Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) is a revolutionary technique that combines all the benefits of contract-enhanced imaging with the high-resolution and real-time nature of diagnostic ultrasound. CEUS has undergone many technologic advances resulting in development of second-generation contrast agents MORE

Oncologists and their epidemiology colleagues have long recognized that much of cancer was not a simple matter of chance but to a very significant extent was related to our behaviour, the potential carcinogenic exposures we were subjected to in our personal and work environments, and the access individuals had to advances in cancer screening. Everyone is familiar with the documented impact that measures to reduce tobacco usage have had on the incidence of cancer – a prime example of changing behaviour. Many believe that the epidemic of obesity occurring now will have an even greater impact on increasing the risk and incidence of many cancers. There are an increasing number of validated methods available today for detecting cancer at its very earliest stages but the challenge to the use of these technologies will depend ultimately on access and affordability. MORE

Early identification of coronary artery disease (CAD) is difficult using traditional risk factors and risk scores. While it is well known that CAD has substantial heritability and a polygenic architecture, genomic risk scores to help predict early CAD have yet to be shown especially effective. In this study, Inouye et al constructed a genomic risk score based on 1.7 million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to predict lifetime risk trajectories for CAD. The researchers developed built a new genomic risk score for CAD (called metaGRS) using a meta-analytic approach to combine large-scale, genome-wide, and targeted genetic association data. The score was based on 3 other genetic risk scores and included 1.7 million genetic variants. MORE

Increasing numbers of patients are presenting with bioprosthetic mitral valve degeneration. Transcatheter mitral valve replacement (TMVR) is an emerging treatment for patients with severe mitral valve disease at high risk for conventional mitral valve surgery. Yoon et al sought to evaluate the outcomes of TMVR in patients with degenerated bioprostheses (valve-in-valve [ViV]), failed annuloplasty rings (valve-in-ring [ViR]), and severe mitral annular calcification (valve-in-mitral annular calcification [ViMAC]). Using data from the international, multicenter TMVR registry, procedural and clinical outcomes of ViV, ViR, and ViMAC were compared according to Mitral Valve Academic Research Consortium (MVARC) criteria. A total of 521 patients with mean Society of Thoracic Surgeons score of 9.0% underwent TMVR: 322 of them had ViV, 141 had ViR, and 58 had ViMAC. Trans-septal access was used in 39.5% and Sapien valves were used 90.0%. MORE