September 3, 2010
81-year-old female with a painful right hip mass for 10 days with a history of total right hip replacement many years ago
- Call for Volunteers for ACR/AMA-PCPI Project Testing Radiology Performance Measures
Volunteers are needed to provide patient/practice information to be used in a project to test several radiology-specific performance measures. Some of these measures are included in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI).
- Featured Presentations at Upcoming ACRIN Fall Meeting
ACR News
The ACRIN fall meeting will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 29 - Friday, Oct. 1 at the Ritz-Carlton Pentagon City in Arlington, VA. - ONC Announces First Two Authorized Testing and Certification Bodies of EHRs — More to Follow
ACR News
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) announced the Drummond Group and the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology as the first two authorized testing and certification bodies (ATCBs) of electronic health record (EHR) technology for the purposes of the meaningful use/EHR incentive program. Additional ATCBs are expected to be announced in the near future. - Guest Author Opportunities in the NIH MICAD Database
To accelerate expansion of the Molecular Imaging and Contrast Agent Database (MICAD) to include all published agents, the MICAD program has implemented a procedure for members of the imaging community to write and submit entries (chapters) as guest authors. - New AIRP Web Site Helps Residents and Fellows More Easily Fulfill Radiologic Pathology Requirements
ACR Press Release
The American College of Radiology (ACR) has launched the American Institute of Radiologic Pathology (AIRP) web site (www.airp.org ) which provides detailed information about the new four-week Radiologic-Pathology Correlation Course, given five times per year in Silver Spring, MD, beginning in January 2011. - ACR Chief Information Officer at FDA and FCC Discussion: Imaging is an Important mHealth Consideration
ACR News
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) held a public meeting on July 26-27 to discuss enhanced coordination between the agencies for future mobile/wireless broadband (mHealth) medical devices and applications. Michael Tilkin, ACR Chief Information Officer and staff liaison to the ACR IT & Informatics Committee, was invited to participate in a roundtable discussion at the meeting. - Download the Summer Edition of The Scan - Customizable Patient Newsletter!
ACR Daily News Scan
The Summer edition of The Scan – customizable patient newsletter is here! Make this quarterly, 2-page, 4-color patient-centered newsletter available in your waiting room or mail directly to your patients! - CMS Solicits Proposals for ACR-Backed Provision
ACR News
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced today that it is soliciting proposals for participation in the Medicare Imaging Demonstration (MID). - Physician Supervision Policy Updated by the 2011 HOPPS Proposed Rule
ACR News
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) provided clarification of the term “direct supervision” in the 2011 HOPPS proposed rule. - Meaningful Use/EHR Final Rules Released
ACR News
On July 13, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Office of the National Coordinator for HIT (ONC) released final rules implementing Stage 1 of the Medicare/Medicaid incentive program for meaningful use of certified electronic health record (EHR) technology. Both final rules will be published in the July 28 Federal Register and the ACR will post regulatory summaries on its website in the near future. - CMS Releases Quality of Care Data for Hospitals Participating in HOP QDRP
ACR News
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released quality of care data for hospitals participating in the Hospital Outpatient Quality Data Reporting Program (HOP QDRP). This data is posted on the Hospital Compare website. - Accreditation Update: No Fee Increase!
Effective July 1, 2010, as a result of the technical improvements and increased efficiencies we’ve achieved for the ACR Gold Standard process of accreditation, we have determined that it is not necessary to implement the previously announced fee increases. - ACR Appropriateness Criteria® Revised and Content Added for 2010
ACR News Release
The American College of Radiology (ACR) updated more than 30 criteria, added an additional five topics, and revised relative radiation level categories for diagnostic imaging exams in the latest version of the ACR Appropriateness Criteria® — evidence-based guidelines to help health care providers choose the most appropriate medical imaging exam for a patient’s given clinical condition. - Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for 2011 Proposed Rule Summary
ACR Daily News Scan
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the 2011 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) Proposed Rule on June 25. There are some aspects of the rule that CMS is proposing to implement in 2011 that will have an impact on radiology practices. - Save the Date: ACRIN 2010 Annual Meeting, Sept. 29 – Oct. 1
ACR News
Please plan to attend this year’s ACRIN Annual Meeting to be held in Arlington, VA, at the Ritz-Carlton Pentagon City. All ACR members are welcome to attend the meeting which will feature presentations on ACRIN research results, special topics on new imaging methods and research, and governmental policies affecting clinical trials. - ACR Launches American Institute for Radiologic Pathology
ACR Daily News Scan
The American College of Radiology (ACR) has launched the American Institute for Radiologic Pathology (AIRP), which will provide a four-week Radiologic-Pathology Correlation Course, given five times per year, beginning in January 2011.
