Abstract: Evaluating tissue characteristics including identification of injured tissue or alteration of the ratios of native tissue components such as shifting the amounts of normal myocytes and fibrotic tissue in the heart, identifying increases in the amount of extracellular components or fluid (like edema or extracellular matrix proteins), or detecting infiltration of tumor cells or mediators of inflammation into the tissue of interest in a patient, such as a human being, is provided by obtaining a first image of tissue including a region of interest from a first acquisition, for example, after administration of a contrast agent to the patient, and obtaining a second image of the tissue including the region of interest during a second, subsequent acquisition, for example, after administration of a contrast agent to the patient. The subsequent acquisition may be obtained after a period of time to determine if injury has occurred during that period of time.

Abstract: Methods, systems and circuits predict cardiotoxicity induced cardiac injury prior to an irreversible state by electronically generating at least one histogram of mean intensities of voxels/pixels in an MRI image of a left ventricle myocardium and electronically determining a likelihood of cardiac injury due to cardiotoxicity based on data from the at least one histogram.

Abstract: Physician interactive workstations with global cardiac voxel distribution visualization may also include one or more of a 3-D color scale image of a population of voxel in the heart and/or an electronic boundary-tracing tool configured to accept user input to electronically define at least one boundary of a target region of a heart in a medical image of a patient on a display. The workstation may be configured to evaluate intensity of voxels associated with tissue within the defined boundary of the target region of the heart whereby cardiotoxicity is evaluated.

Abstract: A packaging for a receptacle loadable into an inhaler for pulmonary delivery of the contents of the receptacle. The packaging includes a base and a cover, which base has a surface defining a well that accommodates the receptacle. The well-defining surface includes a first region and a differently shaped second region, which first surface region is shaped to support the receptacle in alignment within the well, and which second surface region accommodates a first end of the receptacle aligned in the well and has a mouth geometry enlarged from the first surface region to allow a portion of an inhaler to be inserted therein to receive the first end of the receptacle for scooping the receptacle into the inhaler from the well.

Abstract: Evaluating tissue characteristics including identification of injured tissue or alteration of the ratios of native tissue components such as shifting the amounts of normal myocytes and fibrotic tissue in the heart, identifying increases in the amount of extracellular components or fluid (like edema or extracellular matrix proteins), or detecting infiltration of tumor cells or mediators of inflammation into the tissue of interest in a patient, such as a human being, is provided by obtaining a first image of tissue including a region of interest from a first acquisition, for example, after administration of a contrast agent to the patient, and obtaining a second image of the tissue including the region of interest during a second, subsequent acquisition, for example, after administration of a contrast agent to the patient. The subsequent acquisition may be obtained after a period of time to determine if injury has occurred during that period of time.