Endovascular embolization to treat vascular hemorrhage involves pushing coil‐shaped metal wires into the artery repeatedly until they are densely packed to slow the blood flow and clot. However, coil embolization is associated with high rebleeding rates, unpredictable economics and, most importantly, they rely on the patient's ability to make a clot. These issues are exacerbated when the patient is anticoagulated or coagulopathic. A novel bioengineered tantalum‐loaded nanocomposite hydrogel for gel embolic material (Ta‐GEM) that can be rapidly delivered using clinical catheters for instant hemostasis regardless of the coagulopathic state is reported. Ta‐GEM formulation is visible by most of the clinically available imaging modalities including ultrasound, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and fluoroscopy without significant artifact. In addition, Ta‐GEM can be retrieved, allowing temporary vascular occlusion, and it can be used to rescue cases of failed coil embolization. Ta‐GEM occlusion of first‐order arteries such as the renal artery and iliac artery in a swine model is found to be safe and durable; by 28 days, 75% of the injected Ta‐GEM in the arterial lumen is replaced by dense connective tissue. Altogether, this study demonstrates that Ta‐GEM has many advantages over the current technologies and has potential applications in clinical practice.
Although phosphorus-31 (³¹P) magnetic resonance spectroscopy holds potential as noninvasive tool to monitor treatment response of liver malignancies, the lack of appropriate coils has so far restricted its use to liver lesions close to the surface. A novel eight-channel phased-array dual-tuned ³¹P/¹H coil that can assess ³¹P metabolism in deeper liver tissue as well is presented in this article. Analysis of its performance demonstrates that this coil can provide good sensitivity across a width of 20 cm, thereby enabling magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) scans that can fully cover axial views of the abdomen in lean subjects. In vivo results and reproducibility of ³¹P MRSI at 3 T of axial slices covering the full depth of the liver are shown in healthy volunteers. To minimize intrasubject and intersubject data variability, spectra are corrected for coil sensitivities. Methods to maximize the reproducibility of coil placement and spectroscopic planning are discussed. The phosphomonoesters/phosphodiesters ratio calculated in healthy volunteers has an average intrasubject variation of 23% averaged over voxels selected from the entire liver. Finally, the feasibility of using the coil in the clinic is shown by preliminary ³¹P liver MRSI data obtained from a patient with hepatocellular carcinoma.
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