UNASSIGNED: Cats are great pretenders; they often hide illness until they are critical. This makes patients of this species challenging to assess and manage in the emergency setting where quick and stress-free diagnosis and treatment are necessary. Veterinary point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is a rapid, evidence-based, non-invasive, repeatable, cage-side ultrasonographic examination designed to answer clinically driven questions without compromising feline wellbeing. Integrating feline friendly POCUS as an extension of the physical examination to streamline diagnostic and therapeutic interventions, thereby limiting stress and improving overall patient care, is advocated by the authors of this article.
UNASSIGNED: Given the multitude of ultrasound machines and probes available that are portable, meaning they can be moved around the clinic and used patient-side, it should be possible for most practitioners to integrate POCUS into daily practice. The authors\' preferred equipment for feline POCUS is a microconvex probe and a portable machine with a fixed pre-set. This set-up allows the clinician to complete all POCUS (abdominal, lung and pleural space, and heart) without needing to move the patient, change probes or restrain the patient in a particular position, ultimately saving time, personnel and cost while maintaining patient comfort and safety.
UNASSIGNED: This review aims to serve as a valuable resource for veterinarians seeking to improve their feline patient care through the judicious utilisation of POCUS. In this article, the complex challenges posed by cats are addressed, and the different POCUS techniques, applications and clinical recommendations are discussed.
UNASSIGNED: This review draws on the published literature, as well as the authors\' own collective experience when providing recommendations.

Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) is widely used for the technical assessment of standard and complex endovascular aortic interventions. Use of iodinated contrast in CBCT imaging might provide useful additional information; however, this also increases the procedural contrast dose, which may cause renal function deterioration, and the radiation exposure. We describe the technique and feasibility of carbon-dioxide (CO2)-enhanced CBCT for the technical assessment of standard and complex endovascular aortic repair. In our experience CO2-CBCT had no related adverse events and provided satisfactory imaging quality to assess endograft integrity, vessels patency, and was safely performed in case of severe chronic renal insufficiency.

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BACKGROUND: Obesity, especially abdominal obesity, is strongly correlated with metabolic and other health risks. Diagnosis and assessment of obesity is important in clinical and routine preventive practice. From the point of view of risk, it is necessary to distinguish not only the area of fat tissue accumulation, but also its type.
OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to use a new portable abdominal bioimpedance analyzer, which is intended for the area of abdominal adipose tissue, as part of the evaluation of the body structure of a selected group of volunteers with a focus on the differentiation of subcutaneous and visceral adipose tissue and to assess its usefulness in practice.
METHODS: Body composition was analyzed using a portable abdominal bioimpedance analyzer Yscope (PA-BIA) in combination with a bioimpedance device InBody 970 (high-frequency bioelectrical impedance/HF-BIA). Eighty-three volunteers at the age of 24.92±7.24 years with representation of both sexes participated in the study.
RESULTS: Abdominal fat did not differ significantly between the sexes, women reached an average value of 2.01±1.14 kg, men 2.22±1.60 kg (p>0.05). Gender differentiation was manifested in the case of visceral fat (p<0.01) and visceral fat area (p<0.01), the values of which were lower in women than in men. In the case of subcutaneous fat, we found the opposite trend of values in relation to gender, where lower values were achieved by men, but there were no significant differences (p>0.05). Visceral fat was most correlated with abdominal fat (r=0.86) and waist circumference (r=0.85), subcutaneous fat had the strongest positive correlations with abdominal fat (r=0.93) and with body fat mass (r=0.93).
CONCLUSIONS: PA-BIA in combination with HF-BIA makes it possible to determine the representation of subcutaneous and visceral fat in the abdominal area, which the conventional MFS-BIA method does not allow. When evaluating body composition, significant gender differentiation is confirmed, which is an important factor affecting different health risks related to gender and the representation of different types of fat tissue localized and accumulated in different parts of the body.

