What SMIL is doing to ensure safe use of GBCAs In light of the FDA safety bulletin updated Jan. 1, 2018 about gadolinium contrast agents (GBCAs), and the recent increased…
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GBCAs: what is known, what is unknown?
Jared Allen, MD, PhD
In light of the FDA safety bulletin updated Jan. 1, 2018 about gadolinium contrast agents (GBCAs), and the recent increased awareness of the issue owing to a lawsuit filed by martial arts star, Chuck Norris, there have been heightened concerns and increased confusion around GBCAs used with MRIs. The FDA is now requiring patient information be shared with those receiving contrast. Read More.
With the growing incidence of neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) and the significant differential in 5-year survival depending on early vs. late diagnosis, diagnostic imaging’s role in the identification and treatment of…
PET scan with Blue Earth’s Axumin radiopharmaceutical. Image courtesy of Blue Earth Diagnostics. Axumin™ (Fluciclovine F18) is a new FDA-approved, Medicare-covered diagnostic agent that can achieve early detection of recurrent…
New information regarding use as first line therapy in conjunction with systemic chemotherapy Hepatic yttrium-90 radioembolization, also known as selective internal radiation therapy (SIRT), is a form of brachytherapy used…
Adhesive capsulitis (AC), or “Frozen Shoulder,” is a relatively common female predominant condition found in 3% of the general population. Clinically it is defined by progressive pain/decreased range of motion…
This option for nonsurgical candidates shows low complication rates Solid renal masses of small size are common and typically discovered as incidental findings on CT or MRI. Treatment options include…
Both the National Health Service U.K. Breast Screening Program and the Ontario High Risk Breast Screening Program have concluded studies showing that annual MRI for women at high risk of…
With improvements in ultrasound technology over the past two decades, some have questioned the need for hepatobiliary iminodiacetic acid (HIDA) scans for diagnosing acute cholecystitis. However, this underutilized modality, especially…
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final national coverage determination that provides Medicare coverage of low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) screening for patients at high risk of…
Imaging dementia gets increasingly accurate A meta-analysis of 119 studies evaluating the role of different modalities, including 27 studies evaluating fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) in the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s,…
Imaging with sodium fluoride can change treatment Positron emission tomography (PET) imaging with sodium fluoride (NaF) changed treatment in about half of men with prostate cancer and could prove to…
New technology allows neuroradiologists to change their approach to elderly patients with memory loss Mild cognitive impairment represents a transitional state between normal aging and dementia. Recent advances in neuroimaging…
The current state of prostate cancer diagnosis by TRUS biopsy is generally reliable but in a sense these biopsies are blind. Nearly 50 percent of currently detected prostate cancers may…
Dizziness and vertigo, often accompanied by headache, imbalance or hearing loss, are frequent, challenging presenting symptoms in emergency departments (EDs). While the majority of dizziness and vertigo are due to…
Ordering MRI or CT imaging of neuro-ophthalmic conditions requires not only knowing which procedure is indicated, but also what part of the anatomy should be imaged, whether or not contrast…
A pair of studies published online in JAMA Internal Medicine show that while more women at high risk for breast cancer are getting the recommended MRI breast screening, many more…
Unraveling the complexity of evaluation techniques A wide variety of imaging techniques has become available to assess vascular lesions and brain tissue status in acute stroke patients. As a result…
DaTscan affects the diagnosis and management of movement disorders Differentiating between essential tremor (ET) and Parkinsonian syndromes (PS) became clearer with FDA approval of DaTscan, an imaging agent used with…
Imaging guidelines downgrade X-ray use In 2012, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality recommended downgrading X-ray imaging to “usually not appropriate” for sinonasal disease and acute and chronic sinusitis….
