Search

A scrotal mass as initial manifestation of necrotising pancreatitis is very rare. In addition, the diagnosis is very difficult because diseases that occur more frequently produce similar symptoms. Therefore, it is very important to think about rare entities in the differential diagnosis for testicular pain.

The qualitative and quantitative MRI findings in 16 patients with focal nodular hyperplasia (FNH) of the liver are described; nine of these were confirmed histologically. A central scar is typical of FNH and provides a reliable diagnosis. This finding was seen in half the cases. If the scar is not demonstrable, the following features suggest the diagnosis: smooth margins, homogeneous signal distribution, increased signal intensity in T2-weighted spin-echo images and reduced signal intensity in inversion-recovery sequences. The T1 and T2 relaxation times in FNH are increased by about 30% compared with normal liver tissue.

A prototype of a measuring device is described, which reads the tube peak voltage and the switch-on time of x-ray units by means of two radiation detectors with different energy dependences due to detector materials (Caesium Iodine and Silicon). With a storage oscilloscope the curves of the tube voltage and the relative absorbed dose rate of intensifying screens can be displayed. The measuring range of the tube peak voltage is 60 kV to 150 kV. It is possible to measure exposure times of radiography equipment above 2 ms wit sufficiently low uncertainty. The tube peak voltage has been read with a relative uncertainty below 5% for almost all dose rates, which arise in practical application of medical x-ray units, and its calibration is made by means of x-ray apparatus with tube voltage reading, which has been compared to a Ge(Li) spectrometer. The stability of tube voltage reading of the measuring device is only effected by radiation damage of the detectors after a long time of utilization. The small diameter of the probe permits the accommodation of other probes, ionization chambers, phantoms, etc. in the radiation field at the same time.