MRI

Article • Benign tumours

Uterine fibroids: studies indicate high success rate for radiological treatment

Uterine fibroids are the most common benign tumours in women. Treatment is only necessary if the fibroids cause pain and bleeding due to their size and position. Minimally-invasive fibroid embolisation is a gentle, efficient and long-lasting treatment for their removal, leaving the uterus intact. The first evaluations of several international long-term studies have indicated a high success rate…

Article • Gender equality

Have women's career chances improved in radiology?

The role of women in radiology and the challenges they face were again the focus of a session — Women in Radiology: How to maximise their potential — at this year's ECR, when female and male radiologists discussed their work experiences and combining home and family life with demanding careers. A forum also discussed the family friendly approaches in various countries.

Article • Imaging equipment

The Accutron HP-D contrast media power injector

With 16 years’ experience in developing contrast media power injectors, Medtron AG recently launched the Accutron HP-D, which, the firm reports, is the only totally wireless, high pressure double-head injector dedicated to all vascular diagnostic and interventional procedures.

The EIBIR two years on

'There is no proof that some new procedures are better than the conventional ones or than clinical examination'

Cardiovascular MRI

The role of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to assess the effect of therapy in patients with acute myocardial infarction was demonstrated in a series of papers during the 12th Annual Scientific Sessions of the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (SCMR), held in Orlando, Fla. USA (29 Jan - 1 Feb).

EAU hot topic: Imaging in urological oncology today

Big discussions are expected at the upcoming European Association of Urology (EAU) Congress in Stockholm* when urologist Dr Jochen Walz (right), of the Urological Department at the Institute Paoli-Calmettes, Marseilles, France, presents the forum: Imaging in Europe: Who, where, what, how many! and M F Coelho, of the European Society of Urological Imaging (ESUI) describes the Clinical utility of…

New MRI breast scanner from Siemens

Siemens Healthcare recently presented its first MRI breast scanner, Magnetom Espree-Pink. The 1.5-Tesla system is the latest innovation in magnetic resonance imaging, featuring a dedicated solution for breast examinations. Particularly for obese and claustrophobic patients, the large, 70-centimeter magnet bore makes examinations more comfortable, or, in some cases, it makes them possible for the…

Royal Philips Electronics leads Sonodrugs Project

Philips leads the €15.9 million project to develop image-guided localized drug delivery technologies that could significantly impact the treatment of cancer and cardiovascular disease. The goal is to maximize therapeutic efficiency and minimize side effects of treatments for cancer and cardiovascular disease. The hope is that this level of control will also provide a means of tailoring the…

MR-guided radiotherapy

Real-time image guidance during radiation therapy could prove the ultimate means to ramp tumour targeting accuracy and enable real-time tracking of moving targets. MR imaging enables precise soft-tissue visualization with no additional ionizing radiation exposure. Unfortunately, MR systems and linear accelerators are inherently incompatible and some innovative design work is required for them to…

Recession fears penetrate RSNA 2008

Chicago, November - At first glance, the 94th Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America appeared to be bigger than ever and impervious to the massive economic recession of its host country. RSNA 2008 ate into every inch of Chicago's McCormick Place trade centre. To reduce crowd congestion, technical exhibitions had been expanded to include a third massive…

Introducing the new SOMATOM Definition Flash

Siemens' latest high-end scanner, which takes our unmatched Dual Source technology to a whole new level, is the SOMATOM Definition Flash — a scanner that will change your perceptions of radiation dose.

Enhanced image quality and improved workflow

At this year's RSNA, Philips not only showcased their latest technology, the Achieva 3.0T TX MRI scanner, but also provided insights in their current activities to improve workflow in the radiology department: in collaboration with the University of Chicago Medical Center the company conducted a closed loop imaging research trial.

Better management and evaluation of digital images

Carestream Health, Inc., and National Digital Medical Archive, Inc., (NDMA), are collaborating on product integration initiatives designed to support the expansion of NDMA's national imaging network and improve customer access to its analytics and data management services.

R-Bay

Inequalities in radiology services across Europe may be levelled out due to R-Bay, a new project in which a consortium of hospitals and healthcare providers will create an e-marketplace to sell and buy radiological services like commodities.

UPS Healthcare Logistics

From 'A' as in Austria to 'Z' as in Zanzibar the letters 'UPS' (United Parcel Service) are known for express transportation and logistics services. Since the late '90s the UPS section responsible for logistics services has delivered supply chain solutions for healthcare customers, including pharmaceutical, biotech, medical devices and equipment companies - an important growth sector for this…

Innovative technology for automated lymph node analysis

At this year's RSNA meeting, Definiens, the number one Enterprise Image Intelligence company, will introduce a new image analysis application that will allow radiologists to analyse lymph nodes volumetrically and compare them over time.

Tracking equipment performance is vital to control radiation dose

Although there should always be concern about radiation in a facility that uses X-ray to image patients, that concern is perhaps not as vocal as for CT or interventional radiology, according to physicist Jacqueline Gallet, Global Manager of Clinical Studies at Carestream Health.

Siemens opens Cologne research centre

Siemens Healthcare has opened a new research centre in Cologne, where around 40 employees are developing new diagnostic tests to describe the molecular characteristics of breast cancer cells, to help physicians to select individual therapy.

20 years of contrast enhanced MRI at Bayer Schering Pharma

What was initially viewed with scepticism developed into an integral and indispensable part of modern imaging diagnostics

Mystery of complicated plaques

Until recently, physicians believed that stenosis was responsible for strokes. But new investigations show that the composition of complicated plaques are the major cause. Canadian researchers now used 3-D MRI to accuratly detect bleeding by those plaques within the vessel walls.

Under- or over-utilised?

Although ultrasound imaging is a very powerful imaging modality it is mostly under-used Ultrasound combines several very appealing characteristics. It is among the non-invasive imaging modalities, indeed it is really non-invasive. Similar to MRI, no harm to the patient can be caused by ultrasound.

Advances of vascular MRI at higher field strengths

Stefan G Ruehm, Kambiz Nael, Derek Lohan and Henrik J Michaely* describe impressive images that benefit patient treatment

Coma: Functional MRI to predict first signs of awareness

Terry Shivo was 27 when she collapsed. Paramedics found neither respiration nor a pulse. Almost three months later her eyes had opened, but she was not conscious. She has a sleep/wake circle and sometimes appeared to smile - she was in a vegetative state.

High-res cardiac images available at peak stress

While treadmill exercise stress testing is essential to detect cardiovascular disease, gaining clear cardiac images at peak stress level are not easy to gain using standard testing procedures. Now, however, researchers at the Ohio State University Medical Centre have designed equipment to provide high-resolution cardiac images at a critical testing stage, with results in under one hour.

New Molecular Imaging Techniques Aim at Detection of Earliest Steps of Disease Development

An emerging discipline of noninvasive cardiac imaging, molecular imaging, has evolved constantly in the last few years and is increasingly being translated from the preclinical to the clinical level. Molecular imaging allows for unique insights into specific disease mechanisms and holds great promise to change the practice of cardiovascular medicine by facilitating early disease detection,…