Computed tomographic (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques have been used in recent years to evaluate cerebrovascular disease and to document structural abnormalities and functional impairments that occur in…
The number of CT exams performed in the United States has grown from 3 million in 1980 to close to 80 million a year, according to statistics cited by Berlin…
Angelina Jolie’s op-ed piece in The New York Times about her prophylactic double mastectomy raised awareness about women at high risk for breast cancer but did little to improve women’s…
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the precise number of people affected by deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism is unknown, but estimates range from 300,000 to…
QUESTION: What is SMIL’s process for imaging NETs? ANSWER: Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) are rare malignancies that are increasing in incidence. Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data shows the age-adjusted…
QUESTION: What are SMIL’s guidelines for performing a thyroid biopsy after an ultrasound? ANSWER: Thyroid nodules are common, with palpable nodules found in 4 percent to 7 percent of the…
QUESTION: What is SMIL’s experience regarding imaging of the foot and ankle? ANSWER: Anterior foot pain is one of the most common conditions of patients referred to the Scottsdale Medical…
QUESTION: What is SMIL’s approach to reducing radiation dose in body CT? ANSWER: Concerns about increased cancer risk attributable to computed tomography (CT) continue to grow as the number of…
When Mehmet Oz, MD, aka Dr. Oz, called thyroid cancer “the fastest growing cancer in women” and suggested women request thyroid shields during their mammograms, he set off a scare…
Researchers have pursued various strategies for developing a predictive model for identifying those patients with early symptoms of arthritis who will develop rheumatoid arthritis (RA), says Adrian Moyer, MD, a…
Computed tomography (CT) has been proposed as a tool for routine screening for coronary artery calcification as part of a comprehensive coronary disease risk assessment. But the risks associated with…
Radioembolization may offer a palliative treatment option for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer or primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The treatment is an extension of the perhaps better-known chemoembolization procedure, says…
Imaging characteristics and patient history guide nodule work-ups With advances in imaging, the detection of pulmonary nodules as small as 1 to 2 millimeters in diameter has become routine. Many…
Combining CT and MRE effective for assessing small bowel disease Until recently, the gold standard for evaluating small bowel disease, including Crohn’s disease, has been enteroclysis. This is gradually being…
Study shows little difference between low-dose and standard-dose CT A study comparing low-dose CT scans to standard-dose scans to diagnose suspected appendicitis in teens and young adults showed little difference…
New steps taken to reduce patient exposure while maintaining diagnostic accuracy After years of rapid growth in imaging utilization across the United States, a November 2012 study in the Journal…
A pair of studies of mammography utilization recently published online ahead of print, showed that women who missed mammograms tended to be diagnosed at a later stage, thus reigniting the…
CT screening for colorectal cancer remains controversial. While the initial costs for CT colonography and optical colonoscopy are comparable, additional costs for evaluation and follow-up of colonic and extracolonic findings…
In a review of four large lung cancer screening trials for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, researchers recently concluded that low-dose CT (LDCT) screening can reduce lung cancer deaths….
Newly developed theranostics are ushering in a new era of personalized medicine. With approaches ranging from molecular imaging agents to nanoparticles, the goal is detection and treatment based on the…
Positron emission tomography-computed tomography assists in organ-preserving treatment The management of head and neck cancers has been transformed in all phases from diagnosis to staging, radiation treatment planning and response…
SMIL’s services can help improve patients’ quality of life Despite the poor prognosis for pancreatic cancer, interventional radiology can benefit many patients suspected of or diagnosed with the disease. John…
CT urography offers significant advantages over IVP Imaging plays a crucial role in the investigation of the underlying causes of hematuria, and until recently the primary approach has been IV…
PET/CT affects staging and management of non-small cell lung cancer In recent years, the development of hybrid positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET/CT) machines that combine functional and structural imaging information…
Scottsdale Medical Imaging Ltd. (SMIL) will be among the first 16 centers in the nation to offer florbetapir, the only FDA-approved imaging agent for evaluating patients for Alzheimer’s disease. With…
High heels and the narrow toe boxes in women’s shoes have been linked to the development of such foot injuries and deformities as hallux valgus, intractable callosities, metatarsalgia, Freiberg infraction…
Adding to the challenge of diagnosing women with coronary artery disease, a study presented last fall at the Radiological Society of North America 2011 annual meeting showed that women with…
With the development of advanced imaging techniques, treatment options in addition to hysterectomy have emerged for uterine fibroids. More than 600,000 women in the U.S. undergo hysterectomy, with about a…
Lower dose radioiodine found to be just as effective In a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine earlier this year, researchers concluded that low-dose radioiodine plus thyrotropin…
PET and PEM can be used to define surgical margins in breast cancer patients One goal of molecular imaging is to preoperatively identify breast cancer patients best served by lumpectomy…
DXA combined with FRAX provides more accurate assessment The National Osteoporosis Foundation estimates that 10 million Americans are affected by osteoporosis and roughly 34 million more are at risk for…