Differentiation between neoplastic and nonneoplastic conditions magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has established itself as one of the key clinical tools in evaluation of musculoskeletal pathology. However, MRI still has several key limitations which require supplemental information from additional modalities to complete evaluation of various disorders. This has led to the development hybrid positron emission tomography (PET)-MRI which is rapidly evolving to address key clinical questions by using the morphological strengths of MRI and functional information of PET imaging. In this article, we aim to review physical principles and techniques of PET-MRI and discuss clinical utility of functional information obtained from PET imaging and structural information obtained from MRI imaging for the evaluation of musculoskeletal pathology. More specifically, this review highlights the role of PET-MRI in musculoskeletal oncology including initial diagnosis and staging, treatment planning and post-treatment follow-up. Also we will review utility of PET-MRI in evaluating musculoskeletal infections (especially in the immunocompromised and diabetics) and inflammatory condition. Additionally, common pitfalls of PET-MRI will be addressed.

Serious cardiac complications have been reported to occur in elderly depressed patients during a course of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). As a result, cardiac medications are being used more often to dampen the cardiovascular response that occurs during an ECT treatment. Specifically, labetalol (a mixed alpha- and beta-blocker) has been shown to effectively control the heart rate during ECT. However, on occasion, patients may still exhibit sustained elevations of blood pressure during ECT when receiving labetalol. The optimum clinical management of these patients is unclear. The authors report on the safety and efficacy of combining nifedipine with labetalol to control blood pressure during ECT in ten elderly patients whose blood pressures were not adequately controlled by labetalol alone. No adverse effects were noted, nor did nifedipine appear to shorten seizure duration.

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Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical used in the production of various plastics. It is classified as an endocrine disruptor since it can exert estrogen‐like effects in the body. Although estrogen can play a role in the control of breathing, it is unknown if BPA influences conscious ventilation. We tested the hypothesis that 4 weeks of dietary BPA administration would result in an altered pattern of breathing compared to the response of dietary controls. At 8 weeks of age, male CD‐1 mice were housed in polypropylene cages and administered a soybean oil‐free diet (AIN‐93G) for 2 weeks. At 10 weeks of age the mice were placed onto control (C: AIN‐93G; n=4), C+ethinyl estradiol (EE: 0.1 ppb; n=5) or C+BPA (50 mg BPA/kg diet; n=5) diets. Unrestrained barometric plethysmography was used to quantify frequency (F; breaths/min), tidal volume (TV; mL/breath), and minute ventilation (MV; mL/min) in 14 week old mice during exposure to room air (MEAN±SEM). Control mice displayed similar F (C: 150±28 vs. C+BPA: 129±11 vs. C+EE: 150±25), TV (C: 0.35±0.01 vs. C+BPA: 0.49±0.05 vs. C+EE: 0.48±0.07) and MV (C: 54.4±9.5 vs. C+BPA: 62.5±10.3 vs. C+EE: 69.8±9.6). These preliminary findings indicate no difference in quiet breathing following 4 weeks of dietary BPA or EE administration in mice. Supported by LMC start‐up funds (LRD) and the Hill Collaboration on Environmental Medicine (KCD).