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To evaluate the variations of the sternum and provide the prevalence of sternal foramen and its anatomical relationships. In this retrospective study, 544 subjects ranging in age from 18 to 95 years were evaluated. Sternal variations, prevalence of sternal foramen and its anatomical relationships to mediastinal structures were examined with the axial, sagittal and coronal reformat images of the patients who underwent thoracic computerized tomography. In 500 subjects, following sternal variations were found: sternal sclerotic band in 120 (24%), sternal cleft in 3 (0.6%), sternal foramen in 26 (5.2%), focal cortical notch and defect in 44 (8.8%) patients. The manubriosternal fusion was partial in 65 (13%) patients and complete in 112 (22.4%) patients. The sternoxiphoid fusion was partial in 201 (40.2%) and complete in 153 (30.6%) patients. There was no xiphoid process in 9 patients (1.8%; 29–51 years; mean age 38 years). Xiphoidal ending types were as follows: single-ended 361 (72.2%), double-ended 125 (25%), and triple-ended xiphoid 5 (1%) patients. The sternal foramen was adjacent to the lung in 13 (2.6%), to the pericardium of heart in 3 (0.6%), and to mediastinal fat in 10 (2%) patients. The sternum is a very critical anatomic structure of the anterior chest wall with several variations that can be confused with pathologic conditions. Radiologists’ familiarity with these variations is important for better radiologic evaluation in making differential diagnosis.

De Quervain tenosynovitis affects the first extensor compartment of the wrist and occurs more frequently in females. This high prevalence could not be explained by soft tissue. As the osseous anatomy has been mostly neglected, we aimed to compare the distal radius between the sexes. We evaluated the presence of a bony ridge on the floor of the first extensor compartment on CT images with multiplanar imaging. We included 244 wrists (72 females, 172 males) in the study. A bony ridge was present in 58 (23.8 %) and absent in 186 (76.2 %) wrists. A ridge was present in 24 (33.3 %) wrists among females and 34 (19.8 %) wrists among males. A groove with a bony ridge was statistically associated with females. We observed two tendon groove morphologies for the first extensor compartment. A groove with a bony ridge occurs more frequently in females. Further research is needed to clarify the relationship between the high frequency of a bony ridge and increased prevalence of de Quervain tenosynovitis in females.

There is no consensus about the measurement techniques to determine the tibial torsion by using MRI. The primary research question of this study was to find out which MRI-based tibial torsion measurement method is more reliable and reproducible. Secondly, we compared tibial torsion values measured by three measurement methods in T1- and T2-weighted images. We retrospectively analyzed voluntary children performed MRI for determination of the lower limb torsional alignment after the surgical treatment between January 2013 and December 2013. Thirty-four extremities of 17 patients were included in the present study. The mean age of patients was 7.3 years (range 3–12 years). The transmalleolar, posterior intermalleolar and anterior talus angles were used for the measurement of tibial torsion. All tibial torsion measurements were calculated by three blinded observers in T1- and T2-weighted images, and these measurements were repeated blindly after 2 months. All measured intra- and interobserver intra-class correlations were greater than 0.60. The best scores were achieved with the anterior talus angle. It was followed by the posterior malleolar angle and the intermalleolar angle, respectively. Furthermore, there were no statistically significant differences between tibial torsion values measured by each observer in T1- and T2-weighted images of each method. MRI-based tibial torsion measurements were reliable and reproducible for all three methods. But we think that the anterior talus angle and the posterior malleolar angle are easier and more successful in determination of the tibial torsion. Also, both T1- and T2-weighted images can be used successfully for this purpose.

In recent years, methods by which to decrease radiation exposure during age estimation have gained importance and become a main research area in the forensic sciences. Imaging tools such as X-ray and computed tomography (CT) are accepted as the main diagnostic methods for evaluation of the epiphysis in living individuals; however, radiation exposure and superimposition are the main disadvantages of these techniques. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging provides an advantage in terms of preventing radiation exposure. In this study, we performed an MR analysis of the degree of fusion of the distal tibia and calcaneal epiphysis and investigated the utility of this technique in the Turkish population. Using the three-stage method described by Saint-Martin et al., we retrospectively evaluated 167 MR images (97 males, 70 females; mean age, 17.7 +/- 4.8 years for males and 17.6 +/- 4.9 years for females; age range of all subjects, 8-25 years). Intraobserver and interobserver evaluation showed good repeatability and consistency of this method. Stages 2 and 3 ossification of the distal tibial epiphysis first occurred at age 14 and 15 years in males and 12 and 14 years in females, respectively. Stages 2 and 3 ossification of the calcaneal epiphysis first occurred at age 14 and 16 years in males and 10 and 12 years in females, respectively. When performed alone, MR analysis of the distal tibial and calcaneal epiphysis offers limited information for forensic age estimation. However, we suggest that MR analysis can be used as a supportive method when it is necessary to avoid repeated radiation exposure.

To evaluate the usefulness of diffusion- weighted MRI (DWI) in the detection and staging of liver fibrosis and inflammation.DWI was performed with b-factors of 0, 500 and 1000 s/mm². ADC values were obtained by placing circular regions of interest in four segments of the liver. Differences between the study (n = 34) and control groups' (n = 25) ADC values were examined. Further, this study investigated if and how ADC values were related to fibrosis stages and histological activity index (HAI) scores.The mean ADC value of the liver was smaller in the study group compared with the control group (P 0.001). Spearman rho correlation analyses showed lower ADC values were associated with higher fibrosis and HAI scores (P 0.01). There were statistically significant differences in liver ADC values between each combination of fibrosis stages (e.g. stages 0 and 1, 0 and 2) except for stages 1 and 2.ADC values prove to be a valuable technique for the diagnosis of liver fibrosis and inflammation. They can also be useful in fibrosis staging, particularly in distinguishing later stages of fibrosis from intermediate and early stages.Diffusion Weighted MRI is a promising technique for diagnosis of liver fibrosis. Apparent Diffusion Coefficients provide valuable information for staging of liver fibrosis. DWI may offer alternative to biopsy for assessing liver fibrosis.