End-stage renal disease and hemodialysis therapy cause a number of changes, not only somatic but also psychosocial, including the patient’s perception and assessment of their quality of life. The literature describes predispositions to pathologies in the oral mucosa, craniofacial bones, teeth, and surrounding tissues in hemodialysis patients. This study aimed to determine the quality of life of hemodialysis patients in comparison with healthy subjects. The study group consisted of 200 subjects: the HD group (hemodialysis patients, n = 100) and the K group (control group, n = 100). General health and oral status were assessed using the following indices: plaque index, gingival index, probing depth, and clinical adhesion level. The WHOQOL-BREF survey was performed to determine both groups’ overall quality of life. The results showed lower values of assessed quality-of-life parameters in hemodialysis patients compared to the control group, especially in the somatic sphere. General diseases such as oral mycosis, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and coronary-artery disease negatively impact the perceived quality of life. There are numerous indications for comprehensive psychological care of hemodialysis patients due to their poor psychosocial status.

In the article we present pathological intracranial substances and lesions, which produce high signal intensity on T1-weighted MR images. Six groups of substances are discussed: 1. Gadolinium - based contrast agents, 2.hemoglobin degradation products (intra- and extra-cellular methemoglobin), 3. lipid-containing lesions (lipoma, dermoid cyst, implanted fatty materials, laminar cortical necrosis), 4. substances with high concentration of proteins (colloid cyst, craniopharyngioma, Rathke's cleft cyst, ectopic posterior pituitary gland), 5. melanin (metastatic melanoma), 6. lesions containing mineral substances such as: calcium (calcifications, Fahr's disease), copper (Wilson's disease) and manganese (hepatic encephalopathy, manganese intoxication in intravenous drug abusers). Appropriate interpretation of signal intensity as well as analysis of location of lesions and clinical symptoms enables planning of further diagnostics and, in many cases, establishing the final diagnosis based on MR examination.

Odontogenic infections can directly trigger maxillary sinusitis. CBCT is an excellent choice for precise examination of maxillary sinuses and hard tissues within the oral cavity. The objective of this retrospective and the cross-sectional study was to analyze the influence of odontogenic conditions on the presence and intensity of maxillary sinus mucous membrane thickening using CBCT imaging. Moreover, periodontal bone loss and anatomic relationship between adjacent teeth and maxillary sinuses were assessed to evaluate its possible impact on creating maxillary thickening. The study sample consisted of 200 maxillary sinuses of 100 patients visible on CBCT examination with a field of view of 13 × 15 cm. The presented study revealed a significant influence of periapical lesions, inappropriate endodontic treatment, severe caries, and extracted teeth on the presence of increased thickening of maxillary sinus mucous membrane. In addition, an increase in the distance between root apices and maxillary sinus floor triggered a significant reduction of maxillary sinus mucous membrane thickening. The presence of periodontal bone loss significantly increases maxillary sinus mucous membrane thickening.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in the detection of cervical spinal cord integrity alterations in different stages of degenerative spine disease, as well as to compare DTI parameters with selected cervical spinal stenosis measurements. One hundred and thirty-two symptomatic patients (mean age 53.58 years) with different stages of cervical spondylosis and twenty-five control subjects (mean age 45.78 years) were enrolled in the study. DTI was performed with a 1.5 T MR scanner. Three hundred and forty-nine spine segments from C2/C3 to C5/C6 were evaluated and divided into five groups according to the degree of spinal cord compression. The values of fractional anisotropy (FA) and apparent diffusion coefficient at each level were calculated and their correlations with the degree of stenosis were analyzed. FA values differed significantly (p < 0.0001) at all levels between the control group and patients with cervical degenerative disease, including subjects without spinal cord compression visible on plain MR images. A significant (p < 0.01) positive correlation between the mean FA values and anteroposterior diameter of the spinal canal as well as space available for the spinal cord index was demonstrated at all investigated levels. DTI is capable of revealing impairment of the cervical spinal cord microstructure at the very early stage of degenerative spine disease, even prior to spinal cord compression visible on plain MR. Anteroposterior spinal canal diameter as well as space available for the cord index is well related to spinal cord tissue integrity defined by DTI.