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November 2008 Blog Posts (124)

Report from AHA: Vulnerable plaques factor into heart attack risk calculation

November 13, 2008 Report from AHA: Vulnerable plaques factor into heart attack risk calculation By James Brice A combined diagnostic approach enhances clinical assessment of heart attack risk, according to a lecture at an American Heart Association conference this week. Such an approach would take into account vulnerable arterial plaques, traditional risk factors, and measures of atherosclerotic disease severity. Dr. Morteza Naghavi, founder and chair of Screening for Heart Attack Prevention… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on November 13, 2008 at 9:30pm — No Comments

RTOG Presents Top Scoring Abstract at Society for Neuro-Oncology Annual Meeting

PHILADELPHIA, November 11, 2008 - Radiation Therapy Oncology Groups (RTOG) investigators will report recent results from the group’s brain tumor research during six presentations at the at the Society for Neuro-Oncology (SNO) 13th Annual Meeting in Lake Las Vegas, NV November 20 – 23, 2008. RTOG is a National Cancer Institute-funded national clinical trials group and is administered by the American College of Radiology.

An abstract reporting the overall and progression-free survival… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on November 13, 2008 at 2:30pm — No Comments

Medical imaging for managed care plan doubles in 10 years

November 12, 2008 Medical imaging for managed care plan doubles in 10 years By James Brice A Seattle nonprofit managed care plan has experienced the same rapid growth in high-tech medical imaging utilization as federal health insurance programs. The 377,000-member Group Health Cooperative's per-beneficiary use of high-tech imaging more than doubled from 1997 to 2006, according to researchers from GHC's Center for Health Studies and the University of California, San Francisco. Their findings… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on November 12, 2008 at 9:30pm — No Comments

FDA Approves Boston Scientific's Apex™ PTCA Dilatation Catheter

FDA Approves Boston Scientific's Apex™ PTCA Dilatation Catheter

New design provides more options for treating patients with complex lesions

NATICK, Mass., Nov. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Boston Scientific

Corporation (NYSE: BSX) today announced that it has received approval from

the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to market its Apex™ PTCA(1)

Dilatation Catheter. The Apex Catheter is a high-performance pre-dilatation

balloon catheter developed… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on November 12, 2008 at 2:28pm — No Comments

Merge Healthcare Showcases Continued Innovation for Imaging Practices and OEM Providers at RSNA 2008

NEW YORK (radRounds) -- Merge Healthcare will highlight many solutions including the industry-leading eFilm Workstation™ and MergeCOM™ toolkits, as well as new offerings from both its direct imaging division (Fusion solution suite) and OEM division (Cedara solution suite). The RSNA 2008 portfolio reflects Merge’s longstanding history of innovation, from its start as one of the first companies to build DICOM solutions for the imaging industry, to a wide range of new offerings for radiology… Continue

Added by Jennifer Larson on November 12, 2008 at 12:00am — No Comments

Organizers expand scope of Image Gently radiation reduction program

November 11, 2008 Organizers expand scope of Image Gently radiation reduction program By H.A. Abella The Alliance for Radiation Safety in Pediatric Imaging is expanding the scope of its Image Gently awareness efforts. The move to protect patients from unnecessary exposure to imaging-related ionizing radiation includes the participation of CareCore National, a radiology benefits management company that will apply its guidelines to a member network of 28 million people. The Bluffton, SC, company… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on November 11, 2008 at 10:00pm — No Comments

MedCast provides residents better distance learning solution

November 11, 2008 MedCast provides residents better distance learning solution By Douglas Page Finding an acceptable way to facilitate distance learning can be a challenge, especially for multicenter residency programs. These programs require residents to rotate through offsite locations, meaning they are frequently unavailable to attend conferences held at the central site. Researchers at the University of Virginia Health System have devised a remedy in the form of MedCast, a computer system… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on November 11, 2008 at 10:00pm — No Comments

Two-second CT scan turns into 65-minute ordeal for toddler

November 10, 2008 Two-second CT scan turns into 65-minute ordeal for toddler By Donna Domino Parents of a two-year-old boy are suing a California hospital after their son allegedly was subjected to more than 65 minutes of intermittent scanning in a CT machine, leaving him with radiation burns on his face and head. Jacoby Roth was taken to the 78-bed Mad River Community Hospital in Arcata, a small town 290 miles north of San Francisco, on Jan. 23. His parents, Carrie and Padre, took him to the… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on November 10, 2008 at 10:00pm — No Comments

ACR/NOPR Update: PET Impact Found to be Consistent across Cancer Types and Imaging Indications

NOPR Update: PET Impact Found to be Consistent across Cancer Types and Imaging Indications

Information provided by positron emission tomography (PET) was found to affect how clinicians manage their cancer patients’ care regardless of the cancer type and reason for ordering this imaging scan, according to results from the National Oncologic PET Registry (NOPR), published online November 7 in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

Earlier this year, the study authors reported in… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on November 10, 2008 at 9:34pm — No Comments

Great Website for Radiology CME Courses: RADLIST

If you are looking for Radiology CME, RADLIST offers the MOST comprehensive listing of all courses in all flavors. Whether you are looking for quick simple level 1 CME that is online and you can do in the comfort of your home or you want to fly to Hawaii for that MSK Course, you can find it on RADLIST. Auntminnie is good but RADLIST is much better for Radiology CME. Avoid the clutter and check out the very well organized and comprehensive… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on November 9, 2008 at 11:30am — No Comments

