Gold nanoparticles reverse brain deficits in multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s

Results from phase two clinical trials at UT Southwestern Medical Center showed that a suspension of gold nanocrystals taken daily by patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and Parkinson’s disease (PD) significantly reversed deficits of metabolites linked to energy activity in the brain and resulted in functional improvements.

Edward Bluth Awarded the Lawrence A. Mack Lifetime Achievement Award by Society of Radiologists in Ultrasound

The Lawrence A. Mack Lifetime Achievement Award is the highest annual award given to a SRU member. The SRU, comprised of radiologists with expertise in ultrasound, works towards advancing science, practice and teaching of the specialty of ultrasound to ensure the professional fulfillment of radiologists performing ultrasound and optimize the practice of ultrasound for the benefit of patients.

Anesthesiologist, Emergency Physician and Radiologist Groups Laud Court Decision, Urge HHS Action to Unfreeze Arbitration Process

In its fourth ruling regarding the flawed implementation of the No Surprises Act, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas agreed with the plaintiffs, the Texas Medical Association, that the government was incorrectly permitting insurers to use a faulty methodology when calculating their median in-network rate, also known as the qualifying payment amount (QPA). This TMA III ruling does not impact the patient protections included in the No Surprises Act that the American College of Radiology® (ACR®), (ACR), American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) and the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) advocated for and continue to fully support, nor does it raise patient out-of-pocket costs.

Medical associations commend Texas federal court Surprise Billing ruling—a win for patients and physicians

The American College of Radiology® (ACR®), American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) and American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) applaud the Aug. 3 U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas’ ruling that the government’s exorbitant 600% fee increase to access the independent dispute resolution (IDR) process and its overly-restrictive “batching” limitations violate federal law. The ruling does not impact the patient protections included in the No Surprises Act, which ACR, ACEP and ASA advocated for and continue to support, nor does it raise patient out-of-pocket costs.

RSNA Journals Make Huge Impact in Radiology

The Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) announced today that its leading medical imaging research journal, Radiology, maintains the largest impact factor in its category. In addition, RSNA’s subspecialty journals, Radiology: Artificial Intelligence, Radiology: Cardiothoracic Imaging and Radiology: Imaging Cancer have achieved impact factors for the first time, and RadioGraphics continues to excel, according to the newly released 2023 update to the Clarivate Analytics Journal Citation Reports.

University Hospitals Portage Medical Center Brings New Healthcare Investments to Community

University Hospitals Portage Medical Center has made a number of recent investments in various areas to better serve patients in the community. Throughout the next few months, the hospital will be opening a new Breast Health Center, renovating its Cath Lab, enhancing women’s health services, and making new improvements in nuclear medicine, imaging, and across its facilities.

Researchers Unveil New Collection of Human Brain Atlases that Chart Postnatal Development

Human brain atlases can be used by medical professionals to track normative trends over time and to pinpoint crucial aspects of early brain development. By using these atlases, they are able to see what typical structural and functional development looks like, making it easier for them to spot the symptoms of abnormal development, such as attention-deficit / hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia, and cerebral palsy.

New technique from UTSW improves high-intensity focused ultrasound treatment for brain disorders

UT Southwestern physicians have developed an improved targeting method, four-tract tractography, to personalize MRI-guided, high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) used at UTSW to treat medication refractory tremor in essential tremor and tremor-dominant Parkinson’s disease.

Current Insurer Calculation of Qualified Payment Amount for Out-of-Network (OON) Care May Violate No Surprises Act

In possible violation of the No Surprises Act, health insurance company calculations of Qualified Payment Amounts (QPA) for anesthesiology, emergency medicine and radiology services (and possibly other specialty services) likely include rates from primary care provider (PCP) contracts. A new study conducted by Avalere Health and commissioned by three national physician organizations examined a subpopulation of PCPs and determined that contracting practices may directly impact the QPA.

Precision health perspectives

In February, UCI launched the Institute for Precision Health, a campus-wide, interdisciplinary endeavor that merges UCI’s powerhouse health sciences, engineering, machine learning, artificial intelligence, clinical genomics and data science capabilities. The objective is to identify, create and deliver the most effective health and wellness strategy for each individual person and, in doing so, confront the linked challenges of health equity and the high cost of care.

Wake Forest University School of Medicine Collaborating with Physicians in Ecuador on Virtual Reality Radiology Project

Neuroradiologists at Wake Forest University School of Medicine have begun a pilot study testing the use of virtual reality (VR) systems to remotely read MRIs and other medical images.
“The wonderful thing about this is that it’s a collaborative environment with people who can look at medical images at the same time, regardless of where they are in the world,” Burdette said. “We are able to interpret images in incredible detail while communicating with the referring clinicians who are seeing the same images in real time, which is just not possible in a traditional reading room in the hospital.”

Global contrast media shortage: Strategies for conservation

In wake of the global shortage of iodinated contrast media, researchers modeled several ways to conserve it. They found that a combination of methods could reduce contrast media use for CT scans by approximately 80% if a moderate reduction in diagnostic accuracy could be tolerated. They say changes must be made to minimize supply chain risk in the future.

