Marta Barrufet

Survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma treated by transarterial chemoembolisation (TACE) using Drug Eluting Beads. Implications for clinical practice and trial design.

BACKGROUND & AIMS Transarterial chemoembolisation (TACE) improves survival of properly selected patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Drug eluting beads (DEB) provide a calibrated and homogenous procedure while increasing efficacy. Outcome data applying this technology is lacking, and this is instrumental for clinical decision-making and for trial design. We evaluated the survival of HCC patients treated with DEB-TACE following a strict selection (preserved liver function, absence of symptoms, extrahepatic spread or vascular invasion). METHODS We registered baseline characteristics, the development of treatment-related adverse events, and the overall survival of all HCC patients treated by DEB-TACE from February 2004 to June 2010. RESULTS One hundred and four patients were treated with DEB-TACE. All but one were cirrhotic, 62.5% HCV+, 95% Child-Pugh A, 41 BCLC-A and 63 BCLC-B. Causes of DEB-TACE treatment in BCLC-A patients were: 35 unfeasible ablation, and six post-treatment recurrences. After a median follow-up of 24.5 months, 38 patients had died, two patients had received transplantation and 24 had received sorafenib because of untreatable tumour progression. Median survival of the cohort was 48.6 months (95% CI: 36.9-61.2), while it was 54.2 months in BCLC stage A and 47.7 months in stage B. Median survival after censoring follow-up at time of transplant/sorafenib was 47.7 (95%CI: 37.9-57.5) months. CONCLUSIONS These data validate the safety of DEB-TACE and show that the survival expectancy applying current selection criteria and technique is better than that previously reported. A 50% survival at 4 years should be considered when suggesting treatment for patients fitting into controversial scenarios such as expanded criteria for transplantation/resection for multifocal HCC.

Nontumoral portal vein thrombosis in patients awaiting liver transplantation.

Portal vein thrombosis (PVT) occurs in approximately 2%‐26% of the patients awaiting liver transplantation (LT) and is no longer an absolute contraindication for LT. Nearly half of PVT cases are accidentally found during the LT procedure. The most important risk factor for PVT development in cirrhosis may be the severity of liver disease and reduced portal blood flow. Whether other inherited or acquired coagulation disorders also play a role is not yet clear. The development of PVT may have no effect on the liver disease progression, especially when it is nonocclusive. PVT may not increase the risk of wait‐list mortality, but it is a risk factor for poor early post‐LT mortality. Anticoagulation and transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) are 2 major treatment strategies for patients with PVT on the waiting list. The complete recanalization rate after anticoagulation is approximately 40%. The role of TIPS to maintain PV patency for LT as the primary indication has been reported, but the safety and efficacy should be further evaluated. PVT extension and degree may determine the surgical technique to be used during LT. If a “conventional” end‐to‐end portal anastomotic technique is used, there is not a major impact on post‐LT survival. Post‐LT PVT can significantly reduce both graft and patient survival after LT and can preclude future options for re‐LT. Liver Transpl 22:352‐365, 2016.

Utility of Multidetector CT in Severe Postpartum Hemorrhage

Postpartum hemorrhage is one of the leading causes of maternal mortality worldwide. According to the time when postpartum hemorrhage develops, it is classified as (a) primary, or early, postpartum hemorrhage (within the first 24 hours after delivery) or (b) secondary, or late, postpartum hemorrhage (>24 hours to 6 weeks after delivery). Primary postpartum hemorrhage may be caused by uterine atony (75%-90% of cases), trauma of the lower portion of the genital tract, uterine rupture, uterine inversion, bladder flap hematoma, retention of blood clots or placental fragments, and coagulation disorders. Secondary postpartum hemorrhage may be caused by uterine subinvolution, coagulopathies, and abnormalities of the uterine vasculature. Extrauterine sources of bleeding include rectus sheath hematoma, direct arterial injuries, and the HELLP (hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelet count) syndrome. Severe postpartum hemorrhage is a life-threatening condition that is diagnosed on the basis of the findings from clinical examination, with or without ultrasonography. Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging are useful in the characterization of postpartum hemorrhage when medical treatment fails. Multidetector CT has an important role when intraabdominal bleeding is suspected and can be considered in cases of recurrent bleeding after embolization, as well as for the evaluation of postsurgical complications. A proposed clinical and CT imaging algorithm for postpartum hemorrhage is presented. A multidisciplinary approach to postpartum hemorrhage is essential to optimize the role of diagnostic and interventional radiology in obstetric hemorrhage, to avoid hysterectomy and thus preserve fertility.

