Objective:To prospectively evaluate the ability of dual-energy CT (DECT), compared with MRI, to identify vertebral compression fractures in acute trauma patients.Methods:This institutional review board-approved study included 23 consecutive patients with 32 vertebral fractures who underwent both DECT and MRI of the spine between February 2014 and September 2014. A total of 209 vertebrae were evaluated for the presence of abnormal bone marrow attenuation on DECT and signal on MRI by five experienced radiologists. The specificity, sensitivity, predictive values and intraobserver and interobserver agreements were calculated.Results:MRI revealed a total of 47 vertebrae (22.4% of all vertebrae) and DECT revealed 44 vertebrae (21.0% of all vertebrae) with oedema. Using MRI as the reference standard, DECT had sensitivity, specificity, positive-predictive value, negative-predictive value and accuracy of 89.3, 98.7, 95.4, 96.9 and 96.6%, respectively. With respect to establishing the presence of oedema, the intero...

New imaging techniques and trends in radiology - Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology

Ogul H, et al. Korean J Radiol. 2014 Jul-Aug;15(4):508-522. http://dx.doi.org/10.3348/kjr.2014.15.4.508

Introduction : Current diagnostic measurements used to assess myocardial involvement in Kounis syndrome, such as electrocardiography (ECG), cardiac enzymes, and troponin levels, are relatively insensitive to small but potentially significant functional change. According to our review of the...