Radiology News and Research

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Radiology is the medical specialty directing medical imaging technologies to diagnose and sometimes treat diseases. Originally it was the aspect of medical science dealing with the medical use of electromagnetic energy emitted by X-ray machines or other such radiation devices for the purpose of obtaining visual information as part of medical imaging.

New minimally invasive procedure to treat ruptured brain aneurysm developed

Researchers in Finland have identified an effective new treatment option for patients who have suffered a ruptured brain aneurysm, a potentially life-threatening event. Results of the new study on stent-assisted coil embolization were published today in the online edition of Radiology.

25 Aug 2009

Concussions could result in permanent brain impairment

Concussions, whether from an accident, sporting event, or combat, can lead to permanent loss of higher level mental processes. Scientists have debated for centuries whether concussions involve structural damage to brain tissue or whether physiological changes that merely impair the way brain cells function, explain this loss.

24 Aug 2009

AETC Chicago launches 24/7 veterinary emergency care center

As of September 1, Chicago's approximately 1.6 million pets* will have access to 24-hour emergency medical attention - and ongoing hospitalization - should they fall victim to accident or illness. Located at 3927 W. Belmont, Animal Emergency & Treatment Center (AETC) is the only veterinary emergency and specialty center in the city to offer care at any hour of the day or night, 365 days a year.

21 Aug 2009

Massachusetts General Hospital selects BDV's video and audio solution for improving operating room efficiency

Black Diamond Video, Inc. (BDV) announces that Massachusetts General Hospital has selected BDV to integrate their state-of-the-art Integrated Digital Surgical Suites (IDSS) video and audio solution into their new operating rooms and vascular hybrid suites. The IDSS will enhance the quality and efficiency of care delivered by the Massachusetts General Hospital’s surgical, nursing, radiology, pathology and clinical engineering teams by providing high-resolution video routing, audio routing, multi-windowing, printing, recording and video streaming.

20 Aug 2009

Physician shortage limits even insured patients' access to care

CBS News reports that just having insurance coverage "doesn't guarantee access" to health care, because there is s shortage of primary care doctors to provide treatment. "Baystate Medical Center is the second busiest emergency room in Massachusetts. They treat over 100,000 patients a year, but here's the thing: according to Dr. Niels Rathlev, who runs the ER, a quarter of them don't need his services." Rathlev says it would be "more appropriate" for those people to see a primary care doctor. "'The majority of patients who are frequent utilizers of the emergency department actually have insurance,' Rathlev said. 'They have a primary care physician, but they choose to come to the ER because they don't have access.'"

20 Aug 2009

Siemens' state-of-the-art high-definition PET/CT scanner installed at Long Beach PET Imaging Center

Long Beach PET Imaging Center, a leading diagnostic imaging center in the Long Beach, Calif.-area, announced today it has completed the installation of a new state-of-the-art HD (high-definition) PET/CT scanner, the first of its kind in the area.

20 Aug 2009

Computed tomography angiography can identify abnormalities and injury beyond the pulmonary arteries

Children with clinically suspected pulmonary embolism (PE) are increasingly being evaluated with CT angiography (CTA). Even though many children ultimately test negative for PE, study results suggest that CTA is still valuable for this indication because it has the ability to accurately detect a variety of alternative diagnoses.

19 Aug 2009

New "micropatterning" method useful in gene expression studies

Like oil and water, two water-based liquids can mingle without mixing in a new University of Michigan technology developed for biological experiments.

19 Aug 2009

HealthHelp upgrades customer care technology with Qwest solutions

HealthHelp, a Houston-based radiology benefit-management company, recently upgraded its customer care technology with Qwest services. Now, physician offices can operate more efficiently with self-service, around-the-clock voice and data access to HealthHelp’s radiology benefit-management programs thanks to technology powered by Qwest Communications.

19 Aug 2009

New tool for virtual surgery simulates blood flow - helps plan child's delicate heart surgery

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology, collaborating with pediatric cardiologists and surgeons at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, have developed a tool for virtual surgery that allows heart surgeons to view the predicted effects of different surgical approaches. By manipulating three-dimensional cardiac magnetic resonance images of a patient's specific anatomy, physicians can compare how alternative approaches affect blood flow and expected outcomes, and can select the best approach for each patient before entering the operating room.

12 Aug 2009

Vertebroplasty expert cites concerns about new study

A new study by Mayo Clinic researchers has given rise to more questions than answers about the effectiveness of vertebroplasty to treat osteoporotic spinal fractures.

11 Aug 2009

Virtual heart surgery helps plan child's surgery

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology, collaborating with pediatric cardiologists and surgeons at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, have developed a tool for virtual surgery that allows heart surgeons to view the predicted effects of different surgical approaches.

10 Aug 2009

AHRA and Toshiba partner on putting patients first program

Patient safety and quality care continue to be important issues for hospitals and imaging centers. To help these facilities start new or build upon existing programs, AHRA: The Association for Medical Imaging Management announces the second year of its Putting Patients First grant program.

10 Aug 2009

Merge Healthcare to acquire Confirma

In order to combine forces on expanding CAD technology, Merge Healthcare Incorporated, 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 have entered into a definitive agreement for Merge to acquire Confirma in an all-stock transaction. This acquisition brings Confirma’s patented and proven technologies to Merge’s multiple market channels and international markets, and provides a mechanism to expand adoption of this important technology.

9 Aug 2009

AGA Medical announces verdict in jury phase of patent case

AGA Medical Holdings, Inc. (AGA Medical) today announced the completion of the first phase of a litigation between AGA Medical and Medtronic, Inc., in which a California jury returned a verdict that some of AGA Medical's products infringed some of the claims of patents held by Medtronic, and that these patents have not been proven invalid over prior art.

6 Aug 2009

Noninvasive MRI helps diabetes diagnosis and treatment

Noninvasive imaging (MRI) may aid physicians in the early diagnosis, staging and treatment of diabetes, according to a study performed at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA. This is the first study of its kind to apply noninvasive imaging techniques to diabetes research.

6 Aug 2009

Digital mammography plus digital breast tomosynthesis may lower patient recall rates

Nationally, about ten percent of women in the US are recalled for a second mammogram after an abnormality is detected on the first one - for most women this can be very stressful.

6 Aug 2009

New insights into peripheral artery disease

Walking is a painful experience for many of the eight million Americans who suffer lower extremity peripheral arterial disease, or PAD. The condition, which is associated with aging and involves progressive functional decline, can cause heaviness, tightness, cramping or sharp pain in the calf muscle. Symptoms typically disappear with rest and return when walking resumes.

5 Aug 2009

$Questions raised about vertebroplasty for osteoporotic spinal compression fractures$

Questions raised about vertebroplasty for osteoporotic spinal compression fractures

A new study led by Mayo Clinic researchers has found that relief of pain from vertebral compression fractures, as well as improvement in pain-related dysfunction, were similar in patients treated with vertebroplasty and those treated with simulated vertebroplasty without cement injections. The article, “A Randomized Controlled Trial of Vertebroplasty for Osteoporotic Spine Fractures,” was released today in the New England Journal of Medicine.

5 Aug 2009

World shortage of molybdenum may hinder nuclear medicine services

Problems with the world production and supply of molybdenum are leading to shortages of radioisotopes for nuclear medicine imaging tests, according to an editorial in the journal Nuclear Medicine Communications, official journal of the British Nuclear Medicine Society (BNMS).

5 Aug 2009