Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are a leading cause of death. The most notable cause of CVD is an atherosclerotic plaque. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of different diagnostic methods for atherosclerotic plaque relevant to the assessment of cardiovascular risk. The methods can be divided into invasive and non-invasive. This review focuses on non-invasive with attention paid to ultrasonography, contrast-enhanced ultrasonography, intravascular ultrasonography, and assessment of intima-media complex, coronary computed tomography angiography, and magnetic resonance. In the review, we discuss a number of Artificial Intelligence technologies that support plaque imaging.

Early diagnosis of chronic kidney disease (CKD) remains a major clinical challenge. Periostin (POST) and kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1) have been proposed as biomarkers of tubular injury and fibrosis. This study aimed to evaluate their utility as markers associated with CKD stage and their associations with renal function and proteinuria in children. Twenty-three children with CKD stages I–IV and 23 healthy controls were enrolled. Serum and urinary POST and KIM-1 were measured together with creatinine (CR), cystatin C (CysC), proteinuria, albuminuria, and urinary α1- and β2-microglobulin. Patients were classified as early stage (ES; CKD I–II) or late stage (LS; CKD III–IV). Serum and urinary POST and KIM-1, uPOST/CR, uKIM-1/CR, fractional excretion indices (FePOST, FeKIM-1), and UPCR were higher in CKD patients than in controls. Absolute biomarker concentrations did not differ between ES and LS and were not associated with eGFR, UPCR, UACR, or tubular protein excretion. In contrast, uPOST/CR, uKIM-1/CR, FePOST, and FeKIM-1 increased with CKD stage, were higher in LS than ES, correlated positively with CysC, and inversely with eGFR. FePOST and FeKIM-1 also correlated strongly with tubular protein markers. The FePOST/FeKIM-1 ratio was elevated in ES patients compared with controls and remained stable across CKD stages. Fractional excretion of POST and KIM-1 is associated with CKD stage and reflects ongoing tubular injury in children. The FePOST/FeKIM-1 ratio may represent a sensitive marker of early CKD.

Background: Nephrocalcinosis, characterized by the deposition of calcium salts within the renal parenchyma, is frequently identified incidentally in pediatric patients and may be associated with underlying genetic disorders. Sotos syndrome, a rare congenital overgrowth condition associated with neurodevelopment delay and congenital defects caused by mutations or deletions in the NSD1 gene, has been sporadically linked to renal abnormalities, including nephrocalcinosis. Clinical presentation: We report a case of a male patient with Sotos syndrome and concurrent nephrocalcinosis, in whom genetic analysis revealed a microdeletion of chromosome 5q35 with a 2.2 Mb deletion encompassing both NSD1 and SLC34A1 genes. The SLC34A1 gene encodes the NaPi-IIa sodium–phosphate cotransporter, essential for phosphate reabsorption in the renal proximal tubule. Haploinsufficiency of SLC34A1 is implicated in dysregulated phosphate and calcium homeostasis, predisposing to hypercalciuria and nephrocalcinosis. Longitudinal follow-up demonstrated biochemical stability, resolution of nephrocalcinosis, and preserved renal function, supporting the hypothesis of an age-dependent attenuation in NaPi-IIa function. Conclusions: This case underscores the relevance of contiguous gene deletions in shaping complex clinical phenotypes and highlights the importance of early wide clinical screening in patients with Sotos syndrome to mitigate long-term renal complications.

Cardiac tumors present substantial diagnostic challenges due to their diverse manifestations and similarity to other cardiac pathologies. Cardiac lipomas are rare tumors that originate from adipose cells and can develop in any location within the heart. Cardiac lipomas account for 2.4% of all primary cardiac tumors. Most lipomas are located within the cardiac chambers. Among the lipomas occurring within the cardiac chambers, the most common localization is the right atrium. Currently, the gold standard for imaging cardiac tumors is cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR). Despite the significant advantages of CMR, cardiac computed tomography angiography (CCTA) continues to be a valuable technique when CMR is either unavailable or contraindicated. In some cardiac tumors, CCTA can identify the type of tumor. A classic example of this type is a lipoma. We present images of a large interatrial septal lipoma filling the right atrium diagnosed by CCTA in a 57-year-old female Caucasian patient. In summary, CCTA effectively identifies lipomas’ characteristic features and provides crucial information for appropriate management.