Manufactured by Edan Instruments Inc. of Shenzhen, China, the DUS 60 is a compact, portable diagnostic ultrasound system designed to meet a wide range of clinical requirements including abdomen, OB/GYN, urology, small parts and biopsy.
The Mirror2plus, a top of the range, colour Doppler diagnostic system was demonstrated by Landwind Medical during the 63rd CMEF exhibition held this April in Shenzhen, China. ‘According to the practical clinical demand, Mirror2plus is substantially upgraded on other devices of the kind, as a general purpose colour Doppler unit,’ the firm reports.
A double-edged sword would be a good analogy for diagnostic imaging in 2010. New ways to utilise imaging technologies are being developed, imaging equipment is doing more, faster than ever, and image processing software is increasingly innovative. Today's radiology exams are ‘slicing’ through the body to reveal anatomy with increasing clarity for better diagnoses and therapeutic treatment…
A cardiologist at a UK hospital has become the first in the world to develop a technique to ‘slice’ 3-D images of the heart into intricate sections using computer software. The method, devised by consultant congenital cardiologist Dr Joseph Vettukattil at Southampton General Hospital, is known as multiplane review (MPR) 3-D echocardiography. This allows cardiologists to identify heart defects…
It sounds like an idea plucked from the realms of science fiction writing. But in this case, there is nothing fictional about it. Scientists in Yorkshire have developed a process that uses the luminous cells from jellyfish to diagnose cancers deep within the human body.
Cardiologist, nuclear medicine specialist and researcher Dr Alessia Gimelli works for the Fondazione Toscana Gabriele Monasterio, National Research Council in Pisa, Italy. For the past year she has used Discovery NM 530c, GE’s latest Nuclear Cardiology platform, featuring an innovative CZT collimation technology called Alcyone Technology.
Tissue hardness provides radiologists and gynaecologists with significant information to help distinguish between benign and malignant tumours. Tumour tissue is harder and less malleable than normal glandular and fatty tissues. Therefore, the classification of tissue hardness determines whether a biopsy is necessary. For breast diagnoses, real-time tissue elastography, along with conventional…
Muscular diseases belong to a heterogeneous group with various causes like neurogenic, metabolic, dystrophic, or inflammatory mechanisms as well as channelopathies leading to disorders of the muscle cell membrane potential. In most progressive disease cases the result is a focal or general muscle weakness that, unfortunately, is a very unspecific symptom. Standard neuromuscular literature…
High resolution radionuclide imaging is a technique increasingly used to detect breast cancers and has already been shown to offer improved diagnosis in many clinical situations. The technique, which will be discussed at RSNA 2010 (28 November to 3 December, Chicago) , is also allowing clinicians to detect previously unknown areas of breast cancer in women with newly-diagnosed disease.
Advancing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) up the Tesla scale may sound good, but will it produce the results and patient safety radiologists actually desire? Faced with the question: ‘How many Tesla should it be?’, Professor Siegfried Trattnig MD, head of the Centre of Excellence in high-field MRI at the University Clinic for Radiodiagnostics, Medical University of Vienna, and Austria’s…
PET/CT is an established clinical tool especially for cancer-related diagnosis. This involves both initial diagnosis and follow-up examinations. There are other procedures, like CT/MRT, bone scan, or mediastinoscopy, all of which are also costly. Given the fact that PET/CT is widely used anyway, the question arises whether it is medically responsible and financially favourable to focus solely on…
With the greyscale display MS31i2, Totoku has introduced the first 3 Megapixel with ISD Technology. The high resolution display is suitable especially for X-ray diagnosis and thorax images, the company reports, adding: ‘With its high brightness of up to 1500 cd/m² it offers a very long backlight lifetime.’
Ultrasound is the undisputed choice for foetal imaging. However, the lack of amniotic fluid, an unfavourable foetal position or maternal obesity could daunt even the best radiographer. In such circumstances prenatal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) – a non-invasive and non-irradiating procedure – is a helpful diagnostic tool.
The 90-minute refresher course ‘Contrast Agent Issues 2010: What the Experts Really Do for Allergies, Contrast-induced Nephropathy, Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis, and Extravasation’, to be held during this year’s Radiological Society of North America meeting, will focus on the use of iodinated and gadolinium-based contrast media and the issues, advantages and considerations for patient…
Malignant diseases rank second in mortality rates in Germany. These patients thus receive a major proportion of ambulant and hospital care, with apparent socioeconomic consequences. To optimise treatment planning, for all solid tumour entities it is mandatory to delineate or stage the primary extent of tumour invasion and spread prior to therapy as precisely as possible.
Even more precise diagnoses, even better process controls -- the future of MR-PET technology has dawned. The first commercial, full-body hybrid scanners are either waiting in the wings or already installed. But what does the introduction of the MR-PET really mean for clinical practice? Professor Heinz-Peter Schlemmer MD, Head of the Radiology Department at the German Cancer Research Centre in…
Digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) is a promising new technology that acquires 3-D breast images. The individual images are presented as thin, high-resolution slices, which can be displayed individually or in a dynamic cine mode. Preliminary studies in a clinical setting have demonstrated that this new technology has the potential to improve not only the breast cancer detection but also to reduce…
It’s been around for decades, re-emerged in the ’90s and, today, experts see a bright future for tomosynthesis technology. Thus its progress and future developments, plus specialist uses (e.g. breast) will be a particular feature at the Radiological Society of North America scientific assembly and annual meeting in Chicago this year.
Women could be undergoing unnecessary breast surgery as a result of having magnetic resonance imaging, says an expert on bmj.com. In the last decade, says Malcolm Kell, Consultant Surgeon and Senior Lecturer at the Eccles Breast Screening Unit at University College Dublin, MRI or magnetic resonance mammography has become the most favoured type of investigation for high risk patients when combined…
Digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) is a promising new technology that acquires 3-dimensional images of the breast. The individual images are presented as thin high-resolution slices that can be displayed individually or in a dynamic cine mode. Preliminary studies in a clinical setting have demonstrated that this new technology has the potential to improve not only the detection of breast cancers…
Developed in partnership with international cardiologists, Medison reports that its EKO7 Cardiovascular Ultrasound system is a dedicated Cardiovascular Ultrasound system ‘…with 2-D Image Quality that you would expect from a premium class ultrasound system. As a matter of fact, the same applies to the colour Doppler, Pulsed Wave Doppler and CWD. So the EKO7 has excellent image quality, a…
Late in 2009, GE Healthcare’s 64 slice PET/CT Discovery 690 began its use in the University Clinic for Nuclear Medicine in Innsbruck, Austria. Apart from routine clinical examinations for treatment control via FDG (fluorodeoxyglucose), the scanner is also employed in clinical research - particularly for Gallium 68DOTA PET/CT examination.
White nights in St Petersburg draw in not only romantics, but June in this beautiful city also sees thousands of delegates arrive to attend the many scientific conferences and congresses. Among oncologists, the ‘white nights’ period means another annual scientific conference organised by the NN Petrov Research Institute of Oncology. For its continuing focus on breast cancer, the halls are…
The Italian firm Internazionale Medico Scientifica (IMS) produces highly innovative mammography units under the brand name Giotto. More than 3,500 Giotto systems are now in use in 38 countries, mostly in Europe, America, China and the Far East. Reason enough for European Hospital to visit IMS in Pontecchio Marconi, Bologna.
Standard mammography is the most relevant diagnostic tool to address breast cancer: It shows excellent image quality, a smooth workflow, high connectivity and a very good clinical outcome in terms of sensitivity and specificity. However, there are certain shortcomings to it, especially in dense breast tissue.
