News

The American College of Radiology (ACR) is urging the radiology community and other medical professionals to help the ACR get rid of $112 million in cuts to Medicare ultrasound reimbursement by sending invoices to the ACR that reflect the actual cost to purchase ultrasound equipment, according to a recent ACR news release. 

Despite AI’s potential in healthcare, major ethical concerns—like consent, transparency and responsibility—still surround the technology and its use in medicine. To address those concerns, Georgia researchers are encouraging physicians and healthcare companies to provide detailed information on AI systems to mitigate concerns patients may have with the technology. 

A startup that sold young donors’ blood to consumers in several states with the goal of treating conditions such as dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and heart disease has apparently shut down in the wake of an FDA statement that the blood-infusion technique has no scientific merit.

CMS has created a podcast called “CMS: Beyond the Policy” to inform industry stakeholders about changes and updates to its policies and programs, the agency announced. 

For better healthcare, the U.S. needs more primary care physicians. In a study of U.S. population data, greater PCP supply was associated with improved mortality, but per capita PCP supply decreased between 2005 and 2015, according to a new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Implementing digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) in a breast cancer screening program increases both sensitivity and specificity, according to new research published in Radiology. The authors also observed that synthetic mammography (SM) may be able to replace digital mammography (DM) in breast cancer screening, though more research is needed.

Individuals undergoing cardiac surgery might benefit from a pre-scheduled postoperative cocktail of intravenous (IV) acetaminophen and either propofol or dexmedetomidine, according to Harvard researchers who found the common painkiller could reduce in-hospital delirium in older patients.

Researchers at Northwestern University in Chicago have found that, per procedure, using ultrasound with electrocardiography to guide insertions of central venous catheters via the arm is only somewhat less costly than the conventional method, external measurements with confirmatory chest x-rays. However, the savings can add up over time. 

Breast cancer screening centers may want to consider implementing digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) and digital mammography (DM) into their practice, according to results of a recent Radiology study. Pairing both modalities significantly increased the sensitivity and specificity of detecting breast cancers.

The healthcare sector has been on fire over the last several years, with investors in the space seeing big returns on stocks. Even during periods of volatility across the stock market at the end of 2018, the healthcare sector remained consistent, with “stellar returns,” Bloomberg reported.

The Pascal transcatheter mitral valve repair (TMVR) system has received its CE mark for the treatment of patients with mitral regurgitation, device manufacturer Edwards Lifesciences announced Feb. 19.

When Issack Boru was growing up in Ethiopia, his father suffered a head injury, but was unable to receive the care he needed due to a lack of medical imaging resources. This made an impact on Boru, who now works as a radiology imaging supervisor and volunteers to provide training all over the world.