Medical de-identification system addresses health records privacy issues

November 7, 2008 Medical de-identification system addresses health records privacy issues By Douglas Page The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act safeguards patient personal health information, but it also tends to complicate medical research by inhibiting access to medical records necessary to develop public health measures. A medical de-identification tool announced in September by researchers at the Regenstrief Institute at the University of Indiana offers a way around this… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on November 7, 2008 at 10:00pm — No Comments

Unique Job Opportunity for Radiologists @ Telerays

Sponsored Job Posting by Telerays, LLC:

Telerays, LLC, an online radiology auction, has openings for highly skilled general radiologists and specialty trained radiologists to provide interpretations for hospitals and imaging centers nationwide. Become a part of the next revolution in radiology as we launch the first auction. Apply now and get credentialed before the auctioning begins. Telerays radiologists do not have to work exclusively for this service and may keep their current… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on November 7, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

The slippery slope of off-label promotion

November 6, 2008 The slippery slope of off-label promotion -- By Greg Freiherr When it comes to drugs, there is a huge gulf between off-label prescription and off-label promotion. One is legal, the other is not. For the most part, medical imaging doesn't get involved in either, although there are exceptions. Contrast-enhanced MR angiography is one. The first MR contrast agents were approved two decades ago, specifically to enhance cancer tumors of the central nervous system. Since then, their… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on November 6, 2008 at 10:30pm — No Comments

Radiology finds reassurance on sunny side of change

November 6, 2008 Radiology finds reassurance on sunny side of change By James Brice Radiology has already had more than its share of uncertainty in recent months. Markets for new projects have evaporated as reimbursement rates have been cut, the growth of imaging services revenue has slowed, financial capital is scarce, and potential investors have lost confidence in the economic engine of medical imaging technology. Obama’s election and the prospect of healthcare reform can help break through… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on November 6, 2008 at 10:30pm — No Comments

Brain blood flow plays role in fibromyalgia symptoms

November 6, 2008 Brain blood flow plays role in fibromyalgia symptoms By Rebekah Moan In a potential breakthrough study, French researchers used SPECT to identify brain abnormalities that present physiological evidence of fibromyalgia. The results quash the idea that diffuse, sometimes debilitating pain from the condition stems from anxiety and depression. Fibromyalgia afflicts between three million and six million people in U.S., according to the National Institute of Arthritis and… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on November 6, 2008 at 10:00pm — No Comments

New Research: Ultrasound and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) for Detection of Rheumatoid Arthritis

(radRounds) -- According to a prospective longitudinal study conducted by some U.S. and U.K. researchers and published in the October issue of “Arthritis & Rheumatism.” When rheumatoid arthritis is in clinical remission even then if structural deterioration were to continue, the probable cause for that appears to be subclinical joint inflammation, this inflammation can be detected by using ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI),

The study is probably the first to show… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on November 6, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Earning Opportunity ($200 Honorarium) sponsored by HRA Research

This opportunity was posted by HRA Research on November 6th 2008. Space is limited.

HRA Research is conducting a study on "New Approach to Breast Cancer Testing”. If you are a Radiologist, specializing in breast screening and diagnostic imaging follow-up, or if you are an Interventional Radiologist, performing and/or assisting in breast biopsies, we would like to invite you to take part in this study. The interview would last approximately 60 minutes and you would receive an… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on November 6, 2008 at 3:03pm — No Comments

Apple at RSNA 2008: Osirix, iPhone, and Macs - Preview and Schedule of Events

Due to the overwhelming number of requests by many radiologists from around the world including many radRounds members, we have decided to put together a brief overview, preview, and schedule of events for workshops and educational sessions related to OsiriX, iPhone, and Apple Macs at the upcoming RSNA 2008 in Chicago.

Introduction to OsiriX - The Mac OS X Open Source Medical Imaging Viewer

This hands-on workshop will take you through the basic installation, set-up and… Continue

Added by radRounds Radiology Network on November 5, 2008 at 10:00am — No Comments

Ultrasound foretells stroke risk based on carotid plaque morphology

November 4, 2008 Diagnostic Imaging. Ultrasound foretells stroke risk based on carotid plaque morphology By H.A. Abella Results from a large study by Italian investigators suggest that ultrasound can predict the risk of stroke in mostly asymptomatic patients based on the assessment of carotid artery plaque morphology, not just stenosis degree. Sonographic surveillance of plaque evolution could boost stroke prevention. Researchers have previously defined the role of vascular risk factors, such… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on November 4, 2008 at 10:30pm — No Comments

Teleradiology interpretations may differ from final reads

November 4, 2008 Teleradiology interpretations may differ from final reads By Douglas Page Major discrepancies in interpretations by teleradiologists and in-house radiologists occur in approximately 6% of commonly ordered CT scans, according to a new paper. The University of California, San Francisco-Fresno study identified eight major discrepancies due to teleradiology misinterpretation in 550 cases originating in an academic Level 1 trauma center (J Emerg Med 2008 Sep 22.[Epub ahead of… Continue

Added by Diagnostic Imaging on November 4, 2008 at 10:30pm — No Comments