Objective: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between computed tomography (CT)-derived Hounsfield Unit (HU) measurements and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and to evaluate the feasibility of using contrast-enhanced abdominal CT as a complementary tool in the assessment of bone health in liver transplant recipients. Methods: This retrospective descriptive and analytical study included adult liver transplant recipients who underwent both contrast-enhanced abdominal CT and DXA within a three-month interval. HU measurements were obtained from sagittal and axial reformatted images at the lumbar spine (L1–L4) and femoral neck. All CT examinations were performed using a standardized venous-phase protocol. DXA-derived T-scores from the lumbar spine and femur served as the reference standard. Correlation analyses and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate associations between HU values and BMD, as well as the diagnostic performance of HU in identifying low bone density. Results: A total of 259 recipients (mean age 55.7 ± 14.4 years; 62.9% male) were included. Based on lumbar spine DXA, 17.8% had normal BMD, 36.7% were osteopenic, and 45.5% were osteoporotic. CT-derived HU values at both the lumbar spine and femoral neck were significantly lower in patients with reduced BMD and showed a graded decline across worsening DXA categories. HU values demonstrated positive correlations with corresponding T-scores. Diagnostic performance for detecting osteoporosis was fair, with AUCs of 0.700 (sagittal), 0.698 (axial), and 0.751 (femoral). Conclusion: Contrast-enhanced abdominal CT provides useful ancillary information for opportunistic bone health assessment. CT-derived HU values offer a rapid and cost-effective complementary tool but should not replace DXA in the diagnostic evaluation of osteoporosis

Pediatric liver transplant (LT) recipients are at increased risk of impaired bone mineral accrual due to chronic liver disease, growth disturbances, and post-transplant metabolic factors. Although dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) remains the reference method for evaluating bone mineral density (BMD), opportunistic assessment using routine abdominal computed tomography (CT) has emerged as a potential adjunct tool. This study aimed to evaluate the potential of using routine abdominal CT scans to assess bone health in pediatric LT recipients by comparing lumbar vertebral Hounsfield unit (HU) values with those obtained using DXA. This retrospective study included 62 pediatric LT recipients who underwent both abdominal CT and lumbar spine DXA within a 3-month period. HU values were measured at vertebral levels L1–L4 in both the sagittal and axial planes. DXA z -scores were classified according to International Society for Clinical Densitometry pediatric guidelines. Correlation and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses were performed to determine the diagnostic performance of HU values. Patients with low bone mineral density had significantly lower sagittal HU values ( p < 0.05). Moderate correlation was found between sagittal mean HU and DXA z -scores ( r = 0.429, p = 0.003), whereas weaker correlation was observed for axial HU values ( r = 0.266, p = 0.037). ROC analysis demonstrated a moderate discriminative ability for sagittal HU (AUC = 0.713, p = 0.016), with an optimal cut-off value of 188 HU yielding 83% sensitivity and 68% specificity. Conclusion : CT-derived HU values from routine abdominal imaging may provide valuable supplementary information on bone health in pediatric LT recipients. However, CT-based bone assessment should be considered a complementary approach, enhancing clinical decision-making by providing supportive quantitative information in scenarios where DXA is unavailable or impractical. What is Known: • Pediatric liver transplant recipients are at increased risk of impaired bone mineral accrual, and DXA remains the reference standard for pediatric bone mineral density assessment. • In adults, vertebral HU values from routine CT correlate with bone mineral density, but evidence in pediatric populations remains limited. What is New: • CT-derived sagittal vertebral HU values showed a moderate correlation with DXA lumbar z-scores in pediatric liver transplant recipients, whereas axial measurements were weaker. • A sagittal mean threshold of ~188 HU demonstrated a moderate diagnostic performance for identifying low bone mineral density, supporting opportunistic contrast-enhanced CT as a complementary—not replacement—tool to DXA.

Detection of common bile duct dilatation on magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography by deep learning - Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology

AIM: To determine the effectiveness of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in diagnosing cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM) in patients with no findings detected in conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). MATERIAL and METHODS: Fifty-four patients who presented for cervical MRI between January 2016 and June 2016, with symptoms such as neck pain, paresis, and numbness in hands, were included in the study. The patients were split into four groups based on their degrees of spinal stenosis. The obtained data were examined using special software and color-coded fractional anisotropy (FA), and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps were formed. Through these maps, using regions of interest (ROIs), FA and ADC values were calculated and the contribution of these values to the diagnosis was evaluated statistically. RESULTS: When all grades of cervical spinal canal stenosis were compared, a statistically significant negative correlation between spinal canal stenosis degree and FA values, and a positive correlation between stenosis degree and ADC values were noted (p<0.001). In the comparison of stenotic levels and non-stenotic levels for the grade 2 patient group, there was a statistically significant decrease in FA values and an increase in ADC values in stenotic levels compared with prestenotic and poststenotic levels (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: DTI and quantitative FA and ADC measurements are candidate imaging techniques for the diagnosis of early-stage CSM, which shows no findings in conventional MRI, and determining the degree of spinal cord injury.

Objectives: The aim of this study is to examine the kidney morphology and somatotype components of adult patients with early-stage chronic kidney disease (CKD).Methods: The sample consisted of 46 individuals with early-stage CKD (26 men and 20 women, mean age=45.92 +/- 16.53 years). The pathological subjects were compared with a control group consisting of 46 healthy subjects (28 men and 18 women, mean age=41.96 +/- 11.48 years). The Heath-Carter method was used to determine somatotype components. Abdominal computed tomography (CT) of patients with Stage 2 CKD and healthy volunteers taken within the past 3 months was scanned to determine kidney morphology. Kidney measurements were performed on CTs (length, width, depth, and volume of kidney).Results: Kidney patients (mean somatotype: 6.33-5.37-0.6) were less ectomorphic and more endomorphic than the controls (mean somatotype: 4.35-4.40-3.02). Moderate effect size (ES) was found in endomorphy (ES=0.87; p=0.035) and ectomorphy (ES=1.08; p=0.012) between groups. No significant difference was observed in the kidney morphology (ES=0.04-0.19; p>0.05).Conclusion: In the early-stage CKD, kidney morphology may not be the distinguishing factor. On the other hand, patients differed significantly in terms of endomorph components. Being overweight can also be one of the negative findings for kidney disease. Somatotype classification could be a suitable tool for monitoring kidney disease.