Diagnostic Imaging's Blog – February 2009 Archive (18)

February 26, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Comparative effectiveness research could create imaging technology bottlenecks By H.A. Abella The $1.1 billion in the economic stimulus plan committed to comparative effectiveness research may be good for weighing the relative merits of medical technologies, but it could slow their adoption and lead to European-style rationing, according to Obama administration critics. Yet the first postinauguration reactions to President Barack Obama's commitment to a… Continue

February 25, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Radiologist wins $11.4 million judgment against Kaiser in retaliation case By Donna Domino and James Brice A dispute involving complaints about poor patient care and charges of political retaliation by Kaiser Permanente Medical Group has led to $11.4 million court judgment for a southern California radiologist. The case ended in December 2008 with a decision by a Los Angeles Superior Court jury favoring Dr. Michael Martinucci. It began as internal… Continue

February 24, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Link emerges between pericardial fat and coronary artery disease By James Brice Just as arterial calcium predicts coronary artery disease, the presence and extent of fat accumulations around the heart may indicate the presence of atherosclerosis. Dr. Hwan Seok Yong and colleagues at Korea University Guro Hospital in Seoul have established a correlation for the first time between the presence of pericardial adipose tissue and coronary atherosclerosis in… Continue

February 23, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Declining mammography rates portend potential preventive care crisis By H.A. Abella Breast cancer screening rates among young premenopausal women are declining, according to a study on mammography use from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Mammographers worry that the trend could lead to the erosion of screening services and of preventive care in general. …

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February 20, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Ultrasound proves just as useful as CT for detecting free air By Rebekah Moan Japanese researchers have established by studying nearly 500 patients that ultrasound is just as useful as CT in diagnosing intraperitoneal free air in patients suffering from abdominal pain or acute injury. After blunt trauma, it is important to diagnose gastrointestinal perforation, especially in the peritoneal cavity. In the U.S., CT is used almost exclusively for the workup of… Continue

February 19, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Cardiac MR measures right ventricular benefits of sleep apnea treatment By H.A. Abella Cardiac MR can demonstrate the effects of airway pressure therapy in the hearts of patients with obstructive sleep apnea. In the first study of its kind, researchers at Ohio State University Medical Center found that it could document therapeutic benefits on structure and function to the heart's right side. …

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February 18, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Hospitals lose out when imaging moves to private offices By Rebekah Moan Use of noninvasive diagnostic imaging rose 63% at private imaging facilities between 1996 and 2006, suggesting that hospitals lost a business opportunity, according to a study in the Journal of the American College of Radiology. Dr. David C. Levin, former chair of radiology at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, and colleagues examined nationwide Medicare Part B… Continue

February 1, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Vol. 31 No. 2 Edgy NSF article may have gone too far To the editor: I read with interest your article on nephrogenic systemic fibrosis and the “heavy collateral damage” that radiologists face due to the off-label uses of gadolinium agents and subsequent development of NSF in some patients (“Radiologists meet with heavy collateral damage,” December, page 23). While the points are largely difficult to dispute, I just want to note that there is a lot that we do… Continue

February 1, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Vol. 31 No. 2 CT angiography data offer new approach to perfusion stroke imaging Perfused blood volume analysis results in CT stroke protocol that requires less time for imaging, lower dose of radiation, and smaller volumes of contrast BY DOMINIK MORHARD, M.D., MAXIMILIAN F. REISER, M.D., AND BIRGIT ERTL-WAGNER, M.D. Acute stroke is a medical emergency that is potentially treatable. Because "time is brain," however, the imaging workup must be fast and… Continue

February 1, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Vol. 31 No. 2 Clinicians identify tactics that minimize risk of NSF New York City hospitals using standard doses of gadolinium-based contrast media avoid new cases By James Brice Studies examining the clinical histories of patients who developed nephrogenic systemic fibrosis after treatment at distinguished teaching hospitals in New York City and Vienna suggest that gadoliniumbased contrast dose and post-MRI hemodialysis are keys to controlling the rare but… Continue

February 1, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Vol. 31 No. 2 Case of the Month FigureCLINICAL HISTORY A 44-year-old Asian man with a past medical history of left carotid artery stenosis presented to the emergency room with sudden onset of severe headache. An initial noncontrast head CT scan revealed acute hemorrhage within the left lentiform nucleus. CT angiography was subsequently performed for further evaluation. FINDINGS Axial CTA image at the level of the cavernous sinuses (Figure 1) demonstrates… Continue

February 1, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Vol. 31 No. 2 3D neuro imaging technique realizes Orwellian vision University of California, San Diego scientists are developing a new imaging modality that will study the body/brain dynamics of humans engaged in normal activity. The Swartz Center for Computational Neuroscience at UCSD is creating the concurrent brain and body imaging modality MoBI (Mobile Brain/Body Imaging) under a four-year $3.4 million research grant from the U.S. Navy Office of Naval… Continue

February 1, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Vol. 31 No. 2 Three-D rivals at RSNA 2008 bump competition up a notch Enhanced thin-client systems and web viewers exemplify advanced visualization unveilings By Greg Freiherr -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Competition among vendors hawking advanced visualization tools heated up on the RSNA 2008 exhibit floor with offerings from standard-bearer Vital Images and newcomers Ziostation and FiatLux Imaging, as… Continue

February 1, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Vol. 31 No. 2 Study confirms: Digital mammo lengthens read time -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Researchers at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston have confirmed what mammographers have long suspected: Digital screening mammograms may take twice as long to read as film. Dr. Tamara Miner Haygood and colleagues clocked four radiologists as they interpreted 268 digital and 189… Continue

February 1, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Vol. 31 No. 2 Radiology gets sent off to the washhouse Subspecialists, teleradiology practices, and insurance companies all join in splashing fun BY BRADLEY M. TIPLER, M.D. Dr. Tipler is a private-practice radiologist in Staunton, VA. He can be reached by fax at 540/332-4491 or by e-mail at btipler@medicaltees.com. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Two years ago, my 70-yearold father-in-law decided his… Continue

February 1, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Vol. 31 No. 2 Proponents call proposed PET coverage ‘bittersweet' Researchers welcome CMS plan but share worries about its limitations, oncologic PET registry's future By H.A. Abella -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A proposal to expand Medicare coverage of FDG-PET studies for cancer staging and restaging has elicited mixed reactions among proponents. Though some applaud the move, others, particularly PET… Continue

February 1, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Vol. 31 No. 2 Interventional radiology offers refined approach to therapy Broadened applications in kidney, lung, and bone use MR imaging to guide electroporation and high-intensity focused ultrasound ablation BY SHAUN SAMUELS, M.D. Dr. Samuels is a course director of the International Symposium on Endovascular Therapy and an affiliate assistant professor of vascular and interventional radiology at the University of South Florida at Tampa.… Continue

February 1, 2009 Diagnostic Imaging. Vol. 31 No. 2 International experts, cutting-edge technology impress RSNA newbie BY DONNA DOMINO Ms. Domino is feature editor of Diagnostic Imaging. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As an experienced journalist but a neophyte to radiology, I went to Chicago with a healthy mixture of curiosity and trepidation. I had prepared for the RSNA sessions I was assigned to cover but wondered if the megatechnical… Continue