More articles from HEAD & NECK
- Indentation and Transverse Diameter of the Meckel Cave: Imaging Markers to Diagnose Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension
The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the shape (bilobed or indented appearance of the Meckel cave) or the size/volume of the Meckel cave on T2-weighted MRI could serve as a noninvasive diagnostic imaging marker for the diagnosis of idiopathic intracranial hypertension. The authors studied 75 patients with a diagnosis of IIH and 75 age-and sex-matched healthy controls. The transverse diameter of the Meckel cave was measured in the axial and coronal planes of T2-weighted MRI, and comparison was made between the 2 groups. Of 75 patients with an approved diagnosis of IIH, 57 (76%) showed an indented Meckel cave as opposed to 21 (28%) in the control group. They conclude that the shape and size of the Meckel cave can be used as sensitive and specific diagnostic imaging markers for the diagnosis of IIH.
- Posttreatment Imaging in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer without Clinical Evidence of Recurrence: Should Surveillance Imaging Extend Beyond 6 Months?
The authors performed a retrospective data base search that queried neck CT reports with Neck Imaging Reporting and Data Systems scores of 2–4 from June 2014 to March 2018. The electronic medical records were reviewed to determine outcomes of clinical and radiologic follow-up, including symptoms, physical examination findings, pathologic correlation, and clinical notes within 3 months of imaging. A total of 255 cases all with NIRADS scores of 2 or 3 met the inclusion criteria. Fifty-nine patients (23%) demonstrated recurrence, and 21 patients (36%) had clinically occult recurrence. The median overall time to radiologically detected, clinically occult recurrence was 11.4 months from treatment completion. They conclude that imaging surveillance beyond the first posttreatment baseline study was critical for detecting clinically occult recurrent disease in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. More than one-third of all recurrences were seen in patients without clinical evidence of disease.