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ABSTRACT: This study was done to assess the presence of both asymptomatic and symptomatic intervertebral disc calcifications in a large paediatric population.
We retrospectively reviewed the radiographs taken during the past 26 years in children (age 0-18 years) undergoing imaging of the spine or of other body segments in which the spine was adequately depicted, to determine possible intervertebral disc calcifications. The following clinical evaluation was extrapolated from the patients' charts: presence of spinal symptoms, history of trauma, suspected or clinically evident scoliosis, suspected or clinically evident syndromes, bone dysplasias, and pre- or postoperative chest or abdominal X-rays.
We detected intervertebral disc calcifications in six patients only. Five calcifications were asymptomatic (one newborn baby with Patau syndrome; three patients studied to rule out scoliosis, hypochondroplasia and syndromic traits; one for dyspnoea due to sunflower seeds inhalation). Only one was symptomatic, with acute neck pain. Calcifications varied in number from one in one patient to two to five in the others.
Apart from the calcification in the patient with cervical pain, all calcifications were asymptomatic and constituted an incidental finding (particularly those detected at the thoracic level in the patient studied for sunflower-seed inhalation). Calcification shapes were either linear or round. Our series confirms that intervertebral disc calcifications are a rare finding in childhood and should not be a source of concern: symptomatic calcifications tend to regress spontaneously within a short time with or without therapy and immobilisation, whereas asymptomatic calcifications may last for years but disappear before the age of 20 years. Only very few cases, such as those of medullary compression or severe dysphagia due to anterior herniation of cervical discs, may require surgical procedures.
La radiologia medica 04/2009; 114(2):331-41. · 1.44 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: The aim of this study was to describe the radiological features of simple or dilated (syringocele) Cowper's ducts in a large paediatric population.
Voiding cystourethrography procedures performed during the past 24 years were evaluated taking into special account urethral morphology. The procedures were performed to study all sorts of possible urinary affections.
A total of 1,676 male children (age: newborn to 18 years) underwent 2,340 voiding cystourethrographies. Opacification of Cowper's ducts was observed in nine children (0.53%) - in six (0.35%) as a thin, radiopaque image running parallel to the inferior edge of the membranous-bulbar urethra and in three (0.18%) as a dilated structure (syringocele); this was a source of significant voiding problems.
Opacification of Cowper's ducts - even if rare - has to be recognised as a possible anatomical finding during voiding cystourethrography in paediatric patients. An accessory finding devoid of pathological meaning in most cases, it can, however, be a possible cause of voiding disorders in some instances.
La radiologia medica 10/2006; 111(6):855-62. · 1.44 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Purpose.The aim of this study was to describe the radiological features of simple or dilated (syringocele) Cowper‘s ducts in a large
paediatric population.
Materials and methods.Voiding cystourethrography procedures performed during the past 24 years were evaluated taking into special account urethral
morphology. The procedures were performed to study all sorts of possible urinary affections.
Results.A total of 1,676 male children (age: newborn to 18 years) underwent 2,340 voiding cystourethrographies. Opacification of Cowper’s
ducts was observed in nine children (0.53%) – in six (0.35%) as a thin, radiopaque image running parallel to the inferior
edge of the membranous-bulbar urethra and in three (0.18%) as a dilated structure (syringocele); this was a source of significant
voiding problems.
Conclusions.Opacification of Cowper’s ducts – even if rare – has to be recognised as a possible anatomical finding during voiding cystourethrography
in paediatric patients. An accessory finding devoid of pathological meaning in most cases, it can, however, be a possible
cause of voiding disorders in some instances.
La radiologia medica 08/2006; 111(6):855-862. · 1.44 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study is to report radiological findings and evaluate the frequency with which Kirner's deformity is found in a large paediatric population.
We reviewed X-ray films of the hands taken over the past 23.5 years in order to assess not only bone age but all sorts of bone abnormalities (trauma, haematological disorders, bone syndromes and dysplasias, dysmorphic features, rheumatic disorders, etc.) to retrospectively evaluate all those presenting Kirner's deformity.
Among the 16,326 patients who underwent X-ray study of the hands, nine (six males and three females, 0.055% of the total) presented the typical radiological features of Kirner's deformity; no patient had a family history of the disorder except for one, in whom the suspicion of familiarity could not be verified radiologically. The diagnosis of Kirner's deformity was straightforward in most cases. In one case, a girl affected by Turner's syndrome, the abnormality was suspected, and its appearance, development and evolution was followed over 10 years.
Although rare, as also shown by our study, Kirner's deformity must be recognised and properly diagnosed in order to spare the subject unnecessary surgical procedures.
