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August 2009 Blog Posts (41)

AuntMinnie's Atlas Imaging Specific Diagnosis (Third Edition) Book Review

Radiology -- Praise for the previous edition: "It is a good bet that Aunt Minnie's Atlas will be the most frequently borrowed book during that high-anxiety 6-month period preceding [the radiology board] examinations."--Radiology --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Radiology -- Praise for… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on August 14, 2009 at 9:30pm — No Comments

Agency announces NRU reactor shutdown will continue into 2010

The Canadian nuclear reactor that satisfies more than half of demand of molybdenum-99 for medical nuclear imaging services in North America will not return to service until the first quarter of 2010. Atomic Energy Canada Limited announced Wednesday that it was rolling back the estimated startup date for the National Research Universal reactor at Chalk River, ON. The reactor was shut down May 14 after a heavy-water leak penetrating its vessel wall was discovered. AECL initially estimated repairs… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on August 14, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

ACR Case in Point for August 13, 2009

75-year old male with history of bladder cancer status-post chemotherapy.

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Added by radRounds Radiology Network on August 14, 2009 at 8:57am — No Comments

RSNA Study Finds that Early Radiology Exposure Could Lure Medical Students to Specialty

In a recent RSNA article, Dr. David Hovsepian MD and Dr. Terry Desser MD of Stanford's Radiology Department recently shed light onto what really leads medical students to choose a career in radiology. Often times, one wonders -- how did you end up choosing radiology?

Interestingly, radiology has experienced a boom in the best and brightest medical student applicants. However, perhaps due to declining reimbursements, a tougher job market, and rapidly declining sky-high radiologist… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on August 13, 2009 at 5:30pm — No Comments

Successful cardiac CT certification hinges on clinical experience, not CME

Radiologists and cardiologists who meet image interpretation requirements for cardiac CT competence certification do equally well on the test, according to results of the first Cardiac CT Board Examination. Board exam results also hint that actual clinical experience counts more toward passing scores than does medical education. "There was no difference between radiologists and cardiologists as far as how they performed in the exam," said lead investigator Dr. Allen J. Taylor, director of… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on August 13, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

‘Sorry’ works in malpractice, but honesty and prevention are better

For years it’s been argued apologizing for medical errors would reduce the number of malpractice lawsuits. A comment published in a law journal argues an apology is less important than honesty and a dedicated quality improvement program in reducing malpractice payouts. Tort reform does nothing to decrease medical malpractice claims because it does nothing to address the basic reason patients sue, according to Richard C. Boothman, chief risk officer for the University of Michigan Health System… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on August 12, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

ACR Case in Point for August 12, 2009

ACR Case in Point for August 11, 2009

51-year-old woman presents to the emergency department with atypical chest pain radiating to the back
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Added by radRounds Radiology Network on August 12, 2009 at 8:00am — No Comments

MRI tracks connection between obesity and knee cartilage

Has the sight of a morbidly obese person making his or her way down a supermarket aisle ever led you to wonder what all that weight is doing to the person’s knees? Data from a study supported by the National Institute on Aging indicates it’s probably doing a lot of cartilage damage. “As obesity is one of the few established risk factors for osteoarthritis, it is not surprising that obesity may also precede and predict rapid cartilage loss,” said principal investigator Dr. Frank Roemer, an… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on August 11, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

Survey exposes infection-control procedures at MRI suites as poor

Findings from a survey of 100 imaging centers suggest that MRI scanning facilities, particularly those run independently from hospitals, lack basic infection-control procedures. Patients and staff could be at risk of contracting and spreading life-threatening diseases during MRI exams. According to the paper, titled "Survey of infection control in the MRI environment," most imaging facilities appraised either lacked or failed to consistently follow infection-control protocols for their MRI… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on August 10, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

Merge Healthcare Set to Acquire Confirma

Merge Healthcare Set to Acquire Confirma

Acquisition will open computer aided detection (CAD) imaging technology for the global healthcare market

MILWAUKEE & SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- In order to combine forces on expanding CAD technology, Merge Healthcare Incorporated (NASDAQ: MRGE), a leading health IT solutions provider, and Confirma, Inc., the largest privately-held developer of computer assisted detection (CAD) software for medical imaging, announce that they… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on August 10, 2009 at 8:17am — No Comments

FTC Again Delays Implementing “Red Flag Rules” Until November 1, 2009

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FTC Again Delays Implementing “Red Flag Rules” Until November 1, 2009

Those ACR members and other physicians have more time to comply with the Federal Trade Commission’s controversial “Red Flag Rules.” FTC announced it would delay enforcing the Rules until November 1, 2009. As ACR previously reported, the Red Flag Rules will require ACR members and other physicians deemed as “creditors” of patients who have “covered accounts” with them to develop and implement… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on August 8, 2009 at 1:30pm — No Comments

Letter From ACR Chair Thrall: Update on Health Care Reform

Letter From ACR Chair Thrall: Update on Health Care Reform to ACR - American College of Radiology Members

Dear ACR Member,

Congress has adjourned for its August recess and I wanted to take this opportunity to update you regarding ACR’s efforts on Capitol Hill.

