Here are what the editors at HealthDay consider to be the most important developments in Radiology for April 2016. This roundup includes the latest research news from journal articles, as well as the FDA approvals and regulatory changes that are the most likely to affect clinical practice.
Percutaneous Needle-Based OCT Differentiates Renal Masses
FRIDAY, April 29, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Percutaneous needle-based optical coherence tomography (OCT) can differentiate renal masses, according to a study published in the May issue of The Journal of Urology.
Wide Variation in Health Care Costs Across the U.S.
FRIDAY, April 29, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Health care prices vary widely across the United States, even within the same state, according to a study published in the April issue of Health Affairs.
Article Discusses Workplace Violence in Health Care
THURSDAY, April 28, 2016 (HealthDay News) — There is a lack of data relating to the prevalence of workplace violence in health care and how to address it, according to a review article published in the April 28 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Doctors Have a Only a Few Weeks Left to Review Financial Data
WEDNESDAY, April 27, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Under the Physician Payments Sunshine Act, physicians have only a few weeks left to review and report disputes relating to their financial ties to drug and medical device manufacturers, according to the American Medical Association.
U.S. Health Report Card Finds Racial, Ethnic Disparities Persist
WEDNESDAY, April 27, 2016 (HealthDay News) — An update on Americans’ health finds that racial and ethnic disparities persist, with significant gaps in obesity, cesarean births, and dental care. But advances have been made in some important areas, including infant mortality rates, women smokers, and numbers of uninsured, according to the new report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Tomosynthesis Beneficial for Dense, Nondense Breasts
TUESDAY, April 26, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The addition of tomosynthesis to mammography is beneficial for women with dense and nondense breasts, and the readability of dense breast notifications (DBNs) vary by state, according to two research letters published in the April 26 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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Hand Signals Developed for Communication During CT
MONDAY, April 25, 2016 (HealthDay News) — A series of hand signals has been developed for use during computed tomography (CT) or angiographic procedures, according to an article published online April 20 in the Journal of Medical Radiation Sciences.
Physicians Can Get Involved in Developing Payment Models
FRIDAY, April 22, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Doctors can be involved in developing new payment models for their practices, according to the American Medical Association.
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CT CAP Rarely Reveals Acute Injury in Low-Velocity Trauma
FRIDAY, April 22, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Computed tomographic (CT) chest abdomen pelvis (CAP) examinations rarely show acute traumatic injury in patients who had a low-velocity trauma but have acute head and/or cervical spine trauma without evidence of bodily injury, according to a study published in the May issue of Radiology.
Ongoing Education Betters Mammography Interpretation
THURSDAY, April 21, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Regular education can improve radiologists’ performance in detection of breast cancer from mammography, according to a study published online April 6 in the Journal of Medical Imaging and Radiation Oncology.
Better Functional Outcome With Stent Retrievers in Acute Stroke
WEDNESDAY, April 20, 2016 (HealthDay News) — For patients with acute ischemic stroke, treatment with stent retrievers with quick reperfusion time is associated with improved outcomes, according to a study published online April 19 in Radiology.
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Diffusion-Weighted Imaging + MRI OK for Undescended Testes
WEDNESDAY, April 20, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Combined diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) show a greater performance compared to conventional MRI alone for identification of non-palpable undescended testes (UDTs), according to a study published online April 6 in the Journal of Medical Imaging and Radiation Oncology.
Provocative Discography May Up Risk of Clinical Disc Problems
MONDAY, April 18, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Provocative discography, an invasive diagnostic procedure involving disc puncture with pressurization, is associated with increased risk of clinical disc problems, according to a study published in the March issue of The Spine Journal.
Discordance for Radiologic, Goniometric Measures in RA
MONDAY, April 18, 2016 (HealthDay News) — For patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), there is discordance between radiological and goniometric measurements of ulnar deviation (UD) at the metacarpophalangeal joints, according to a study published online April 6 in the Journal of Medical Imaging and Radiation Oncology.
Only Half of Rectal CA Patients Receiving Standard of Care
FRIDAY, April 15, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Use of chemoradiation followed by surgery among rectal cancer patients rose from 42.9 percent in 2004-2006, to 50 percent in 2007-2009, and to 55 percent in 2010-2012 in the United States, according to a report published online April 13 in Cancer.
2016 Match Marks Record Highs for Registrants, Matching
FRIDAY, April 15, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The 2016 Match was the largest ever recorded by the National Resident Matching Program, with a higher match rate that 2015, according to a report from the American Medical Association.