La radiologia medica 05/2006; 111(3):432-9. · 1.44 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Calcification of the ductus and ligamentum Botalli with no cardio-respiratory symptoms is normally a sign of their closure. However, as the calcification can be associated with a patent duct or a ductal aneurysm, its presence must not be misinterpreted. The frequency and the different patterns of this calcification must be known, as well as is diagnostic relevance. It is also important to differentiate it from other types of upper mediastinal calcification.
Thirty-two cases of ducts Botalli calcification were collected over 16 years, during which time period 38,476 children (24,095 males, 14,381 females) were submitted to chest radiography. Patient populations were divided into the following age-groups: preterms-newborns; 2-3 months; 4-6 months; 7-12 months; 2-3 years; 4-6 years; 7-10 years; 11 years on. We studied the ductus Botalli according to the following parameters; conspicuity, location, size and shape of the calcification; prevalence of the radiographic finding in 1,000 patients by gender and age; persistence of the finding in follow-up examinations.
The calcification was found in left mediastinal site at the posterior aspect of the 4-6th ribs, ranging 1-6 mm in length, and 1-4 mm in width. It had a round, comma-like or elongated shape. In all, 32 cases of ductal calcification (.83/1000) were found: 14 (44%) were in males (age range 7 months-12 years), 18 (56%) in females (age range 11 months-10 years). Age range analysis shows that the calcification is distributed more evenly in the male population with the highest number of calcified ducts (5 = 94/1000) found in the 4-6 year age group and a relative prevalence in the age group 7-12 months (2 cases = 1.05/1000). A marked prevalence is found in females 4-6 years old (11 cases = 3.8/1000). The duct calcification was an occasional finding during chest radiography for other, more severe conditions in 9 of 14 males and in 6 of 18 females.
No data can be found in the literature on the frequency of ductus Botalli calcification at chest radiography: our results indicate it to be less than 1/1000 (.83/1000). We have found a prevalence of ductus calcification (1.25/1000) in females even though females are less numerous in our population. The ductal calcification is often associated with severe, mostly hematologic, diseases. We believe that the conspicuity of the calcification is due to its density more than to its shape and size. Literature data indicate that ductus calcification may still be visible 6 months to 8 years after its discovery: our results, although on a small series, confirm this observation. The clinical significance of the calcification is still unclear.
La radiologia medica 10/1998; 96(3):204-8. · 1.44 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: A case of bilateral glenoid hypoplasia in a boy afflicted with posterior fossa medulloblastoma is described. Glenoid hypoplasia is a rarely reported bilateral finding either in subjects complaining of shoulder pain or abduction/adduction movements reduction as well as shoulder recurrent dislocations. In this patient as in most of those reported in the literature the finding was incidental and could have been easily overlooked. It consists of shallow, irregular glenoid fossae which are hypoplastic, whereas the humeral heads are normal in size and shape. At the present time there is no explanation for this anomaly.
European Radiology 02/1998; 8(6):986-8. · 3.22 Impact Factor
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F Locatelli,
G Beluffi,
G Giorgiani,
R Maccario, P Fiori,
A Pession,
F Bonetti,
P Comoli,
V Calcaterra,
G Rondini,
F Severi
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ABSTRACT: Allogeneic BMT has been reported to be the only curative therapy for children with juvenile autosomal recessive osteopetrosis. We report the case of a 14-month-old child in whom bone resorption was observed after cord blood transplantation (CBT). The patient was given CBT from an unrelated newborn matched for five of six HLA antigens. At the time of transplantation, the child presented with neurological symptoms, with feeding problems and visual impairment. A successful engraftment of donor hematopoiesis was demonstrated and the child experienced grade I acute GVHD. Progressive bone clearing was achieved and a bone marrow trephine demonstrated signs of osteoclast function. Despite full engraftment and bone resorption, neurologic deterioration did not improve. This experience documents that CBT can promote the correction of juvenile osteopetrosis. The shorter time needed both to identify an unrelated donor and to perform the transplant, as well as the lower incidence of GVHD make this procedure more appealing than BMT in children lacking an HLA-compatible relative.