Objective: We aimed to analyse patient outcomes following open (OAR) or endovascular repair (EVAR) of an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) in Finland and Sweden from 1998 to 2017. Both intact and ruptured AAAs (rAAAs) were included in the analysis. Methods: Patient-level data from national registries in Finland and Sweden were analysed, pairing operations for intact and ruptured AAA repair with mortality data (date of death). All-cause mortality was the primary endpoint. Anonymized patient data from both countries were pooled, comprising a total of 32,324 operations. Ruptured and intact AAAs were considered separately. In total, EVAR was performed on 9619 intact AAAs and 1470 rAAAs, while OAR was performed on 13,241 intact AAAs and 7994 rAAAs. The patient\'s age, sex and the date of operation were obtained as demographic information. Cox regression and Kaplan-Meier analyses were used to evaluate long-term (10-year) survival after the treatment of AAA or rAAA with either modality. Kaplan-Meier analysis was performed in three different age groups (<65 years, 65-79 years and ≥80 years). Results: Considering all age groups together, the 1-, 3- and 10-year Kaplan-Meier survival rates after EVAR were 93.4%, 80.5% and 35.3%, respectively, for intact AAA repair and 67.2%, 55.9% and 22.2%, respectively, for rAAA repair. For OAR of intact AAAs, the 1-, 3- and 10-year Kaplan-Meier survival rates were 92.1%, 84.8% and 48.7%, respectively. The respective rates for OAR of rAAAs were 55.4%, 49.3% and 24.6%. In a Cox regression analysis, a more recent year of operation was associated with improved survival, and older age affected survival negatively for both intact and ruptured AAA repair. If patients survived the first 90 days after the operation, the survival after intact AAA repair was 13.5 years for those <65 years (general population: 18.0 years), and 7.3 years for those ≥80 years (general population: 7.9 years). After rAAA repair, the mean survival was 13.1 years for patients <65 years and 5.5 years for patients ≥80 years, respectively. Conclusions: The long-term survival of patients undergoing intact AAA treatment at the age of 80 or older is close to that of the general population, provided they survive the operation. Conversely, for patients younger than 65, the long-term survival is markedly worse. The long-term survival of AAA patients has improved over time. Open surgery is still a safe and effective option for young patients undergoing intact AAA repair. Our results support the ESVS guidelines recommendation of EVAR being the first-line treatment for patients with rAAA.

BACKGROUND: Patients with different stages of colorectal cancer (CRC) exhibit different abdominal computed tomography (CT) signs. Therefore, the influence of CT signs on CRC prognosis must be determined.
OBJECTIVE: To observe abdominal CT signs in patients with CRC and analyze the correlation between the CT signs and postoperative prognosis.
METHODS: The clinical history and CT imaging results of 88 patients with CRC who underwent radical surgery at Xingtan Hospital Affiliated to Shunde Hospital of Southern Medical University were retrospectively analyzed. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were used to explore the independent risk factors for postoperative death in patients with CRC. The three-year survival rate was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier curve, and the correlation between postoperative survival time and abdominal CT signs in patients with CRC was analyzed using Spearman correlation analysis.
RESULTS: For patients with CRC, the three-year survival rate was 73.86%. The death group exhibited more severe characteristics than the survival group. A multivariate Cox regression model analysis showed that body mass index (BMI), degree of periintestinal infiltration, tumor size, and lymph node CT value were independent factors influencing postoperative death (P < 0.05 for all). Patients with characteristics typical to the death group had a low three-year survival rate (log-rank χ 2 = 66.487, 11.346, 12.500, and 27.672, respectively, P < 0.05 for all). The survival time of CRC patients was negatively correlated with BMI, degree of periintestinal infiltration, tumor size, lymph node CT value, mean tumor long-axis diameter, and mean tumor short-axis diameter (r = -0.559, 0.679, -0.430, -0.585, -0.425, and -0.385, respectively, P < 0.05 for all). BMI was positively correlated with the degree of periintestinal invasion, lymph node CT value, and mean tumor short-axis diameter (r = 0.303, 0.431, and 0.437, respectively, P < 0.05 for all).
CONCLUSIONS: The degree of periintestinal infiltration, tumor size, and lymph node CT value are crucial for evaluating the prognosis of patients with CRC.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to investigate the factors influencing the diagnostic yield of microbiologic diagnosis obtained through percutaneous abdominal abscess drainage procedures. We analyzed the influence of diverse clinical, radiological, and pre-procedural factors on the success of microbiologic diagnosis in this context.
METHODS: A retrospective analysis of patients who underwent percutaneous abdominal abscess drainage was performed to assess the factors affecting the diagnostic yield for microbiologic diagnosis.
RESULTS: A total of 174 patients undergoing percutaneous abdominal abscess drainage was included. The use of antibiotics during the procedure and the spread of the abscess to other organs significantly increased the likelihood of obtaining a positive culture. Specifically, antibiotic use during the procedure raised the risk by up to 3.30-fold (OR = 3.30, 95% CI 1.48-7.65, p = 0.004), while abscess spread to another organ increased the risk by approximately 1.87-fold (OR = 1.87, 95% CI 0.98-3.61, p = 0.057). Additionally, abscesses containing air and abscesses with an air-fluid level were more common in patients with positive culture results. Other factors, such as gender, age, malignancy prevalence, and surgical history, did not significantly impact culture results.
CONCLUSIONS: This study provides valuable insights into the factors affecting the diagnostic yield of microbiologic diagnosis from percutaneous abdominal abscess drainage. The findings underscore the importance of considering patient-specific variables and procedural aspects when planning and executing abscess drainage procedures. Further research can build upon these insights to develop evidence-based guidelines for optimizing the diagnostic yield of percutaneous abdominal abscess drainage procedures.

