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Addition of ultrasound and MRI to annual mammography effectively detects incident breast cancers

The addition of a screening ultrasound or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to annual mammography in women with an increased risk of breast cancer and dense breast tissue resulted in a higher rate of detection of incident breast cancers, according to a study in the April 4 issue of JAMA.

4 Apr 2012

Nine physician organizations identify specific tests or procedures that may be unnecessary

Nine leading physician specialty societies have identified specific tests or procedures that they say are commonly used but not always necessary in their respective fields. Patient advocates are calling the move a significant step toward improving the quality and safety of health care.

4 Apr 2012

Neural imaging-maps of brain functions hope to transform lives of people with epilepsy

Neural imaging-maps of brain functions-is a primary tool used by researchers hoping to transform the lives of people living with chronic neurological conditions such as epilepsy. At present, researchers often require several different imaging techniques to fully map brain functions, making research and treatment of these conditions expensive and inefficient.

3 Apr 2012

Secondary cancer risk from MDCT scans is low among older adults

The secondary cancer risk from multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) scans is low among older adults, according to a study from Stanford University in the April issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology. MDCT is a high-speed imaging technique that is commonly used to diagnose a variety of diseases and conditions.

3 Apr 2012

SDMI installs Toshiba's Vantage Titan 3T in the U.S.

Steinberg Diagnostic Medical Imaging Center (SDMI) in Las Vegas needed an MR system to perform a range of patient exams at a high-volume imaging center. To solve this issue, it recently installed the first Vantage Titan 3T in the U.S. from Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc.

3 Apr 2012

UCD develops Adult Dose-Risk Smartcard

According to a study in the April issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology, the department of radiology at the University of Colorado in Denver has developed a convenient, pocket-sized reference card to communicate the effective doses and radiation risks of common adult radiologic exams to referring physicians and patients.

3 Apr 2012

PET allows survival predictions in sarcoma after initial cycle of neoadjuvant chemo

An early Positron Emission Tomography (PET) response after the initial cycle of neoadjuvant chemotherapy can be used to predict increased survival in patients with soft tissue sarcomas, according to a study by researchers with UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.

3 Apr 2012

Patients prefer immediate access to radiology reports

You've been experiencing severe back pain and weakness in your right leg. Your doctor orders a spinal MRI to help determine the cause. The radiology report diagnoses cancer. Would you rather read the detailed medical report right away at home or wait until your doctor was available to explain the test results, diagnosis and treatment options? This scenario was part of a study at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center designed to determine if patients wanted online access to radiology test results and, if so, how quickly.

3 Apr 2012

Systemic inflammation may contribute to depressive symptoms

New research published in the April issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine reveals that systemic inflammation causes an increase in depressive symptoms and metabolic changes in the parts of the brain responsible for mood and motivation. With this finding, researchers can begin to test potential treatments for depression for patients that experience symptoms that are related to inflammation in the body or within the brain.

3 Apr 2012

New research: ADHD is more than one disorder

According to new research conducted at Oregon Health & Science University, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is more than one disorder. It's an entire family of disorders, much like the multiple subtypes of cancer.

3 Apr 2012

Stimulating specific neurons may reverse age-related memory defects

Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have shown in animal models that the loss of memory that comes with aging is not necessarily a permanent thing.

3 Apr 2012

Mammograms may increase risk for ‘over-diagnosis’ of cancers: Study

According to a new study from Norway up to a fourth of breast cancers found through mammograms are harmless and would not cause noticeable disease during the women's lifetimes. Such women are said to be over-diagnosed, because their cancers would not have caused symptoms or death. Over-diagnosis is a problem because women may receive tests and treatment they did not actually need.

2 Apr 2012

Blood test for early detection of Alzheimer’s disease

Soon researchers may be able to detect signs of Alzheimer's disease before symptoms appear by a simple blood test. Currently, biological tests to diagnose Alzheimer's use invasive and costly procedures including brain imaging and spinal punctures.

2 Apr 2012

Successful aneurysm treatment may not improve quality of life

Patients with unruptured brain aneurysms have significant reductions in several areas of quality of life—especially physical functioning, reports a study in the April issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

2 Apr 2012

Accountable Healthcare completes acquisition of MED-STAFF Oklahoma

Accountable Healthcare Holdings Corp, a provider of quality healthcare staffing solutions, today announced that it completed the acquisition of Tulsa, Oklahoma based MED-STAFF Oklahoma, a predominately Travel Nurse focused business that specializes in placing registered nurses, physical and occupational therapists and diagnostic imaging techs in all fifty U.S. states.

2 Apr 2012

ProteinSimple introduces Sally Western Blot

ProteinSimple today introduced Sally as the next member of the revolutionary Simple Western product family. Sally eliminates a critical bottleneck in large-scale protein research and biopharmaceutical development – manual Western Blot analysis. With Sally, researchers can perform 96 Simple Westerns in a single automated experiment.

From ProteinSimple 2 Apr 2012

Bruker acquires SkyScan

Bruker Corporation today announced that it has acquired all of the shares of SkyScan N.V., a scientific instruments company located near Antwerp, Belgium. Financial details were not disclosed. For the remainder for 2012, the acquisition of SkyScan is expected to add approximately $13 million to Bruker's revenue and to be accretive to EPS by about $0.01.

2 Apr 2012

Childhood onset temporal lobe epilepsy has a significant impact on brain aging

New research confirms that childhood onset temporal lobe epilepsy has a significant impact on brain aging. Study findings published in Epilepsia, a peer-reviewed journal of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE), show age-accelerated ventricular expansion outside the normal range in this patient population.

2 Apr 2012

Dyax, GE Healthcare partner to develop and commercialize c-Met imaging peptides

GE Healthcare, a unit of GE, and Dyax Corp. today announced a licensing agreement for the development and commercialization of peptides binding to c-Met, which provides upfront, milestone, and royalty payments to Dyax.

2 Apr 2012

Brain images show nerves ‘crisscrossing’ in neat but complex patterns: Study

New images of the brain reveal a deceptively simple pattern of organization in the wiring of this complex organ. Instead of nerve fibers travelling randomly through the brain like spaghetti, as some imaging has suggested, the new portraits reveal two-dimensional sheets of parallel fibers ‘crisscrossing’ other sheets at right angles in a grid-like structure that folds and contorts with the convolutions of the brain. This same pattern appeared in the brains of humans, rhesus monkeys, owl monkeys, marmosets and galagos, researchers report Thursday in the journal Science.

1 Apr 2012