Evaluation of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm after Endovascular Repair: Prospective Validation of Contrast-enhanced US with a Second-Generation US Contrast Agent

PURPOSE To prospectively assess the accuracy of contrast agent-enhanced (CE) ultrasonography (US) with a second-generation US contrast agent in the detection and classification of endoleaks after endovascular repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms (EVAR), with computed tomographic (CT) angiography as the reference standard. MATERIALS AND METHODS Institutional review board and written informed consent were obtained. Thirty-five patients who underwent EVAR were enrolled in a prospective study that consisted of CT angiography and CE US studies performed at 1- and 6-month follow-up and performed yearly thereafter. CE US was performed after bolus injection of 2.4 mL of sulfur hexafluoride by using equipment with specific software for contrast studies. Angiography was performed in patients who had type II endoleaks with an increase in aneurysm sac size and in patients with type I or III endoleaks. CE US sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and accuracy were determined for endoleak detection, and Cohen κ statistic was used to assess agreement of CE US and CT angiographic findings for endoleak classification. RESULTS A total of 126 CT angiographic and CE US studies were performed. CT angiography depicted 34 endoleaks in 16 patients (type IA, n=1; type IB, n=1; type II inferior mesenteric artery, n=2; type II lumbar artery, n=28; type II complex, inferior mesenteric, and lumbar arteries, n=2). CE US depicted 33 endoleaks. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy of CE US in endoleak detection were 97%, 100%, 100%, 98%, and 99%, respectively. CE US enabled correct classification of 26 of 33 endoleaks. No clinically important endoleak was missed at CE US. CONCLUSION CE US yields good sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy in endoleak detection, and it might represent a noninvasive tool that can be used in the follow-up of patients who undergo EVAR.

Practical Utility of On-Line Clearance and Blood Temperature Monitors as Noninvasive Techniques to Measure Hemodialysis Blood Access Flow

Background/Aims: Access blood flow (Qa) measurements are recommended by the current guidelines as one of the most important components in vascular access maintenance programs. This study evaluates the efficiency of Qa measurement with on-line conductivity (OLC-Qa) and blood temperature monitoring (BTM-Qa) in comparison with the gold standard saline dilution method (SDM-Qa). Subjects and Methods: 50 long-term hemodialysis patients (42 arteriovenous fistulas/8 arteriovenous grafts) were studied. Bland-Altman and Lin’s coefficient (ρc) were used to study accuracy and precision. Results: Mean values were 1,021.7 ± 502.4 ml/min SDM-Qa, 832.8 ± 574.3 ml/min OLC-Qa (p = 0.007) and 1,094.9 ± 491.9 ml/min with BTM-Qa (p = NS). Biases and ρc obtained were –188.8 ml/min (ρc 0.58) OLC-Qa and 73.2 ml/min (ρc 0.89) BTM-Qa. The limits of agreement (bias ± 1.96 SD) obtained were from –1,119 to 741.3 ml/min (OLC-Qa) and –350.6 to 497.2 ml/min (BTM-Qa). Conclusions: BTM-Qa and OLC-Qa are valid noninvasive and practical methods to estimate Qa, although BTM-Qa was more accurate and had better concordance than OLC-Qa compared with SDM-Qa.

Pulmonary Artery Pseudoaneurysm after Swan-Ganz Catheter Placement: Embolization with Vascular Plugs

Three patients who presented with massive hemoptysis after the insertion of a Swan-Ganz catheter for cardiac surgery are reported. Pulmonary artery pseudoaneurysms were diagnosed and successfully treated by embolization with a vascular plug. Follow-up at 15 months showed no recurrence of hemoptysis, and computed tomography helped confirm complete occlusion of the pseudoaneurysms.

