Dual-Energy Spectral in CT Aids in Diagnosis of Acute Gangrenous Appendicitis
Imaging confirms or excludes the presence of gangrenous appendicitis with high sensitivity and specificity.
Dual-energy CT with virtual monoenergetic and iodine overlay imaging accurately confirms or excludes the presence of gangrenous appendicitis, according to a study published in the American Journal of Roentgenology.
Researchers from Canada performed a retrospective study to determine if the use of dual-energy spectral techniques in CT can improve accuracy in the diagnosis of acute gangrenous appendicitis.
Related article: CT Technology: An Overview of the Latest Menu
A total of 209 patients with a pathologic diagnosis of appendicitis were included in the study. Two board-certified abdominal radiologists reviewed 120-kV simulated images, 40-keV virtual monoenergetic images, and color-coded iodine overlay images.
The results showed 44 patients (21.0%) had histopathologic results positive for gangrenous appendicitis. Other findings were:
All cases of gangrenous appendicitis had true-positive results of virtual monoenergetic and iodine overlay imaging. There were no false-negative results of virtual monoenergetic or iodine overlay imaging.
The researchers concluded that in cases of suspected appendicitis, dual-energy CT that includes virtual monoenergetic and iodine overlay imaging is accurate for confirming and excluding the presence of gangrenous appendicitis with high sensitivity and specificity.
Study with CT Data Suggests Women with PE Have More Than Triple the One-Year Mortality Rate than Men
April 3rd 2025After a multivariable assessment including age and comorbidities, women with pulmonary embolism (PE) had a 48 percent higher risk of one-year mortality than men with PE, according to a new study involving over 33,000 patients.
The Reading Room: Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Cancer Screenings, and COVID-19
November 3rd 2020In this podcast episode, Dr. Shalom Kalnicki, from Montefiore and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, discusses the disparities minority patients face with cancer screenings and what can be done to increase access during the pandemic.
Predicting Diabetes on CT Scans: What New Research Reveals with Pancreatic Imaging Biomarkers
March 25th 2025Attenuation-based biomarkers on computed tomography (CT) scans demonstrated a 93 percent interclass correlation coefficient (ICC) agreement across three pancreatic segmentation algorithms for predicting diabetes, according to a study involving over 9,700 patients.
Can Photon-Counting CT be an Alternative to MRI for Assessing Liver Fat Fraction?
March 21st 2025Photon-counting CT fat fraction evaluation offered a maximum sensitivity of 81 percent for detecting steatosis and had a 91 percent ICC agreement with MRI proton density fat fraction assessment, according to new prospective research.