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- Download the Summer Edition of The Scan - Customizable Patient Newsletter!
ACR Daily News Scan
The Summer edition of The Scan – customizable patient newsletter is here! Make this quarterly, 2-page, 4-color patient-centered newsletter available in your waiting room or mail directly to your patients!
- Gel Instillation Sonography Advantageous in Endometrial Evaluation
Reuters Health
Sonography in women with abnormal uterine bleeding is easier to perform when gel is used to distend the uterus rather than saline, a Belgian group reports -- and results are just as accurate. - High Intensity Focused Ultrasound Effective for Localized Prostate Cancer
Reuters Health
In men with localized prostate cancer, high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) can achieve results comparable to those expected with external-beam radiation therapy, a French group reports. - Patients can see Doctor's Notes, With the Click of a Mouse
Reuters Health
Researchers have been testing a new system that lets patients have internet access to their primary care doctor's chart notes. - Surgery Before Radiation not Helpful for Metastatic Spinal Cord Compression
Reuters Health
The results of decompressive surgery followed by radiotherapy for metastatic spinal cord compression are similar to those obtained with radiotherapy alone, according to a new matched-pair analysis. - Ultrasound Detects Pediatric Clavicle Fractures, Without Radiation
Reuters Health
Bedside ultrasonography in the emergency room can reliably diagnose clavicle fractures in children with no more discomfort than x-rays -- and no radiation. - U.S. Groups Target 20 Possible Causes of Cancer
Reuters Health
The American Cancer Society and three federal agencies named 19 chemicals and shift work on Thursday as potential causes of cancer that deserve more investigation. - REFILE: Carotid Ultrasound Rules Out CAD as Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction Cause
Reuters Health
Carotid ultrasound with intima-media thickness measurement (IMT) can help rule out coronary artery disease as a cause of left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD), new research shows. - New Guideline Says MRI Best for Diagnosing Stroke
Reuters Health
An MRI is much better for diagnosing stroke than a CT scan, according to new American Academy of Neurology guidelines. - USPSTF Guidelines Would Expand Bone Mineral Density Tests to At-Risk Women Under 60
Reuters Health News
Under new guidelines proposed by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), more women would be eligible for bone density tests to detect osteoporosis. - Accreditation Update: No fee increase!
- Imaging and Memory Recall Tests Best to Predict Alzheimer's
Reuters Health
Combining a specific imaging test of the brain with a memory recall test appears to be the best predictor so far of Alzheimer's disease, according to U.S. researchers. - More Poor Women Get Mammograms with Counseling
Reuters Health
Counseling is an effective way to reach at least some of the many poor women who shy away from breast cancer screening, despite having health insurance. - Hypofractionated Radiotherapy Outcomes Good in Prostate CA
Reuters Health
Late prostate cancer morbidity and biochemical failure rates appear similar with hypofractionated or conventional 3-dimensional (3D) radiotherapy, according to a report from Italy. - Nimotuzumab Viable Adjunct to Lung Cancer Radiotherapy
Reuters Health
The experimental agent nimotuzumab, given in combination with radiotherapy, was well tolerated by patients with stages IIB-IV non-small cell lung cancer unable to undergo radical therapy or chemotherapy, in a phase I trial in Korea. - High Resolution Ultrasound Helps in Diagnosis of Blue Skin Lesions
Reuters Health
What appears to be a blue nevus might be a cutaneous melanoma metastasis. High resolution ultrasonography can help dermatologists make the diagnosis, a team in Tours, France, has shown. - 4D Electron Tomography Made Possible
Reuters Health
For the first time, researchers have succeeded in bringing electron tomography into the fourth dimension, enabling movies of 3D molecules. - Prior Radiation Increases Complications after Prostatectomy
Reuters Health News
Salvage prostatectomy has higher complication rates than first-line radical prostatectomy, and now researchers have quantified some of the extra risks. - Software Cuts CT Radiation Dose in Half: US Study
Reuters Health
A new software program that enhances the quality of CT images allowed doctors to cut in half the radiation dose needed for a colon scan and still produce clear images, U.S. researchers said on Monday. - Repairs to Key Canadian Isotope Reactor Done
Reuters Health
Repairs have been completed on a Canadian nuclear reactor that supplied a third of the world's medical isotopes, and the operator says it is ready to restart production more than a year after a heavy water leak was discovered at the aging facility. - Tirapazamine No Aid to Head and Neck Cancer Therapy
