• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
• /
• v.45 no.2 s.142
• /
• pp.77-85
• /
• 2007

Among several diagnostic tools for clonorchiasis (Clonorchis sinensis infection), radiologic examinations are commonly used in clinical practices. During the 2 past decades, many reports regarding imaging findings of clonorchiasis were introduced. The basic imaging finding of clonorchiasis is diffuse dilatation of the peripheral intra-hepatic bile ducts, without dilation of the large intrahepatic or extrahepatic bile ducts. By this finding, however, active clonorchiasis cannot be differentiated from cured infection. Some recent radiologic studies suggested specific findings of active clonorchiasis. Besides direct demonstration of worms, increased periductal echogenicity on sonography and periductal enhancement on dynamic contrast-enhanced CT or MR imaging possibly represent active clonorchiasis. Those images of the liver clonorchiasis are known to be correlated with worm burdens (EPG counts) in their frequency and also severity. The images of cholangiocarcinoma associated with clonorchiasis show both the tumor with obstruction images and diffuse dilatation of the peripheral intrahepatic bile ducts. Radiological images can be a good practical alternative diagnostic method of clonorchiasis.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
• /
• v.25 no.1
• /
• pp.33-42
• /
• 2024

Focal enhancement typically suggests local tumor progression (LTP) after renal cell carcinoma is percutaneously ablated. However, evaluating findings that are false positive or negative of LTP is less familiar to radiologists who have little experience with renal ablation. Various imaging features are encountered during and after thermal ablation. Ablation procedures and previous follow-up imaging should be reviewed before determining if there is LTP. Previous studies have focused on detecting the presence or absence of focal enhancement within the ablation zone. Therefore, various diagnostic pitfalls can be experienced using computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging examinations. This review aimed to assess how to read images during or after ablation procedures, recognize imaging features of LTP and determine factors that influence LTP.

• Journal of Radiopharmaceuticals and Molecular Probes
• /
• v.3 no.2
• /
• pp.72-79
• /
• 2017

Arbutin is a hydroquinone derivative with a glucose moiety. As a tyrosinase inhibitor, it is widely used as a skin-whitening cosmetic agent for the treatment of cutaneous hyperpigmentary disorders, such as melasma and freckles. In the medical field, many studies have addressed the use of arbutin in various tumors, but the mechanism for tumor uptake of arbutin is still unclear. In this paper, we radiolabeled arbutin using radioiodine and studied its pharmacokinetics and tumor uptake via biodistribution experiments and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging. Radiolabeled $^{131}I-arbutin$ was stable for up to 24 h in PBS and serum. Biodistribution studies and SPECT imaging indicated high uptake of the compound in the bladder and kidneys shortly after injection. Twenty-four hours post-injection, significant deiodination was observed. Apart from high thyroid uptake, selective tumor uptake was clearly observed. The tumor-to-muscle and tumor-to-blood ratios were 26 and 9, respectively.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
• /
• v.24 no.12
• /
• pp.1260-1283
• /
• 2023

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been extensively applied in the study of multiple sclerosis (MS), substantially contributing to diagnosis, differential diagnosis, and disease monitoring. MRI studies have significantly contributed to the understanding of MS through the characterization of typical radiological features and their clinical or prognostic implications using conventional MRI pulse sequences and further with the application of advanced imaging techniques sensitive to microstructural damage. Interpretation of results has often been validated by MRI-pathology studies. However, the application of MRI techniques in the study of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) remains an emerging field, and MRI studies have focused on radiological correlates of NMOSD and its pathophysiology to aid in diagnosis, improve monitoring, and identify relevant prognostic factors. In this review, we discuss the main contributions of MRI to the understanding of MS and NMOSD, focusing on the most novel discoveries to clarify differences in the pathophysiology of focal inflammation initiation and perpetuation, involvement of normal-appearing tissue, potential entry routes of pathogenic elements into the CNS, and existence of primary or secondary mechanisms of neurodegeneration.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
• /
• v.23 no.1
• /
• pp.77-88
• /
• 2022

Objective: Our study aimed to evaluate the quality of radiomics studies on brain metastases based on the radiomics quality score (RQS), Transparent Reporting of a multivariable prediction model for Individual Prognosis Or Diagnosis (TRIPOD) checklist, and the Image Biomarker Standardization Initiative (IBSI) guidelines. Materials and Methods: PubMed MEDLINE, and EMBASE were searched for articles on radiomics for evaluating brain metastases, published until February 2021. Of the 572 articles, 29 relevant original research articles were included and evaluated according to the RQS, TRIPOD checklist, and IBSI guidelines. Results: External validation was performed in only three studies (10.3%). The median RQS was 3.0 (range, -6 to 12), with a low basic adherence rate of 50.0%. The adherence rate was low in comparison to the "gold standard" (10.3%), stating the potential clinical utility (10.3%), performing the cut-off analysis (3.4%), reporting calibration statistics (6.9%), and providing open science and data (3.4%). None of the studies involved test-retest or phantom studies, prospective studies, or cost-effectiveness analyses. The overall rate of adherence to the TRIPOD checklist was 60.3% and low for reporting title (3.4%), blind assessment of outcome (0%), description of the handling of missing data (0%), and presentation of the full prediction model (0%). The majority of studies lacked pre-processing steps, with bias-field correction, isovoxel resampling, skull stripping, and gray-level discretization performed in only six (20.7%), nine (31.0%), four (3.8%), and four (13.8%) studies, respectively. Conclusion: The overall scientific and reporting quality of radiomics studies on brain metastases published during the study period was insufficient. Radiomics studies should adhere to the RQS, TRIPOD, and IBSI guidelines to facilitate the translation of radiomics into the clinical field.

