And the method does not come at the expense of diagnostic yield, an uptick in adverse events or increased procedure times.

“Without a clear reference standard technique that optimizes patient outcomes, device selection is based on availability and physician-driven selection, which can substantially impact procedural costs,” authors of a new cost analysis in Clinical Radiology stated.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s latest radiological clearance should come as welcome news to radiologists and cardiologists who perform interventional procedures.

The UNIVERSAL Trial, one of the largest multicenter randomized trials comparing ultrasound with fluoroscopic guidance vs. fluoroscopic guidance alone, found there was no reduction in major vascular access complications. 

Experts arrived at this conclusion after comparing incidents of hematoma between patients who did and did not receive antithrombotic therapy prior to their procedure.

A new paper in the Journal of the American College of Radiology digs into the emergence of physician assistants and nurse practitioners in radiology and how it has impacted clinical and procedural volumes and imaging interpretation.

Patients who received an injection had an infection rate of 2.2% at 4-month follow-up. In comparison, the infection rate for the general population in Massachusetts was 7.5% during the same period.

Higher complication rates were observed in inpatient settings and in patients with COPD. Also associated with increased adverse events were prior lung cancer screening and the use of oral anticoagulants or antiplatelets.