Objectives: To evaluate the reliability of dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI in the diagnosis of local recurrence of malignant soft-tissue tumors after receiving treatment. Methods: From March 2002 till December 2009 we performed dynamic contrast enhanced MRI in 95 patients with soft-tissue tumor after receiving treatment (surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy). Patients were classifi ed according to fi ve types of TIC.Results: The recurrent disease was suspected in 47 patients and the biopsy was recommended. In 8 cases (TIC II), the biopsy was performed due to long-term post-treatment changes. Histological results proved STT recurrence in 45 patients; in 10 patients (8 with TIC II), biopsy revealed hypervascular granulation tissue, fl orid infl ammation and reactive changes. The sensitivity for dynamic contrast-enhanced MR examination was 100 %, specifi city 80 %, positive predictive value (PPV) 95.7 % and negative predictive value (NPV) 100 %. Conclusion: Our results indicate that TICs III, IV and V raise high suspicion of local tumor recurrence and require percutaneous imaging-guided biopsy. TIC of type II usually represents a pseudomass and the biopsy should be performed only in selected cases with increased risk of recurrent disease based on multidisciplinary approach. On the basis of literature review as well as our experiences we created a reliable algorithm proposed for diagnosing the residual or recurrent soft-tissue tumors (Tab. 2, Fig. 6, Ref. 20). Full Text in PDF www.elis.sk.

Abstract:Objectives: To evaluate and compare the outcome of stereotactically guided percutaneous, directional, vacuum-assisted breast biopsy (VAB) with the outcome of those performed with 14-gauge automated gun. Methods: Between January 2008 and January 2011, altogether 257 stereotactic biopsies were performed in our institute; 193 with the 14-gauge automated needle and 64 with a directional, vacuum-assisted instrument. Patients with malignant or high risk lesions were encouraged to undergo an excisional biopsy. We evaluated and compared concordance between the biopsy results and subsequent examinations (surgical excision or follow up) for both methods. Results: VAB demonstrated 57 (89 %) benign lesions, 2 (3 %) high risk and 5 (8 %) malignant lesions. We obtained post-bioptic mammographic or histological evaluation for altogether 51 lesions, with one (12.5 %) false negative case, one case of underestimation of borderline lesion, and no false positive cases. Clusters of microcalcifi ation were completely removed in 18 lesions (28 %). Conclusion: Vacuum-assisted biopsy outperformed the 14-gauge automated needle biopsy with a lower disease underestimation, sensitivity and false-negative rates; however these differences were not statistically significant due to small data fi les and relatively small number of identifi ed malignant lesions in the vacuum-assisted biopsy group. VAB completely removed signifi cantly more clusters of microcalcifi cations in comparison to the automated needle biopsy, which signifi cantly reduced the need for surgery in benign lesions (Tab. 7, Fig. 3, Ref. 32). Full Text in PDF www.elis.sk.

Background:Sepsis is a common serious condition worldwide and diagnostics are still slow. Nanopore sequencing is a promising tool in point of care medicine. However, high ratio of host to bacterial DNA decreases utility of nanopore. Fast, cheap, and easy techniques to separate host from bacterial DNA are required. Aim:The aim was to compare three different separation methods of blood for bacterial DNA enrichment and isolation with subsequent products readily suitable for nanopore sequencing. Methods: Blood was collected from healthy subjects and spiked with either gram-negative or gram-positive bacteria. Three different separation methods alongside negative control were performed. The performance of each method was evaluated by RT-qPCR of 16S gene and B2 microglobulin. Results: 16s RT-qPCR showed similar Ct value for tested methods in comparison to Standard method.However, the host DNA depletion was significantly higher for the centrifugal method compared to others. Reproducibility, based on variability measured by the standard deviation and RT-qPCR results, was highest using the centrifugation method compared to the other three methods. Conclusion: From all tested methods, centrifugation outperformed other basic isolation techniques considering turnaround time, reliability, and effectiveness. Further investigation is needed to confirm our promising results in a real-life scenario.

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Salivary urea is studied as a non-invasive alternative for screening and monitoring of renal diseases. Its high variability prevents a wider clinical use. Animal experiments are needed to identify factors affecting this marker. The aim of this study was to describe the inter-individual variability of salivary urea in healthy mice, establish reference intervals, and analyse the effects of sex, age and body weight. Plasma and saliva samples were obtained from 37 male and 41 female healthy adult CD1 mice aged 13–69 weeks (body weight 22–51 g). The reference interval for salivary urea in heathy mice based on our results is 2.7–8.4 mmol/l (CV = 23 %). Multivariate analysis did not show any significant effect of age, sex, or body weight. In addition, salivary urea did not correlate with its plasma concentrations. The high variability of the promising salivary marker of kidney function in healthy mice requires further research before its use to diagnose or monitor renal failure in animal models of kidney diseases. Other potential confounders should be analysed, including intra-individual and pre-analytical variability. In addition, a normalization factor such as total salivary proteins or salivation rate is likely needed.