• Journal of Radiopharmaceuticals and Molecular Probes
• /
• v.1 no.1
• /
• pp.23-30
• /
• 2015

Radioisotopes emitting low-range highly ionizing radiation such as ${\beta}$-particles are of increasing significance in internal radiotherapy. Among the ${\beta}$-particle emitting radioisotopes, $^{67}Cu$ is an attractive radioisotope for various nuclear medicine applications due to its medium energy ${\beta}$-particle, gamma emissions, and 61.83-hour half-life, which can also be used with $^{64}Cu$ for PET imaging. The production and application of the ${\beta}$-emitting radioisotope $^{67}Cu$ for therapeutic radiopharmaceutical are outlined, and different production routes are discussed. A survey of copper chelators used for antibody labeling is provided. It has been produced via proton, alpha, neutron, and gamma irradiations followed by solvent extraction, ion exchange, electrodeposition. Clinical studies using $^{67}Cu$-labelled antibodies in lymphoma, colon carcinoma and bladder cancer patients are reviewed. Widespread use of this isotope for clinical studies and preliminary treatments has been limited by unreliable supplies, cost, and difficulty in obtaining therapeutic quantities.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
• /
• v.43 no.3
• /
• pp.174-178
• /
• 2009

Many radiopharmaceuticals have been developed and wildy used in the imaging cardiac function. Myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) is a well established noninvasive method of assessing coronary blood flow and has been widely used in patients diagnosed or suspected with coronary artery diseases. The innovation of radiopharmaceuticals used in the cardiac imaging is one of the most important contributors to the development of nuclear cardiology. Thallium-201 and various technetium-99m agents have been globally used for myocardial perfusion SPEG, and N-13 ammonia (13NH3), rubidium-82 (82Rb), 0-15 water (H2150) for myocardial perfusion PET. As well as the cardiac perfusion studies, new radiopharmaceuticals that visualize fat metabolism or receptors of the sympathetic nervous system have successfully been applied to clinical practice. Useful information can be obtained for diagnosing coronary artery disease, evaluating patients' condition, or assessing therapeutic effects. In this review, we describe the characteristics and clinical usefulness of radiopharmaceuticals used for cardiac SPEG and PET.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
• /
• v.34 no.1
• /
• pp.207-210
• /
• 2013

We report the construction of a MALDI imaging mass spectrometer equipped with a specially designed laser focusing lens, a compact aspherical singlet lens, that obtains a high-lateral imaging resolution in the microprobe mode. The lens is specially designed to focus the ionization laser (${\lambda}$ = 355 nm) down to a $1{\mu}m$ diameter with a long working distance of 34.5 mm. With the lens being perpendicular to the sample surface and sharing the optical axis with the ion path, the imaging mass spectrometer achieved an imaging resolution of as good as $5{\mu}m$ along with a high detection sensitivity of 100 fmol for peptides. The mass resolution was about 900 (m/${\Delta}m$) in the linear TOF mode. The high-resolution capability of this instrument will provide a new research opportunity for label-free imaging studies of various samples including tissues and biochips, even for the study at a single cell level in the future.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
• /
• v.23 no.2
• /
• pp.81-99
• /
• 2019

Recently, deep learning methods have shown great potential in various tasks that involve handling large amounts of digital data. In the field of MR imaging research, deep learning methods are also rapidly being applied in a wide range of areas to complement or replace traditional model-based methods. Deep learning methods have shown remarkable improvements in several MR image processing areas such as image reconstruction, image quality improvement, parameter mapping, image contrast conversion, and image segmentation. With the current rapid development of deep learning technologies, the importance of the role of deep learning in MR imaging research appears to be growing. In this article, we introduce the basic concepts of deep learning and review recent studies on various MR image processing applications.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
• /
• v.1 no.4
• /
• pp.185-190
• /
• 2000

Objective: To document the imaging findings of hepatic cavernous hemangioma detected in cirrhotic liver. Materials and Methods: The imaging findings of 14 hepatic cavernous hemangiomas in ten patients with liver cirrhosis were retrospectively analyzed. A diagnosis of hepatic cavernous hemangioma was based on the findings of two or more of the following imaging studies: MR, including contrast-enhanced dynamic imaging (n = 10), dynamic CT (n = 4), hepatic arteriography (n = 9), and US (n = 10). Results: The mean size of the 14 hepatic hemangiomas was 0.9 (range, 0.5-1.5) cm in the longest dimension. In 11 of these (79%), contrast-enhanced dynamic CT and MR imaging showed rapid contrast enhancement of the entire lesion during the early phase, and hepatic arteriography revealed globular enhancement and rapid filling-in. On contrast-enhanced MR images, three lesions (21%) showed partial enhancement until the 5-min delayed phases. US indicated that while three slowly enhancing lesions were homogeneously hyperechoic, 9 (82%) of 11 showing rapid enhancement were not delineated. Conclusion: The majority of hepatic cavernous hemangiomas detected in cirrhotic liver are small in size, and in many, hepatic arteriography and/or contrast-enhanced dynamic CT and MR imaging demonstrates rapid enhancement. US, however, fails to distinguish a lesion of this kind from its cirrhotic background.