging. These twenty volunteer patients were divided into two groups (every group contains ten people): group A (involving 3 men and 7 women with an age range from 36 to 67 years and a mean age of 51.7 years), and group B (involving 5 men and 5 women with an age range from 30 to 72 years and an average age of 50.3 years). The 99mTc-MIBI complex samples provided by ultrasound method were injected into group A subjects intravenously and group B received 99mTc-MIBI vials provided by boiling water bath approach (intravenous injection). In this research, the myocardial perfusion-SPECT was handled applying a rest-stress protocol which is done two isolated days for all volunteer patients. Results The results provided in this research applying radio-HPLC and ITLC, indicate that radio-labeling of MIBI vial with 99mTc can be provided with high effectiveness and appropriate acceptance applying ultrasound method as a novel approach. The imaging research applying SPECT indicated that the 99mTc-MIBI complex samples that were made ready applying ultrasound irradiation approach indicate very similar biodistribution in the heart, thyroid, lung, liver, gallbladder, kidneys, stomach, GI and bladder of the volunteer patients. Non-habitual aggregation of 99mTc-MIBI samples were not observed in our approach. Conclusions This research indicated that sonication approach can be proposed for providing 99mTc-MIBI radio-complex samples. The reaction time to provide radio-complex can be considerably decreased compared to the boiling water bath approach. This main development may decrease potential risk to the patient to inhibit any delay in emergency situations like acute therapy, especially for myocardial infarction patients in clinical practice.