Severe Cerebral Damage ID’d on Imaging in Children With Zika
FRIDAY, April 15, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Children with congenital infection, presumably associated with the Zika virus, have severe cerebral damage identified on imaging, according to a study published online April 13 in The BMJ.
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Decrease in Medicare Spending for 2012 ACO Entrants
FRIDAY, April 15, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Early reductions in Medicare spending were seen for the first full year of Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) contracts for 2012 Accountable Care Organization (ACO) entrants, according to a study published online April 13 in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Odds Up for Patients With Psoriasis
FRIDAY, April 15, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Psoriasis patients may face a higher risk of an abdominal aortic aneurysm, according to a study published online April 14 in Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology.
U.S. Rates of Thyroid Cancer Leveling Off
THURSDAY, April 14, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Fewer thyroid cancers are diagnosed in the United States now than in the recent past, perhaps signaling a change in physician practices, according to a report published online April 14 in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.
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Health Care Workers Skip Hand Washing One-Third of the Time
THURSDAY, April 14, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Staff at many outpatient health care facilities in New Mexico failed to follow recommendations for hand hygiene more than one-third of the time, according to findings published in the April 1 issue of the American Journal of Infection Control.
Older Age May Boost Radiation Benefits in Soft-Tissue Sarcoma
THURSDAY, April 14, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Older patients with soft-tissue sarcomas may benefit more from radiation therapy after surgery than younger patients do, according to research published in the April issue of Anticancer Research.
Adding Number of Vessels With CAC Ups Prediction of CVD Events
THURSDAY, April 14, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Inclusion of the number of vessels with coronary artery calcium (CAC) improves the capacity of the Agatston CAC score to predict cardiovascular events, according to a study published online April 13 in JACC: Cardiovascular Imaging.
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Pediatric Pneumonia Can Be Diagnosed Via Lung Ultrasound
THURSDAY, April 14, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Lung ultrasounds may offer a safer, yet equally effective, alternative to chest X-rays for diagnosing pneumonia in children, according to a study published recently in Chest.
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Clinical Decision Support Tool Cuts CT Use for Appendicitis
WEDNESDAY, April 13, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The implementation of a multicomponent electronic clinical decision support tool reduces computed tomography (CT) use for pediatric patients with possible appendicitis, according to a study published online April 13 in Pediatrics.
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Doctors Can Be Misled About FDA ‘Breakthrough’ Drug Designation
TUESDAY, April 12, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Use of the word “breakthrough” in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s expedited approval process could mislead doctors about the new drugs’ actual benefits, according to a research letter published in the April 12 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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Iodine-125 Interstitial Implant Feasible for Prostate Cancer
TUESDAY, April 12, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Iodine-125 permanent interstitial implantation is associated with long-term, biochemical control of localized prostate cancer, according to a study published online March 28 in the Journal of Medical Imaging and Radiation Oncology.
VA Commission on Care: Eliminate VA Medical Centers
MONDAY, April 11, 2016 (HealthDay News) — A radical proposal has been suggested for eliminating all Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers and outpatient facilities in the next 20 years, floated by seven of 15 members of the VA Commission on Care, according to an article published in the Military Times.
White Matter Tract Changes in Right Brain in Insomnia
WEDNESDAY, April 6, 2016 (HealthDay News) — For patients with primary insomnia, white matter (WM) tract changes are observed in the right brain, according to a study published online April 5 in Radiology.
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Increasing Radiation Dose Ups Freedom From Biochemical Fail
MONDAY, April 4, 2016 (HealthDay News) — For patients with prostate cancer (PCa), increasing biologically equivalent dose (BED) of external radiation therapy (RT) is associated with freedom from biochemical failure (FFBF), but not with improvement in overall survival (OS), distant metastasis (DM), or cancer-specific mortality (CSM), according to research published online March 24 in the American Journal of Clinical Oncology.
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Intraarterial Chemo + Radiation May Up Cerebral Infarctions
MONDAY, April 4, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Intraarterial chemoradiotherapy (CRT) for head and neck cancer is tied to a higher incidence of cerebral infarction, compared to intravenous CRT, according to a study published online March 25 in Head & Neck.
Are Guidelines Needed to Assess Competence of Aging Physicians?
FRIDAY, April 1, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The question of whether national guidelines need to be developed for assessing the competence of aging physicians was discussed during a recent meeting of key stakeholders, according to a news release from the American Medical Association (AMA).
Dose Escalation in IMRT Slows Progression of Thyroid Cancer
FRIDAY, April 1, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Local-regional failure (LRF) in patients with well-differentiated thyroid cancer (WDTC) is mostly seen in patients with gross disease at the time of intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), according to a review published online March 28 in the Journal of Medical Imaging and Radiation Oncology.
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