CT

Siemens embraced customers 10 years ago as integral to its operations. When developing new technologies, engineers turn to customers early on to make sure their ideas have clinical value. This has led to some risk-taking, as evidenced by the introduction at the RSNA meeting of the Somatom Definition, a unique CT scanner that boosts speed and data collection by using dual detectors and tubes.

A few years back I made a bet that molecular imaging would become nothing more than a synonym for nuclear medicine. At the time it made sense, what with companies parking their gamma cameras and PET/CTs under this title. But since then, you might say I’ve seen the light.

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.

Imagine a gamma camera that generates video showing the perfusion of a radiotracer through the myocardium, the image brightening and dimming with the wash-in and wash-out of the tracer. Now imagine using a cocktail of radiotracers with each ingredient appearing on screen in a different color, together displaying a range of physiologic data.

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.

Veterinary imaging specialists are broadening their horizons, making greater use of MRI, CT, and nuclear scintigraphy to supplement information from radiography and ultrasound examinations. The number and complexity of diagnostic tests on dogs, cats, and horses are growing steadily, and even live sharks and elephants have been imaged.

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.

Although the debate regarding MR colonography screening lives on, European radiologists agree dark lumen MRC is ready for prime time, according to studies presented Tuesday.

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.

Continuing medical education is a must for radiologists planning to perform CT colonography, according to two studies presented by U.K. researchers at the RSNA meeting on Sunday.

Siemens is radically changing the direction of its CT program with the introduction of its Somatom Definition. The new scanner, publicly announced Nov. 17 and featured Sunday at the RSNA meeting, packs two imaging chains in a single unit, generating 128 slices per rotation. But Siemens is downplaying the number of slices in favor of the speed of the scanner and how its use might change the clinical application of CT.

Siemens’ unveiling of the Somatom Definition Nov. 17 in New York City promises to radically change CT scanning.

A decision by GE Healthcare to introduce a new line of compact CT scanners, the BrightSpeed, reflects a major trend in the market toward miniaturization. The new scanners will be unveiled at the RSNA meeting.

There was a time when all that really mattered in medical imaging was technology that dealt with, well, medicine. That’s changed. Though clinical molecular imaging using advanced biomarkers is still a ways away, we’ve opened the door a crack to use miniature PET scanners in animal research with these agents. Now one of life’s inevitabilities is wedging the door open a bit more.

Siemens hopes to redefine CT with the introduction of a scanner that combines two 64-slice imaging chains in a single unit.

Many CT sites around the world still run single-slice scanners, according to GE Healthcare. GE is doing something about it.

Nuclear medicine scientists expressed dismay about Congressional approval of a federal budget plan that could close the book on a half-century of nuclear medicine research sponsored by the Department of Energy.

Dynamic Imaging prepares enhanced RIS/PACSVisitors to the Dynamic Imaging exhibit booth at the RSNA meeting will see the company’s version of its IntegradWeb RIS/PACS. The system builds on the Web-based architecture of its predecessors to address ambulatory settings. Included in the IT package are RIS, PACS, billing, document management, and digital dictation.

The radiology industry appears to have bounced back from a bruising first half-year, during which the number of radiological devices cleared lagged far behind the pace set in the last two years. Thirty-three such devices passed FDA muster in September, just shy of the year’s highwater mark of 35 set in August.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has decided to apply the federal physician self-referral law to nuclear medicine, reduce technical payments for cross-sectional imaging of contiguous body parts, and reduce payments on the Physician Fee Schedule, according to the final rule published by CMS this month.

Researchers have generally discarded the notion of virtual colonoscopy screening in children because colonic pathology in pediatric patients is rare and radiation exposure is a concern. A study from Argentina, however, has found that pediatric patients with suspected polypoid lesions of the colon can safely undergo diagnostic low-dose CT colonography. The low-dose protocol could have implications for adult colon cancer screening as well.

Diagnostic imaging's crucial role in medical practice is affirmed by the eagerness with which referring physicians have embraced diagnostic ultrasound, MR, CT, and nuclear medicine for an ever-lengthening list of clinical roles. Evidence now suggests that referring physicians appreciate diagnostic imaging so much, for both clinical and financial reasons, that a growing number are intent on making it their own. They are using exemptions in federal antireferral law that allow them to add high-tech imaging to their menu of in-office services.

"Few radiologists understand preventive cardiology. They are enamored with less noisy pictures, and that's it. And few traditionally trained cardiologists care about coronary prevention and risk stratification of the asymptomatic person. Prevention falls to the primary-care doctor who, sadly, witnesses the specialists' apathy.

Doves like truces. A truce gives the two sides a chance to enjoy peace, if only for a short time. Maybe they’ll like it enough to stop fighting altogether, or so the thinking goes.

Software from GE Healthcare and Siemens Medical Solutions is extending CT perfusion techniques beyond stroke assessment. Primary applications are in oncology, but much more may be possible.

GE enhances ProdigyBone densitometry isn’t just for adults any more. GE Healthcare has enhanced its Prodigy bone mineral density system to support pediatric applications. New tools evaluate the pediatric skeleton relative to a child’s body size and skeletal age, as well as chronological age comparison. The upgrade was unveiled at the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research meeting in Nashville Sept. 23 to 27.

The surge in FDA clearances that typically occurs in the months preceding the RSNA meeting may have gotten off to an early start. Manufacturers earned clearances for 35 devices from the FDA in August, the highest total of the year and at least a 50% jump over the months from March through July.

The ability to acquire functional and anatomic information in a single scheduled exam offers many clinical and workflow benefits. But making the most of a hybrid imaging system involves far more than simply pressing the "on" switch. With the advent of multislice SPECT/CT, radiologists and nuclear medicine physicians are taking a long, hard look at how these systems will fit into clinical practice.

Nuclear medicine physicians would be the first to admit that the resolution of their color maps could be better. Despite the ability of radioisotope tracers to home in on likely areas of malignancy, poor spatial resolution can hinder precise localization of pathology.