Diagnosis and staging of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC): current guidelines

One of the key strategies to improve the prognosis of HCC, beside prevention, is to diagnose the tumor in early stages, when the patient is asymptomatic and the liver function is preserved, because in this clinical situation effective therapies with survival benefit can be applied. Imaging techniques are a key tool in the surveillance and diagnosis of HCC. Screening should be based in US every 6 months and non-invasive diagnostic criteria of HCC based on imaging findings on dynamic-MR and/or dynamic-CT have been validated and thus, accepted in clinical guidelines. The typical vascular pattern depicted by HCC on CT and or MRI consists on arterial enhancement, stronger than the surrounding liver (wash-in), and hypodensity or hyposignal intensity compared to the surrounding liver (wash-out) in the venous phase. This has a sensitivity of around 60% with a 96-100% specificity. Major improvements on liver imaging have been introduced in the latest years, adding functional information that can be quantified: the use of hepatobiliary contrast media for liver MRI, the inclusion of diffusion-weighted sequences in the standard protocols for liver MRI studies and new radiotracers for positron-emission tomography (PET). However, all them are still a matter of research prior to be incorporated in evidence based clinical decision making. This review summarizes the current knowledge about imaging techniques for the early diagnosis and staging of HCC, and it discusses the most relevant open questions.

Is ionic dialysance useful for early detection of vascular access dysfunction? Six illustrative cases

Continuous ionic dialysance monitoring is a useful clinical tool to determine the dialysis dose in real time in each hemodialysis session. We followed up 49 patients for 16 months. Six patients with a Kt reduction of ≥20% in >3 consecutive hemodialysis sessions were identified. Fistulography demonstrated significant stenosis in all 6 patients. Angioplasty was performed in 5 with an excellent angiographic result and optimal Kt levels were restored. Unexplained and persistent Kt reduction in patients with stable chronic kidney disease under hemodialysis could represent, together with an accurate vascular access examination, a practical and additional indirect method for the early detection of vascular access dysfunction.

Ruptured intercostal artery pseudoaneurysm in a patient with blunt thoracic trauma: diagnosis and management

Intercostal artery pseudoaneurysm is an extremely unusual condition, with less than 10 reported cases to our knowledge. Most of them have been associated with surgical interventions or blunt thoracic trauma. The bleeding risk in this kind of lesions is considerable, the majority of them presenting as haemothorax. We present a case of an intercostal artery pseudoaneurysm detected after a blunt thoracic trauma in a patient with signs of acute bleeding. The identification of a small artery pseudoaneurysm as the cause of haemothorax requires knowledge of this possible aetiology as well as detailed attention to the CT technique. Embolisation is considered to be the first therapeutic method in the management of a ruptured pseudoaneurysm. To reduce the risk of failure, the anatomic features and adjacent vessels providing collateral branches must be studied and embolised if needed, with important attention to collateral blood supply arising from the musculophrenic and anterior intercostal arteries.

Observational Study of Surveillance Based on the Combination of Online Dialysance and Thermodilution Methods in Hemodialysis Patients with Arteriovenous Fistulas

Background/Aims: Online dialysance (Kt) and thermodilution (BTM-Qa) methods could be important components in vascular access monitoring programs. This study evaluated the efficiency of these two methods in reducing the thrombosis rate and access-related costs compared with a historic control group. Methods: We studied 148 hemodialysis patients with arteriovenous fistulas (control group, n = 74) for 2 years. During the study period, the indications for vascular treatments were the Kt reduction ≥20% with respect to baseline values or Qa <500 ml/min (or a decrease in flow >20%). Results: During the study period, we detected 16 cases of vascular dysfunction. The Kt value after vascular treatment was 71.1 liters (59 liters; p = 0.001) and BTM-Qa was 1,218.6 ml/min (519.7 ml/min; p = 0.001). Compared with the control group, the thrombosis rate was 0.027 versus 0.148 episodes/patient-year (p = 0.009) and the total access-related cost was EUR 22,293 versus 47,467 (p = 0.033). Conclusions: This study suggests that a combined monitoring program based on Kt and BTM-Qa represents an effective screening method that significantly reduces the thrombosis rate and economic costs of vascular treatments.