RSNA’s ‘Radiology’ Journal Nearly Triples Impact Factor

The Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) announced today that Radiology, the Society’s flagship peer-reviewed journal, sharply increased its impact factor in 2021, according to the newly released 2022 update to the Clarivate Analytics Journal Citation Reports. Impact factor measures the relevance and influence of academic journals based on citation data.

How MRI and CT predict flap failure after head and neck reconstructive cancer surgery

A new study finds that early postoperative CT scans and MRIs can help predict whether a free flap, used for reconstructive head and neck cancer surgery, will fail. The method carries around a 10-40% risk of wound complications, and researchers say the findings could allow surgeons to intervene earlier if the flap fails.

World Trade Center Responders with the Greatest Exposure to Toxic Dust Have a Higher Likelihood of Liver Disease

Mount Sinai researchers have found evidence for the first time that World Trade Center responders had a higher likelihood of developing liver disease if they arrived at the site right after the attacks as opposed to working at Ground Zero later in the rescue and recovery efforts. Their study links the increase in liver disease risk to the quantity of toxic dust the workers were exposed to, which was greatest immediately after the September 11, 2001, attacks.

12% of Secondary Imaging Interpretation Costs are Paid by Patients

A new Harvey L. Neiman Health Policy Institute study found that patients paid 12% of the costs of secondary imaging interpretation out-of-pocket. Such secondary interpretations are increasingly performed for complex patients, but patients’ liabilities and paid out-of-pocket costs were not previously known. This Journal of the American College of Radiology (JACR) study was based on 7,740 secondary interpretations for adult patients performed in a large metropolitan health system over a 2-year period.

Legislation for Surprise Billing May Decrease In-Network Reimbursement

A new Harvey L. Neiman Health Policy Institute study, published in Radiology, reviewed the implications of unexpected out-of-network balance billing—commonly called surprise billing—on reimbursement for hospital-based specialties such as radiology. The analysis concluded that even physicians who never engaged in such billing practices may still be impacted by the No Surprises Act, which is due to take effect in 2022.

Penn State Health provides patients with most advanced imaging services through agreement with Siemens Healthineers

A new ten-year agreement between Penn State Health and Siemens Healthineers will mean enhanced diagnostic services, more precise and efficient imaging and an optimal experience for patients needing radiology, radiation oncology and cardiology services.

University Hospitals First in the World to Integrate New General Electric Healthcare Imaging System into Daily Clinical Practice

University Hospitals in Cleveland is the global pioneer in full clinical adoption of GE Healthcare’s new Critical Care Suite 2.0, the world’s first on-device artificial intelligence program helping to assess endotracheal tube placement.

Study finds risk of leukemia higher than expected in children with Down syndrome

The risk of childhood leukemia among kids with Down syndrome is higher than predicted, according to a new study led by UC Davis and UC San Francisco researchers. Early diagnosis remains critical.

Catching more breast cancers when mammograms are limited

In one of the largest research projects of its kind, a new study published in JAMA Network Open looks at nearly 900,000 individuals and close to 2 million mammograms to come up with a new way to detect the most breast cancer cases with the fewest exams.

CT Colonography Rates Bolstered by US Preventive Service Task Force Recommendation

A new Harvey L. Neiman Health Policy Institute study found a 50% increase in screening computed tomography colonography (CTC) rates after the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) announcement of the updated recommendation on colorectal cancer screening in 2016. This American Journal of Preventive Medicine study evaluated the association among the updated recommendation, patient cost sharing, and the uptake of colorectal cancer screening through CTC in the privately insured population.

New Study Reveals Radiologists Now Perform the Majority of Lumbar Punctures in the Medicare Population

This new American Journal of Neurology (AJNR) study found that radiologists performed 54% of lumbar puncture procedures (LPs) in 2017, representing significant growth over the 14 year longitudinal study. This study evaluated trends in performance of LPs by various medical specialties from 2003 to 2017 and raises the question of whether the shift of LPs from other specialties to radiology is justified. The results were also featured at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America, 2021.

Radiology Societies Urge HHS to Reject Proposed Deregulation of Specific AI Software

In a March 5, 2021 letter from the American College of Radiology® (ACR®), Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) and Society for Imaging Informatics in Medicine (SIIM) urged US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officials to reject a “midnight” proposal by the immediate-past HHS Secretary to permanently exempt certain medical devices from the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) 510(k) premarket notification requirements.

AAPM Advances Best Practices for Patient Safety in X-Ray Imaging

Since April 2019, the American Association of Physicists in Medicine has championed a critical way to make X-ray imaging safer and more effective by discontinuing the long-standing practice of placing leaded shields over patient gonads. Today, the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements released a statement recommending the discontinuation of routine shielding of patient gonads during X-ray imaging exams and AAPM stands ready to help imaging providers, patients and caregivers to understand and adopt these new best practices – practices that will ensure safer and higher-quality X-ray exams.