In the House, the three committees with jurisdiction over the healthcare reform package, HR 3200, have completed their work and passed the bill out of their respective committees. The full House is… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on August 7, 2009 at 11:00pm — 2 Comments

Lung cancer staging presentation stirs debate about noncontrast imaging protocol

Radiologists may have to make only minor changes to their practices to adjust to the new international standards for lung cancer staging, but a lecture covering their implications was still controversial enough to send sparks flying Aug. 4 at the World Conference on Lung Cancer in San Francisco. The point of contention during a question and answer session arose after plenary lecturer Dr. Ned Patz, a thoracic radiologist from Duke University, recommended noncontrast thoracic CT for staging. He… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on August 7, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

Merge Healthcare Helps HealthPartners Integrate Medical Imaging and Electronic Health Record (EHR) Solutions

Merge Healthcare Helps HealthPartners Integrate Medical Imaging and Electronic Health Record (EHR) Solutions

Interoperability of Merge Fusion PACS™ and Epic™ EHR extends health system’s meaningful use environment to improve care and reduce costs

MILWAUKEE & MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Merge Healthcare (Nasdaq: MRGE), a leading health IT solutions provider, and HealthPartners, the largest consumer-governed, non-profit health organization in the nation, announced the… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on August 6, 2009 at 8:38pm — No Comments

Vertebroplasty proves no better for pain than placebo in two groundbreaking trials

Interventional radiologists are coming to grips with the implications of two groundbreaking clinical trials indicating that vertebroplasty relieves pain from osteoporotic vertebral fractures no better than a sham version of the procedure. Results from Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, and Cabrini Medical Center in Malvern, Australia, were published simultaneously Aug. 5 in the New England Journal of Medicine. Unlike past trials that examined only treated patients, the Mayo and Cabrini studies… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on August 6, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

fMRI proves honest people don’t even think about lying

Honest people don't struggle with themselves about whether they should tell the truth when given the opportunity to lie, as shown in an fMRI brain study of truth telling and prevarication from Harvard University behavioral scientists. Using a unique study approach, the researchers found honest individuals displayed little to no additional neural activity in control-related brain regions when telling the truth, but liars did. …

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Added by Diagnostic Imaging on August 5, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

National Network of Imaging Providers Signs Digital Mammography Contract with Merge Healthcare

Center for Diagnostic Imaging Selects Merge Mammo™

MILWAUKEE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Merge Healthcare, (Nasdaq:MRGE), a leading medical imaging solutions provider, today announced a new contract with the Center for Diagnostic Imaging (CDI), a national network of 51 imaging centers based in Minneapolis, MN. The CDI centers in the Twin Cities will use Merge Mammo 7.2, the newest version of Merge’s breast imaging workstation software. The solution will debut at the CDI center in Sartell,… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on August 5, 2009 at 10:29am — No Comments

Merge Healthcare Releases Proprietary Technologies for the Medical Software Development Community

“Unlocking the Vault” on a broad range of internal toolkits and libraries developed over the past two decades.

MILWAUKEE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Merge Healthcare (NASDAQ: MRGE), a leading health IT solutions provider, today announced that it will make its extensive suite of internal technologies available to the general software development market. Merge’s OEM team has developed a sizeable array of proprietary software modules during its long history of imaging and connectivity… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on August 5, 2009 at 10:25am — No Comments

PET can help guide treatment decisions for neuroblastoma

Children's hospitals in Cincinnati and Memphis have established the value of FDG-PET for depicting the extent of neuroblastoma in some patients, particularly for those in the early stages of the disease. Findings from the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital in Memphis expand the options available for determining optimal therapy for neuroblastoma. The condition accounts for 6% to 10% of all childhood cancers in the U.S. and 15% of cancer… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on August 4, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

Blue Dogs combat liberal reforms, take no stance on self-referral

Blue Dog Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on health were credited Friday with combating liberal proposals arising during protracted deliberations that would have cut physician pay. No action was taken on an amendment that would have banned in-office imaging physician self-referral. "I give them credit for taking a bill that was extremely left of center and putting in some provisions that moved it a little bit more toward the middle," said Cynthia R. Moran, assistant… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on August 3, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments