Biomedical subjects

Ming-Ting Wu

Publications and source records attributed to Ming-Ting Wu.

24 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2002

Restoration of thrombosed Brescia-Cimino dialysis fistulas by using percutaneous transluminal angioplasty.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the authors' experience with a technique for management of thrombosed Brescia-Cimino arteriovenous fistula. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty patients with 42 thrombosed arteriovenous fistulas were percutaneously treated. Thrombosis occurred within 24 hours of attempted angioplasty in five fistulas, between 24 and 72 hours in 27, and longer than 72 hours in 10. Thrombosed fistulas were approached in a retrograde fashion followed by direct balloon dilation with 5-8-mm balloon catheters. If retrograde catheterization failed to cross the arterial anastomosis, an antegrade puncture directly into the thrombosed drainage vein close to the anastomosis was performed with ultrasonographic guidance, as an aid to catheterize the arterial inflow. Thrombolytic therapy with infusion of urokinase directly into the thrombus was performed in selected patients with visible thrombus that had compromised blood flow in the partially restored vascular access. Postintervention primary and secondary patency was calculated by using Kaplan-Meier analysis. Patency rates between patients without and with urokinase infusion were examined by using the log-rank test. RESULTS: Anatomic success was achieved in 39 (93%) of 42 fistulas; and clinical patency, in 38 (90%) of 42 fistulas. Postintervention primary and secondary patencies (including initial technical failure) at 6, 12, and 18 months were 81% and 84%, 70% and 80%, and 63% and 80%, respectively. No significance of patency rate between patients without and with urokinase infusion was found (P =.912). Three patients died of unrelated causes at 1, 2, and 5 months after the procedures. No major complications were encountered. CONCLUSION: High anatomic success and excellent clinical patency can be achieved in the salvage of thrombosed arteriovenous fistulas. Percutaneous restoration of arteriovenous fistulas should be attempted before surgical recreation to optimize outcome in patients undergoing hemodialysis.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Prediction of postoperative lung function in patients with lung cancer: comparison of quantitative CT with perfusion scintigraphy.

OBJECTIVE: Prediction of postoperative lung function is important in preoperative evaluation of patients with lung cancer. Perfusion scintigraphy is the current method to assess the fractional contribution of lung function of the remaining lung. We developed a quantitative CT method and compared it with perfusion scintigraphy for predictions of postoperative forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV1) in patients with lung cancer. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Forty-four patients with lung cancer undergoing lung resection with preoperative CT and perfusion scintigraphy were enrolled. Quantitative CT used a dual threshold (-500 and -910 H) on standard preoperative CT to semiautomatically extract lung volume without emphysema or tumor and atelectasis, which we defined as "functional lung volume." Prediction was calculated from preoperative FEV1 multiplied by the fractional contribution of functional lung volume of the remaining lung by quantitative CT. Perfusion scintigraphy was the standard method. Predictions were correlated with postoperatively measured FEV1. RESULTS: Both quantitative CT and perfusion scintigraphy predicted postoperative FEV1 well in patients who underwent pneumonectomy (n = 28, r = 0.88 vs r = 0.86) and in lobectomy (n = 16, r = 0.90 vs r = 0.80) (both, p < 0.001). There was good agreement between the two methods by the Bland-Altman method. In the four patients with low measured postoperative FEV1 (<40% predicted normal), quantitative CT had true-positive prediction in four and perfusion scintigraphy, in only two. CONCLUSION: Given its simplicity, we proposed that quantitative CT be widely used in predicting postoperative FEV1.

Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung↗

PubMed2002

Aberrant course of Swan-Ganz catheter revealing persistent left superior vena cava.

The presence of a persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) is the most common congenital disorder of thoracic venous anomaly. Failure of the left anterior cardinal vein to degenerate results in persistent left superior vena cava. It is usually discovered during central venous catheterization or surgical repair of congenital heart disorder. Although most patients with isolated PLSVC or double SVC are asymptomatic, there are some important clinical implications in certain situations, such as central venous catheterization or cardioplegia, which may result in serious complications. In this article, we present a case with PLSVC revealed by chest roentgenogram after pulmonary artery catheterization via left internal jugular vein. We also discuss the role of computed tomography in the diagnosis of PLSVC.

Aged↗

PubMed2002

Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia mimicking metastases in a patient with gastric carcinoma.

Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is associated with arteriovenous malformation in multiple organs. The association of HHT with primary malignancy has rarely been reported. We describe the case of a 68-year-old man with gastric carcinoma who presented with abdominal fullness and cramping pain. Radiographic examination showed multiple pulmonary nodules and an osteolytic cervical spine lesion. The initial diagnosis of gastric cancer with multiple metastases was revised after meticulous imaging studies revealed these lesions to be vascular malformations in the lungs and vertebra. This case demonstrates that HHT may coexist with a primary malignancy and mimic multiple metastases.

Aged↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Magnetic resonance imaging and diffusion-weighted images of cystic meningioma: correlating with histopathology.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Cystic meningiomas are quite rare, accounting for between 2% and 4% of all intracranial meningiomas. To better understand all the types of cystic meningiomas with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and histopathology, we attempted to correlate the MRI and DWI features of cystic meningiomas with the histopathological findings. METHODS: We collected 15 cases of cystic meningiomas diagnosed between 1993 and 2000 (5 men and 10 women, 41-80 years old). Fifteen patients had conventional MRI and 14 patients had CT scan. DWI was also performed in three patients. Apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) images were also done. In the classification of cystic meningiomas, we adopted Worthington's classification, which divides cystic meningiomas into five groups. RESULTS: Tumor resection was performed in all patients. Tumor locations were as follows: convexity (10), falx (2), pterion (2) and lateral ventricle (1). Regarding the types of cystic lesion, type I (3), type II (3), type III (3), type IV (1) and type V (5) were found. Histopathologically, there were six atypical, four meningothelial, two malignant, one fibroblastic, one angiomatous and one transitional. Intratumoral cystic meningiomas were more common in atypical types. Peritumoral cystic meningiomas were more common in meningothelial and atypical types. The cystic portion of the three cystic meningiomas was hypointense or mildly hyperintense on DWI. ADC ratio (ADCR) of DWI for cyst part of two type I cystic meningiomas was 1.25 and 0.82; for cyst part of one type III was 4.04. CONCLUSIONS: It is important to recognize the neuroimaging features of the cystic meningiomas. Conventional MRI and DWI may play an important role in the preoperative radiological evaluation and the recognition of these types of cysts for proper surgical treatment.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The feasibility of low-dose CT for pulmonary metastasis in patients with primary gynecologic malignancy.

PURPOSE: To assess the feasibility of low-dose CT (LDCT) in the detection of pulmonary metastases in patients with primary gynecologic malignancies and also to compare the performance of chest digital radiography (DR) and LDCT for their delectability of pulmonary metastases, with use of standard-dose CT (SDCT) as the reference standard. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty female patients with primary gynecologic malignancies (age range, 20-76 years; mean age, 50 years) underwent DR, noncontrast LDCT and contrast-enhanced SDCT, which were performed within an interval of 2 weeks. We used lung nodule, mediastinal lymphadenopathy (>10 mm in the short axis) and pleural changes (including effusion, irregular thickening, or nodularity) as the cardinal imaging findings of lung metastases. A five-point scoring system was designed to indicate the probability of lung metastasis from primary gynecologic malignancies. The five-point scores of DR, LDCT, and SDCT were analyzed by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. RESULTS: SDCT probability scores of +2 and -2 were set to indicate true positive and true negative for pulmonary nodule, mediastinal lymphadenopathy, and pleural effusion, respectively. All the areas under the ROC curve of LDCT appeared to be larger than those of DR[pulmonary nodule: 0.96 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.92-1.01] vs. 0.74 [95% CI: 0.57-0.91], 0.82 [95% CI: 0.70-0.95] vs. 0.61 [95% CI: 0.50-0.77]; mediastinal lymphadenopathy: 0.98 [95% CI: 0.93-1.03] vs. 0.90 [95% CI: 0.79-1.01], 0.94 [95% CI: 0.82-1.06] vs. 0.66 [95% CI: 0.44-0.88]; and pleural effusion: 0.98 [95% CI: 0.93-1.03] vs. 0.56 [95% CI: 0.29-0.82], 0.90 [95% CI: 0.74-1.05] vs. 0.46 [95% CI: 0.23-0.68]]. CONCLUSION: The performance of LDCT were comparable to those of SDCT and superior to those of DR for detection of pulmonary nodule, mediastinal lymphadenopathy, and pleural effusion. By using LDCT, there was no need of intravenous contrast injection and less radiation exposure. We propose a protocol including standard-dose abdominal CT and low-dose chest CT for the initial and follow-up stagings of primary gynecologic malignancy. The use of chest DR is unnecessary.

Adult↗