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Biomedical subjects

E M Robertson

Publications and source records attributed to E M Robertson.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Can radiologists detect osteopenia on plain radiographs?

The main purpose of this study was to compare subjective estimates of vertebral ostepenia with bone mineral density (BMD) measurements of the same region in 200 (107 male, 93 female) subjects, aged 52-90 years, invited randomly from the community. Standardized plain thoracolumbar radiographs were examined by three senior radiologists, and given a semiquantitative osteopenia score using the method of Saville. The BMD of the anteroposterior (AP) lumbar spine and femoral neck was measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. In addition BMD measurements were compared in subjects without significant vertebral deformity, and those with mild (20-25%) or definite (> 25%) reductions of vertebral height. For the Saville score, intraobserver agreement was moderate to good (kappa 0.46-0.57), and interobserver agreement was fair to moderate (kappa 0.25-0.41). Although the overlap between gradings was considerable, BMD was significantly related to visually estimated osteopenia. Subjects without apparent radiographic osteopenia (Saville grade 0) had a low risk (9-15%), compared to those with definite osteopenia (64-86%), of falling below the lowest quartile of BMD at either the femoral neck or the AP spine. In women (but not men), BMD measured at the hip and spine was related to vertebral deformity.

Absorptiometry, Photon

Computed tomography (CT) appearances of acute pancreatitis presenting as polyarthropathy with subcutaneous fat necrosis.

A case of severe acute pancreatitis presenting with polyarthropathy and subcutaneous nodules but no abdominal pain is described. Abdominal CT showed multiple subcutaneous soft tissue densities which on histological examination were identified as areas of fat necrosis consistent with pancreatic disease. Such CT appearances have not been described previously.

Acute Disease

Low-field (0.08 T) magnetic resonance imaging of the pancreas: comparison with computed tomography and ultrasound.

Seventy-four patients referred for computed tomography (CT) and ultrasound examination with a presumptive diagnosis of pancreatic disease have been studied using a low-field (0.08 T) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging instrument. A further 50 patients being examined for non-pancreatic disease were also examined to assess the appearances of the normal pancreas. All the MR examinations were performed using an interleaved saturation-recovery/short inversion time (TI) inversion-recovery sequence. Part or all of the pancreas was seen in 96% of normal cases. In inflammatory disease, MR was more accurate than either CT or ultrasound for diagnosis, whilst for the demonstration of pancreatic tumours, MR was found to be no better or worse than either CT or ultrasound. The use of specific T1 measurement for soft-tissue characterization was not useful because of the large overlap in values between normal, inflamed and malignant pancreatic tissue. T1 measurement was found to be useful in differentiating different pathological fluids.

Adult

Role of computed tomography in assessing "operability" of bronchial carcinoma.

To try to assess the accuracy of predicting "operability" (as defined by local policy) of bronchial carcinoma 300 patients underwent computed tomography of the thorax in a prospective study. The results of 141 patients showed an agreement between computed tomographic and surgical (including pathological) findings in those patients who had received operations. Most of the other patients had more advanced disease than suggested by the findings of computed tomography. A total of 118 patients did not receive operations: in 47 their disease was considered to be inoperable on the basis of computed tomographic findings alone, and this was accepted by the cardiothoracic surgeons after consultation. Thirty two other patients had further evidence of metastatic disease on other investigations. Computed tomography of the thorax should be performed early in the assessment of operability of patients with bronchial carcinoma and before the start of an extensive search for metastatic disease.

Carcinoma, Bronchogenic

An assessment of intravenous urogram imaging using 100 mm and conventional films.

A clinical trial was designed to compare the amount of useful diagnostic information obtained from the ten-minute (24 x 30 cm) film of an IVU when using either indirect (100 mm) or conventional radiography. The films for 50 patients were independently examined by ten radiologists. Eight observers considered conventional radiography to be significantly better than indirect (100 mm) radiography, P less than 0.05, and two observers considered that there was no significant difference. Possible applications of indirect radiography are briefly described.

Adult