Jane Lowers

Under the best of circumstances, 3T imaging of the prostate with a body coil can approximate the level of detail and sensitivity available at 1.5T with an endorectal coil. Researchers hope that with a 3T-oriented endorectal coil they will finally be able to take advantage of 3T's higher resolution in a challenging portion of the anatomy.

Whether it scans in four slices or 16, CT is the method of choice for detecting pulmonary emboli, researchers said at the RSNA meeting. Even four-slice technology boasts a negative predictive value greater than 99%, better than ventilation/perfusion (V/Q) studies or conventional pulmonary angiography.

How well a patient can count, remember word lists, or perform other basic tests may not indicate how far Alzheimer's dementia has progressed biologically, researchers said at the RSNA meeting.

Breast tomosynthesis may be a work-in-progress in the RSNA exhibit halls, but researchers are already considering ways to incorporate computer-assisted detection algorithms to improve its efficacy.

A radiologist sitting at a workstation views an abdominal CT study. Priors, matched slice-for-slice, accompany the patient's history and recent lab results. As the speech recognition reporting process begins, software evaluates the text and provides cues to speed and direct the rest of the report. The radiologist adds notes to the images that best display the pathology. Based on the radiologist's conclusion, the software offers links to similar cases and medical references.

With three shifts, weekend staff, and portable, offsite, and outpatient units all providing computed radiography services, the radiology department at Texas Children's Hospital has plenty of incentive to standardize and improve the quality of the images it collects. With 70% of its case volume coming from CR, the department has been using PACS to track rejected images and develop training for staff.