Bone Marrow Transplantation 11/1997; 20(8):701-5. · 3.75 Impact Factor
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La radiologia medica 10/1996; 92(3):322-4. · 1.44 Impact Factor
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British Journal of Radiology 05/1992; 65(772):348-9. · 1.31 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: The children affected with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) often exhibit secondary lesions of the spine. The diagnosis of spinal involvement is currently made by means of conventional radiography in postero-anterior and lateral views. The osteolytic lesions of the vertebral body present with collapse of the vertebral plates in a wide range of severity. Body evaluation is usually made by comparison with the adjacent vertebrae. Since leukemia is a systemic disease, several vertebrae are possibly involved in each case. In the attempt to develop a more sensitive method, which is less dependent on observers' evaluation, a quantitative and comparative analysis of vertebral bodies was performed. The radiographs in lateral view of the dorsal and lumbar spine of 14 children with ALL were analyzed: previous radiological reports suggested the lesion of one or more vertebral bodies. The area of each vertebral body was measured and digitalized by means of a backlighted graphic table and of a software developed to this purpose. The criteria to define the collapse of a vertebral body were the ratio between areas of adjacent vertebral bodies, in conformity to the anatomic and radiographic principle that, in the dorsal and lumbar spine, the body of a normal vertebra is equal to or bigger than that of the upper one. The data obtained by quantitative analysis were compared with conventional radiologic reports. A hundred and fifty-five vertebrae were analyzed by computerized analysis; 17 (10.9%) vertebrae, undetected at conventional analysis, were collapsed. This method allows a more precise diagnosis of collapsed vertebral lesions; its accuracy can be improved with further development of digital technology.
La radiologia medica 05/1992; 83(4):414-8. · 1.44 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: The Antley-Bixler syndrome comprises malformations of cartilage and bone. The essential signs are a dysmorphic facies with flattening of the central region of the face, humeroradial synostosis with flexed attitude of the upper limbs and swelling of the distal interphalangeal and metacarpophalangeal articulations. Congenital atresia of the nasal choanae, which is often present, makes the prognosis of this syndrome extremely severe. Two patients affected by the syndrome are described. Atresia of the nasal choanae was absent in both. The first patient had genital ambiguity, a condition which has been described in the literature in only two other cases; the second one had all the fundamental characteristics of the syndrome except for humeroradial synostosis, although hypoplasia of the lateral condyle of the humerus and dislocation of the radius are present in association with synostosis between the 2nd metatarsal and the intermediate cuneiform.
Skeletal Radiology 02/1991; 20(5):339-43. · 1.54 Impact Factor
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European Journal of Pediatrics 10/1990; 149(12):866. · 1.88 Impact Factor
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European Journal of Pediatrics 08/1990; 149(12):866-866. · 1.88 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Twenty out of 108 infants with vomiting, who underwent an upper gastrointestinal X-ray study during a period of 2 years, showed a peculiar shape and position of the stomach already described as chronic gastric torsion. We examined clinical, radiologic and laboratory findings of these 20 infants. Our results showed that chronic gastric torsion is frequently associated with gastroesophageal reflux and has a wide spectrum of symptoms, complications and nutritional abnormalities.
Australasian Radiology 09/1989; 33(3):252-4. · 0.51 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: This research was aimed at evaluating the pharmacokinetic parameters of iopamidol 370 (a nonionic water organic iodine compound) during ivp in infants and children. All children examined in the study had symptomatic recurrent urinary tract infections; they were divided into three groups according to age (0-24 months; 25-72 months; 73-120 months). The contrast medium was injected in a dose of 1 ml/kg + 6 ml. Blood and urine samples were taken at regular time intervals over a 24-hour period in children, whereas in infants only blood samples were collected. Pharmacokinetic parameters were estimated using a bicompartmental open model, as follows: t1/2 alpha (h) = 0.33; t1/2 beta (h) = 1.92; Vc (l/kg) = 0.40; V beta (l/kg) = 0.20; Cl (l/kg) = 0.16. These values were not significantly different, as far as our patients were concerned, from those reported in literature for adults.
La radiologia medica 06/1989; 77(5):493-5. · 1.44 Impact Factor
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Journal belge de radiologie 02/1988; 71(1):99-102.
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ABSTRACT: Oto-palato-digital (OPD) or Tyabi syndrome is a familiar, X-linked bone dysplasia with intermediate expression, in females or autosomal dominant with more severe manifestations in males. In the past both the clinical features (flat face with sunken and broad nasal bridge, antimongoloid slant of palpebral fissures, palatoschysis, conductive deafness, short and broad thumbs and big toes, nail dystrophy) and radiological findings (thick and dense base of the skull, prominence of supraorbital ridges, middle ear bone deformities with dense ossicles, large and broad vertebral bodies, posterior defects of neural arches of the vertebrae, carpal and tarsal bone fusions, short and broad nail phalanges) have been well described and established. The present report describes 7 patients (4 females and 3 males) all belonging to the same family (the first described in this country) and all presenting the clinical and radiological features of OPD syndrome. A cranial and spinal CT was performed on one patient, with peculiar findings.
La radiologia medica 10/1987; 74(3):176-84. · 1.44 Impact Factor
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Minerva pediatrica 09/1987; 39(15-16):653-8.
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Journal belge de radiologie 02/1987; 70(5):439-42.
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La radiologia medica 11/1986; 72(10):769-71. · 1.44 Impact Factor
