Cardiac MRI

A single amino acid substitution in a cardiac muscle protein improved cardiac function in mice and in damaged human heart cells. This amino acid could be the key to a new gene or cell-based therapy for cardiovascular disease, according to a study published online Jan. 22 in Nature Medicine.

Patients in need of emergency coronary artery angioplasty fare better when treated at a hospital that performs the procedure around the clock than at one that offers angioplasty part time, according to a study in the Jan. 17 issue of Circulation.

New research conducted in Europe may guide strategies that determine the best time and optimal tools for coronary interventions. Results from one multicenter trial indicate that early intervention is better than a wait-and-watch policy for patients with partial vessel occlusion. Meanwhile, a Swiss team has published data questioning the cost-effectiveness of drug-eluting stents for revascularization.

On the same day that New York researchers received the top honor at the RSNA meeting for their poster detailing the benefits of an infection imaging agent, the drug's maker issued a warning about two deaths and additional serious adverse events attributed to its use. The admonition was released by Tyco Mallinckrodt Healthcare, which markets NeutroSpec (technetium-99m fanolesomab), a monoclonal antibody-labeled radiopharmaceutical agent approved in the U.S. for the diagnosis of equivocal appendicitis.

Philips Medical Solutions has developed a learning program that adjusts the planning, scanning, and processing of MR exams to match the preferences of operators and physicians. The SmartExam promises to decrease overall exam time, while increasing consistency and reliability.

Israeli start-up Spectrum Dynamics has developed technology that can generate 10 times the sensitivity and double the spatial resolution of conventional Anger cameras, according to the company. Such dramatic increases raise the possibility of real-time imaging that shows the perfusion of one or more radiotracers through the myocardium introducing a radical change in the way cardiac patients are evaluated.

There is nothing incidental about the frequency of incidental findings seen in wide field-of-view 64-slice cardiac imaging. A study by Dr. Joshua Macatol, a radiology researcher at William Beaumont Medical Center in Royal Oak, MI, found that dozens of noncoronary findings may go undetected, however, as cardiologists focus on possible coronary artery disease.

There is nothing incidental about the frequency of incidental findings seen in wide field-of-view 64-slice cardiac imaging. A study by Dr. Joshua Macatol, a radiology researcher at William Beaumont Medical Center in Royal Oak, MI, found that dozens of noncoronary findings may go undetected, however, as cardiologists focus on possible coronary artery disease.

Mention 64-slice scanners, and the conversation inevitably turns to the heart: coronary angiography, cardiac assessment, the looming battle with cardiologists. At Children's Hospital and Health Center in San Diego, radiologists have put a new twist on this discussion, applying GE's LightSpeed VCT exclusively to pediatrics.

Multislice CT may someday save thousands of patients the worry and bother of a hospital stay to determine whether their chest pain is caused by acute cardiac syndrome.

New research conducted at the University of Erasmus in Rotterdam may erase any lingering doubts about the superiority of 64-slice CT in detecting coronary artery disease.

While most congenital coronary anomalies in adults are harmless, some carry significant risk of morbidity and mortality. Discriminating the potentially catastrophic interarterial course of ectopic coronary arteries from other variants is crucial.

The radiation dose delivered during fluoroscopic cardiac interventional procedures is facing scrutiny. Researchers from Ireland aim to establish local x-ray dose reference levels for examinations in cardiovascular centers to produce a benchmark against which individual performance can be judged.

Research unveiled at this year’s European Society of Cardiology meeting could affect interventional strategies for treating coronary disease. Results from a U.K. multicenter trial indicate that early intervention is better than a wait-and-see policy for patients with partial vessel occlusion. Meanwhile, a Swiss team presented data questioning the cost-effectiveness of drug-eluting stents for revascularization.

Philips has released a package of enhancements and new system configurations for its ultrasound portfolio. The upgrades, known collectively as Vision 2005, include new capabilities for the company’s latest radiology and cardiology platforms.

Since the introduction of cardiac catheterization in the 1940s, development and implementation of cardiovascular imaging techniques have been a collaborative effort among several specialties, particularly radiology and cardiology. Many pioneers in CV imaging have held joint appointments.

Few MR applications have held greater promise and encountered bigger challenges than cardiac imaging. MR accurately depicts cardiac structure, function, perfusion, and myocardial viability with a capacity unmatched by any other imaging modality.

Due in part to a robust second half, the CT market in the U.S. enjoyed extraordinary sales growth in 2004. Record sales were noted in the third and fourth quarters, according to industry estimates.

Subtracted views of coronary vessels, reconstructed from CT data of the heart, may provide the means for screening patients with suspected coronary artery disease.

Radiologists interpreting scans of patients with suspected pulmonary embolism should check for signs of right heart dysfunction. This action could save a patient’s life, according to a study presented at the American Roentgen Ray Society meeting in May.

PET evaluation of myocardial blood flow adds ammunition to fears that increased obesity rates in the U.S. may lead to an epidemic of cardiovascular disease.

Despite impressive strides, multidetector CT scanner technology could still use some tweaking to maximize its utility, according to a speaker at the seventh annual Symposium on Multidetector-Row CT in San Francisco.

Nearly half of all patients whose hearts are scanned with CT may get a shocking surprise: a diagnosis of a serious problem that has nothing to do with the heart, according to a study presented today at the American Roentgen Ray Society meeting.

The 2005 Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance meeting reflected the opportunities and challenges unique to this diagnostic imaging discipline. Cardiac MR's growing professional acceptance helped spur a third consecutive attendance record this year, and the number of scientific papers and posters submitted for presentation rose as well.

The 2005 Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance meeting reflected the opportunities and challenges unique to this diagnostic imaging discipline. Cardiac MR's growing professional acceptance helped spur a third consecutive attendance record this year, and the number of scientific papers and posters submitted for presentation rose as well.

For the first time, researchers have used high-resolution microCT to identify microcalcific components of coronary artery vulnerable plaques. Although the technique could help stratify high-risk patients, clinical utility will have to wait until further advances are made in conventional CT image resolution.

A contaminated radioisotope used in cardiac stress tests has been blamed for more than a dozen cases of hepatitis C contracted by patients in Maryland, according to a report released Monday by the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Polar maps of the coronary arteries that provide information regarding morphology and patency in a single image could potentially speed up diagnosis. But the technology still has some bugs in it, according to research presented at the European Congress of Radiology.

Radiation exposure has been a dicey issue for researchers developing multislice CT coronary artery imaging. According to critics, MSCT exposes patients to twice as much ionizing radiation as conventional cardiac catheterization.