Many procedures in diagnostic imaging would be impossible without contrast agents: they open up insights into vascular structures, show stenoses, inflammations, aneurysms and more. However, reports about side effects – especially with gadolinium-based contrast media – cause uncertainty among many patients.
Striking the balance between diagnostic efficacy and patient safety remains critical when utilising iodinated contrast media to deliver the best imaging outcomes. While playing a crucial role in diagnosis and treatment of disease, CT expert Efthimios Agadakos believes the medical profession has a duty to do its utmost to minimize patient risk from contrast media.
The Accutron CT-D Vision is the next generation of Medtron AG’s leading CT contrast media injector. Focusing on the user’s needs, the latest stage of development of the Accutron CT-D improves the usability of the CT injector and optimizes its integration into the radiological environment.
Radiologists called for action to reduce the release of contrast media in the hospital’s wastewater after contrast-enhanced examinations in a dedicated session at ECR 2023.
A new imaging method devised by German researchers offers a fast and cost-effective way to observe abnormal metabolic processes live in the MRI scanner.
University of Ottawa scientists have introduced a metal-free MRI dye capable of mapping kidney function with unprecedented accuracy — a promising technique for more personalized care.
Iodinated contrast media (ICM) enhance CT imaging, but its single-dose packaging is increasingly proving at odds with modern, more sustainable imaging practices. New award-winning research by a radiology resident and faculty members at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, proposes a promising alternative: A switch from using single-dose injectable contrast media kits to…
It’s clear that radiology is lacking in the “green” department: healthcare still causes a large share of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, not least due to diagnostic imaging. Dr Sarah Sheard from Imperial College Healthcare, UK, invited her ECR audience to take a closer look at radiology’s climate footprint – and revealed ways to make the field more sustainable.
The Accutron CT-D Vision is the next generation of the leading contrast agent injector for computed tomography from Medtron AG. Focusing on the needs of the user, the latest development stage of the Accutron CT-D improves the usability of the CT double-piston contrast agent injector and optimizes its integration into the radiological environment.
Photon-counting detector CT reduces the amount of contrast needed for CT angiography (CTA) while maintaining image quality, according to a new study published in Radiology: Cardiothoracic Imaging.
On March 31st, 2022, a city-wide lockdown to curtail the spread of the Covid-19 virus in Shanghai, China, shuttered the GE Healthcare manufacturing facility that produces 80% of the global supply of iodinated contrast media agents iohexol (Omnipaque) and lodixanol (Visipaque). Although the plant was able to operate at 50% capacity by mid-May, the shutdown resulted in a substantial contrast media…
A research team has investigated how contrast agents disperse inside cells. This could improve the assessment and further development of these agents and contribute to future medical diagnostics.
A new understanding of the 'swallow-tail', an anatomical landmark in the brain, could pave the way for earlier detection of Parkinson's disease.
Researchers are seeking alternatives to gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) to help raise levels of patient safety. An open hybrid session at ECR in Vienna heard how research across several centres has been examining the options of new approaches to reduce reliance on GBCAs.
Contrast-enhanced mammography (CEM) has gone a long way since it was first approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2011. An Italian expert explained how useful the modality has become in breast imaging in a dedicated course at ECR 2022.
Advances in image post-processing and contrast-enhanced techniques have widened the scope of possibilities for MRI and ultrasound vascular imaging, experts showed in a dedicated course at the ECR Overture.
An algorithm built to assess scar patterns in patient heart tissue can predict potentially life-threatening arrhythmias more accurately than doctors can.
Contrast agents in the wastewater and power-hungry imaging systems: The eco-footprint of healthcare is huge, and radiology departments are among the main culprits. An expert panel at the ECR Overture explored ways to make the field “greener”.
A new study from the University of Surrey and University College London has revealed that treatment for heart attacks could be improved thanks to a novel method of evaluating heart function using contrast-based MRI scans. According to the British Heart Foundation, heart and circulatory diseases cause more than a quarter (27 per cent) of all deaths in the UK, which equates to more than 160,000…
The American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine (AIUM) and the American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) have joined the International Contrast Ultrasound Society (ICUS) in recognizing the relatively low risk and important clinical benefits of ultrasound contrast agents (UCAs), which are used routinely around the world to help detect heart disease, stratify the risk of heart attack or stroke,…
