Dmriprep: open-source diffusion MRI quality control framework with graphical user interface

In the last decade, investigating white matter microstructure and connectivity via diffusion MRI (dmri) has become a crucial cornerstone in neuroimaging studies. However, even modern dmri sequences have inherently a low signal-to-noise ratio and long acquisition times, depending on the spatial resolution. Furthermore, many types of artifacts complicate the appropriate analysis of dmri, necessitating appropriate quality control (QC) procedures, including exclusion and/or correction of inappropriate/erroneous dmri data. Our group has been developing and promoting QC procedures and tools to the community to enable appropriate dmri analyses. Since its development in 2011, our DTIPrep QC tool has become a major tool due its ease of use and dmri QC performance. Over the years, novel developments in acquisition and artifact correction methods have led to a need to modernize DTIPrep. Here, we present a novel diffusion MRI analysis environment called dtiplayground with a fully redesigned and significantly enhanced QC module dmriprep, and its graphical user interface dmriprep-ui, building on in-house developed code, FSL and dipy. The user interface is designed to be a unified, user friendly tool for thorough QC of dMRI data.Artifacts addressed by dmriprep include eddy-currents, head motion, bed vibration and pulsation, venetian blind artifacts, slice-wise and gradient-wise intensity inconsistencies, and susceptibility artifacts. It further provides an user interface for visual QC of gradients and automated tractography. In summary, our work presents a novel open-source framework for modern comprehensive dmri QC.

[Treatment of congenital heart diseases with pulmonary artery cerclage. Immediate and medium term results in 51 patients]

The aim of this study was to assess the results of pulmonary artery banding in a retrospective study of 51 consecutive children treated from January 1980 to December 1993. The study population was 24 girls and 27 boys with an average age of 6.2 months, of average weight of 4.01 kg. The cardiac conditions treated were ventricular septal defects in 24 cases (isolated and associated with one or more cardiovascular malformations or multiple), complete atrioventricular canal in 12 cases (isolated or associated with several cardiovascular malformations), single ventricle in 7 cases, double outlet right ventricle in 3 cases, transposition of the great arteries with ventricular septal defect in 2 cases, tricuspid atresia in 2 cases, and a complex lesion with double discordance in one case. The average duration of banding was 2.35 years (n = 49). Hospital morality of banding was 1.9% (1/51). Late mortality was 14.8% (7/47). Twenty-one patients (42.8%) had complications of banding. The survival rates of children who underwent banding was 86.8% at 1 year and 80.6% at 11 years. The low hospital mortality leaves a role for pulmonary artery banding as a palliative procedure in congenital heart disease in which early correction is impossible or carries and unacceptable risk. Complications of banding justify attempts to improve the technique, by making adjustable bands.

[Consumption coagulopathy and meningioma]

A twenty year old man died after coagulation disorders following neurosurgery. Disseminated intravascular coagulation and fibrinolysis occurring after neurosurgery of brain tumours are discussed.