Reuters Health
Disappointing results in a phase III head-and-neck cancer trial: the hypoxic cytotoxin tirapazamine combined with cisplatin and radiation showed no overall survival advantage. - One Session of Argon Plasma Coagulation Heals Radiation Proctitis
Reuters Health
Chronic hemorrhagic radiation proctitis can be effectively treated with a single session of extensive argon plasma coagulation (APC), with a low risk of long-term complications, according to a study published online May 21 in Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. - Hypofractionated Stereotactic Radiation Therapy Effective for Recurrent Glioma
Reuters Health
Hypofractionated stereotactic radiation therapy (H-SRT) is surprisingly effective at prolonging survival in patients with recurrent high-grade gliomas, according to the lead author of a recent paper. - Early Sildenafil after Prostate Brachytherapy Could Improve Erectile Function
Reuters Health
Giving sildenafil soon after prostate brachytherapy helps maintain erectile function, say authors who reported a case series last month. - Local Treatment Boosts Androgen-Deprivation Therapy in Prostate Cancer
Reuters Health
For locally advanced and metastatic prostate cancer, the best timing and duration of androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) is unclear. Now, a systematic review suggests immediate and sustained treatment leads to best results, especially when combined with local treatment. - PE risk factor assessment reduces need for CT angiograms
Reuters Health
By evaluating risk factors for thromboembolism, physicians can reduce the number of computed tomography (CT) angiograms they order for patients with suspected pulmonary embolism (PE), investigators report. - Acute Brain Changes After Haloperidol Dose Predict Extrapyramidal Motor Symptoms
Reuters Health
Acute changes on neuroimaging studies after a single dose of haloperidol predict acute extrapyramidal motor symptoms in healthy volunteers, researchers reported online June 6th in Nature Neuroscience. - SPECT/CT Helps Guide Management of Diabetic Foot Infection
Reuters Health
Repeated exams with dual tracer (DT) single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) with CT (also known as DT SPECT/CT) helps manage diabetic foot infection, clinicians from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York have found. - HPV Raises Odds Of Survival In Throat Cancer
Reuters
People are much more likely to survive head and neck cancer if the tumor is caused by the human papillomavirus or HPV, U.S. researchers said on Monday. - MRI Aids Early Diagnosis of Ankylosing Spondylitis
Reuters Health
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can help differentiate spondyloarthritis from nonspecific back pain, investigators report in the May 23rd online issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism. - When Sentinel Node Is Positive, Leave Other Axillary Nodes Alone: Study
Reuters Health
Women with early breast cancer and positive sentinel nodes get no extra benefit from axillary node dissection, according to new research presented here at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. - Radiotherapy Prolongs Survival With Locally Advanced Prostate Cancer
Reuters Health
Adding radiation therapy to androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for men with locally advanced prostate cancer improved overall and cancer-specific survival, with no serious long-term side effects from the radiation, according to data presented this weekend at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). - Asbestos Exposure Does Not Cause Airway Obstruction: Study
Reuters Health
Estimated cumulative asbestos exposure was not related to lung function in a recent French study. This finding contradicts the hypothesis that asbestos plays a role in airway obstruction, the researchers say. - Physicists, Medical Researchers to Team Up on Cancer
Reuters
Particle physicists and medical scientists are to combine efforts to develop early detection techniques and advanced treatments for cancer as spin-offs from research into the origins and make-up of the universe. - Prognosis of NSCLC Has Improved Over Time
Reuters Health
The prognosis of patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has improved "remarkably" in recent years, according to a report from Japan in the June issue of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology. - Worsening Knee OA on X-rays Means Less Function
Reuters Health
Despite previous assumptions, changes in the severity of radiographic knee osteoarthritis (OA) are related to greater functional problems, researchers report in a May 6th online paper in Arthritis Care & Research.
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