The new grading system for foraminal stenosis of the lumbar spine showed nearly perfect interobserver and intraobserver agreement and would be helpful for clinical study and routine practice.

Osteoid osteoma is characterized by an intracortical nidus with a variable amount of calcification, as well as cortical thickening, sclerosis, and bone marrow edema. When these findings are present, a diagnosis of osteoid osteoma is easily made. However, osteoid osteoma may display imaging findings that can be misleading, and it can be difficult to differentiate osteoid osteoma from other conditions such as infection, inflammatory and noninflammatory arthritis, and other tumors. In addition, stress fracture, intracortical abscess, intracortical hemangioma, chondroblastoma, osteoblastoma, and compensatory hypertrophy of the pedicle may mimic osteoid osteoma. To make the correct diagnosis, it is necessary to identify the nidus, and it is important to be familiar with the radiologic findings of osteoid osteoma and its mimics.

In osteoporotic VCFs, pulmonary cement embolism was detected in 23% of PVP sessions, developed in the distal to third-order pulmonary arteries, and was related to leakage into the inferior vena cava.

Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is a powerful diagnostic tool that can be used to help evaluate spinal infection and to help distinguish between an infection and other clinical conditions. In most cases of spinal infection, MR images show typical findings such as vertebral endplate destruction, bone marrow and disk signal abnormalities, and paravertebral or epidural abscesses. However, it is not always easy to diagnose a spinal infection, particularly when some of the classic MR imaging features are absent or when there are unusual patterns of infectious spondylitis. Furthermore, noninfectious inflammatory diseases and degenerative disease may simulate spinal infection. It is necessary to be familiar with atypical MR imaging findings of spinal infection and features that may mimic spinal infection to avoid misdiagnosis and inappropriate treatment.

Purpose:To prospectively evaluate the short-and midterm effectiveness of transforaminal epidural steroid injection (TFESI) for lumbosacral radiculopathy with respect to injection level. Materials and Methods:Institutional review board approval and written informed consent were obtained. From March 2005 to February 2006, 239 consecutive patients (106 male, 133 female; mean age, 49.8 years; range, 13-82 years) who were scheduled to undergo lumbar TFESI were enrolled. The patients were randomly assigned to either the ganglionic (TFESI at the location of the exiting nerve root) or preganglionic group (TFESI at the supraadjacent intervertebral disk level). Follow-up was conducted within 1 month (short term) and more than 6 months (midterm) after injections. Short-and midterm outcomes were measured by using a visual analog scale and a four-grade scale. Univariate analysis (by using the Fisher exact and 2 tests) and multiple logistic regression analysis were performed to evaluate the relationship between possible outcome predictors (ganglionic or preganglionic injection levels, cause of radiculopathy, duration of symptoms, age group, and sex) and the therapeutic effect. Results:Univariate analysis showed that the preganglionic group had a better treatment effect (99 of 112, 88.4%) than did the ganglionic group (90 of 127, 70.9%) at short-term follow-up (P ϭ .001). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that the only significant outcome predictor at short-term follow-up was injection level (odds ratio ϭ 2.232, P ϭ .037). No significant difference was identified regarding TFESI approach or cause of radiculopathy at midterm follow-up. Conclusion:TFESI for lumbosacral radiculopathy with a preganglionic approach is more effective than TFESI with a ganglionic approach at short-term follow-up. RSNA, 2007

The new grading system provides a reliable assessment of cervical canal stenosis.

No abstract

Pancreatic fat can be quantified by using CT, and CT attenuation indexes that are applied to the quantification of pancreatic fat are significantly associated with clinical assessment of impaired glucose metabolism.