Thematic Section Chairperson 1 Introduction F. Piscaglia – C. Nolsøe 2 Generalities D. Cosgrove 3 Equipment H. P. Weskott 4 Investigator’s training O. H. Gilja 5 Terminology F. Piscaglia 6 Safety G. ter Haar 7 Paediatric C. Nolsøe 8 Pancreas M. D’Onofrio 9 Endoscopic CEUS C. F. Dietrich 10 Gastrointestinal tract O. H. Gilja 11 Spleen O. Catalano 12 Kidney M. Bertolotto 13 Vesicoureteral reflux M. Bertolotto 14 Scrotum P. S. Sidhu 15 Abdominal Trauma O. Catalano 16 Lung and pleural lesions G. Mathis 17 Vascular D. Clevert 18 Cerebral vessels G. Seidel 19 Inflammatory joint diseases A. S. Klauser 20 Intracavitary A. Ignee 21 Lymphnodes M. Hocke 22 Tumour response assessment E. Leen 23 Breast D. Cosgrove 24 Adrenals H. P. Weskott 25 Emerging CEUS applications and future perspectives A Gynecology D. Timmerman B Perineum C. F. Dietrich C Urinary Bladder F. M. Drudi D Transplanted Kidney M. Bertolotto E Prostate Cancer J. M. Correas F Aorto-caval fistula D. Clevert G Free Tissue Transplants E. M. Jung H Extrahepatic Biliary System C. F. Dietrich 26 Use of CEUS in patients with renal failure J. M. Correas – T. Albrecht 27 Technical Appendix F. Piscaglia – C. Nolsøe

Background: The incidence of acute hamstring injuries is high in several sports, including the different forms of football. Purpose: The authors investigated the preventive effect of eccentric strengthening of the hamstring muscles using the Nordic hamstring exercise compared with no additional hamstring exercise on the rate of acute hamstring injuries in male soccer players. Study Design: Randomized controlled trial; Level of evidence, 1. Methods: Fifty Danish male professional and amateur soccer teams (942 players) were allocated to an intervention group (461 players) or a control group (481 players). Players in the intervention group conducted a 10-week progressive eccentric training program followed by a weekly seasonal program, whereas players in the control group followed their usual training program. The main outcome measures were numbers of overall, new, and recurrent acute hamstring injuries during 1 full soccer season. Results: Fifty-two acute hamstring injuries in the control group compared with 15 injuries in the intervention group were registered. Comparing intervention versus the control group, overall acute hamstring injury rates per 100 player seasons were 3.8 versus 13.1 (adjusted rate ratio [RR], 0.293; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.150-0.572; P < .001). New injury rates per 100 player seasons were 3.1 versus 8.1 (RR, 0.410; 95% CI, 0.180-0.933; P = .034), whereas recurrent injury rates per 100 player seasons were 7.1 versus 45.8 (RR, 0.137; 95% CI, 0.037-0.509; P = .003). Number needed to treat [NNT] to prevent 1 acute hamstring injury (new or recurrent) is 13 (95% CI, 9-23) players. The NNT to prevent 1 new injury is 25 (95% CI, 15-72) players, and NNT to prevent 1 recurrent injury is 3 (95% CI, 2-6) players. Conclusion: In male professional and amateur soccer players, additional eccentric hamstring exercise decreased the rate of overall, new, and recurrent acute hamstring injuries.

“How to perform contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS)” provides general advice on the use of ultrasound contrast agents (UCAs) for clinical decision-making and reviews technical parameters for optimal CEUS performance. CEUS techniques vary between centers, therefore, experts from EFSUMB, WFUMB and from the CEUS LI-RADS working group created a discussion forum to standardize the CEUS examination technique according to published evidence and best personal experience. The goal is to standardise the use and administration of UCAs to facilitate correct diagnoses and ultimately to improve the management and outcomes of patients.

This manuscript describes the use of ultrasound elastography, with the exception of liver applications, and represents an update of the 2013 EFSUMB (European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology) Guidelines and Recommendations on the clinical use of elastography. Diese Arbeit beschreibt den Einsatz der Ultraschall-Elastografie mit Ausnahme der Leberanwendungen und ist eine Aktualisierung der Leitlinien und Empfehlungen der EFSUMB (European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology) von 2013 zum klinischen Einsatz der Elastografie. ^* All authors contributed equally to the manuscript.

Conventional ultrasound methods for acquiring color images of blood velocity are limited by a relatively low frame-rate and are restricted to give velocity estimates along the ultrasound beam direction only. To circumvent these limitations, the method presented in this paper uses 3 techniques: 1) The ultrasound is not focused during the transmissions of the ultrasound signals; 2) A 13 -bit Barker code is transmitted simultaneously from each transducer element; and 3) The 2-D vector velocity of the blood is estimated using 2-D cross-correlation. A parameter study was performed using the Field II program, and performance of the method was investigated when a virtual blood vessel was scanned by a linear array transducer. An improved parameter set for the method was identified from the parameter study, and a flow rig measurement was performed using the same improved setup as in the simulations. Finally, the common carotid artery of a healthy male was scanned with a scan sequence that satisfies the limits set by the Food and Drug Administration. Vector velocity images were obtained with a frame-rate of 100 Hz where 40 speckle images are used for each vector velocity image. It was found that the blood flow approximately followed the vessel wall, and that maximum velocity was approximately 1 m/s, which is a normal value for a healthy person. To further evaluate the method, the test person was scanned with magnetic resonance (MR) angiography. The volume flow derived from the MR scanning was compared with that from the ultrasound scanning. A deviation of 9% between the 2 volume flow estimates was found.