BACKGROUND: Artificial intelligence has been increasingly used in medical imaging and has demonstrated expert level performance in image classification tasks.
OBJECTIVE: To develop a fully automatic approach for determining the Risser stage using deep learning on abdominal radiographs.
METHODS: In this multicenter study, 1,681 supine abdominal radiographs (age range, 9-18 years, 50% female) obtained between January 2019 and April 2022 were collected retrospectively from three medical institutions and graded manually using the United States Risser staging system. A total of 1,577 images from Hospitals 1 and 2 were used for development, and 104 images from Hospital 3 for external validation. From each radiograph, right and left iliac crest patch images were extracted using the pelvic bone segmentation model DeepLabv3 + with the EfficientNet-B0 encoder trained with 90 digitally reconstructed radiographs from pelvic computed tomography scans with a pelvic bone mask. Using these patch images, ConvNeXt-B was trained to grade according to the Risser classification. The model\'s performance was evaluated using accuracy, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC), and mean absolute error.
RESULTS: The fully automatic Risser stage assessment model showed an accuracy of 0.87 and 0.75, mean absolute error of 0.13 and 0.26, and AUROC of 0.99 and 0.95 on internal and external test sets, respectively.
CONCLUSIONS: We developed a deep learning-based, fully automatic segmentation and classification model for Risser stage assessment using abdominal radiographs.

OBJECTIVE: Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms (AAA) growth remains a process not fully understood. The objective of this study was to analyze risk factors associated with changes in AAA diameter in a Mexican cohort.
METHODS: An observational study in which we analyzed the entirely of patients in which an AAA was reported in a Computed Tomography (CT) study from 2014 to 2021 who had a follow-up CT. We divided them by groups depending on the diagnosis of type 2 diabetic mellitus and pharmacological history (diabetic vs non-diabetic, metformin vs non-metformin intake and statin vs non-statin intake). We compared pre and post follow-up AAA diameters using paired t-tests. A multivariate analysis was performed in order to identify independent variables associated with an increased growth rate. Statistical analysis was performed on Stata 17.
RESULTS: During the studied period 72 (39.77%) patients had a follow-up CT. Mean age was 75 years (±9.05) and 52 (72.22%) were men. When comparing infra-renal largest diameter through time based on metformin intake, a significant difference was found only in the metformin non-intake group (42.05 ± 12.54 vs45.34 ± 12.06 [P = 0.02]), in contrast the metformin intake group measures were non-significantly different (36.13 ± 7.04 vs 37.00 ± 4.51; P = 0.57) through follow-up. In the multivariate analysis AAA largest diameter at diagnosis correlated with significantly increased growth rate (coeff = 0.06, P < 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: AAA diameters appear to change through time in a non-linear pattern influenced by different epidemiological and clinical factors. Metformin intake appears to promote a stability in AAA diameter growth in our studied population.

We review the etiologies of bowel obstruction in infants and children that can be identified on ultrasound (US) including perforated appendicitis, intussusception, foreign body ingestion, colonic volvulus, intra-abdominal mass lesions, internal hernia, and stricturing inflammatory bowel disease. US can potentially identify the cause of bowel obstruction in these age groups, without the need for additional cross-sectional imaging, and can aid in patient management including interventional and surgical planning. Hence, it is important to be familiar with the sonographic imaging findings of bowel obstruction in infants and children.