Identification of discrete vascular lesions in the extremities using post-mortem computed tomography angiography – Case reports

Abstract

In this case report, we introduced post-mortem computed tomography angiography (PMCTA) in three cases suffering from vascular lesions in the upper extremities. In each subject, the third part of the axillary arteries and veins were used to catheterize the arms. The vessels were filled with a barium sulfate based contrast agent using a syringe. A CT scan was performed before and after filling of the vessels. Partial PMCTA provided information about the exact location and the severity of lesions. In one subject, partial PMCTA was essential to identify the cause of death. The substantial benefit of partial PMCTA is that the procedure is easily performed using standard clinically available CT systems without the use of pumps or other advanced equipment. These findings demonstrated the feasibility of PMCTA for identification of vascular lesions in the upper extremities. We expect that partial PMCTA can be of great value in cases where the subjects are suspected to have lesions in the extremities.