John C. Hayes

This month's cover story marks a departure for us. Normally, we would feature a clinical review article, or a look at clinical or economic trends written by the magazine's staff.

Using sophisticated mapping technology, census data, and state cancer registry statistics, researchers from Georgia established a link between the presence of Mammography Quality Standards Act-certified mammography centers and lower death rates from breast cancer.

“Hedge” statements were found in nearly a third of radiology reports using a computer-based review system described in an award-winning paper presented Tuesday at the RSNA meeting.

Many radiologists have already viewed clinical images on their iPhones, but a study by researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College finds that there are plenty of other applications, ranging from study aides to clinical data lookups, that may be of value to practicing imagers.

Imaging suite dashboards that incorporate business intelligence to automate more steps could speed up and improve imaging processes, according to a Monday presentation at the RSNA meeting.

A system that counts the number of CT exams by body part and date and alerts clinicians when they order more CT studies has been implemented at Brown Alpert Medical School in Rhode Island.

A system that required physicians, rather than support staff, to approve low-utility imaging exams was able to cut their incidence by more than half, according to a study from Massachusetts General Hospital reported Sunday at the 2009 RSNA meeting.

This month Diagnostic Imaging celebrates its 30th anniversary.

Specialties outside of radiology could benefit from unified databases and iPhone applications.

Earlier this decade, when NightHawk Radiology Services and Virtual Radiologic became publicly traded corporations, it looked like the die had been cast for the future of radiology. Venture capitalists were prowling the RSNA exhibit floor looking for the next hot teleradiology company to fund and take public. There was widespread talk that the next step would be final day reads rendered from large and remote teleradiology operations.

In an online survey conducted by Diagnostic Imaging, members of the diagnostic radiology community expressed strong support for the idea that healthcare reform should guarantee access to care for most or all U.S. residents.

In his Sept. 9 address to a joint session of Congress, President Obama opened the door to a discussion of changes in the medical malpractice system, saying he was instructing the Department of Health and Human Services to revive an idea from the Bush administration

In an online survey conducted by Diagnostic Imaging, members of the diagnostic radiology community expressed strong support for the idea that healthcare reform should guarantee access to care for most or all U.S. residents. But they were also strongly opposed to the idea of a government-run alternative to private insurance, a strategy now under consideration as a way to achieve wider coverage.

A credit crunch that has accompanied the national recession doesn’t appear to have promoted interest in leasing as an option for obtaining new medical equipment, according to a survey of hospital-based radiology practice directors.

You may think you are tracking your CT, x-ray, and mammography dose exposures, but do you really have current, accurate data?

A protocol that involves contrast-enhanced ultrasound could better target tumors and reduce the number of unnecessary pro state biopsies, according to a pair of studies presented at the European Congress of Radiology in March

An article in the May 27 New England Journal of Medicine provides some interesting, and perhaps unintended, insights into the new world that is emerging as government takes a more active role in decisions about the relative value of medical procedures.

Radiologists who want to shed a few pounds while working might want to consider stepping onto a unique “walkstation” treadmill while they’re reading images, according to a study presented at the Society for Imaging Informatics in Medicine meeting. While they’re at it, they may want to tune into classical music, which another study found could improve mood and job satisfaction.

A poster describing malaria research involving MR images transmitted via fiber and satellite links from sub-Saharan Africa to Michigan State University won a first place award at the Society for Imaging Informatics in Medicine meeting.

Researchers at Staten Island University Hospital have developed a program that uses PACS log file data to help find radiologists at the click of a button.

Capitalizing on radiology’s experience in report sharing could provide a pathway for electronic medical records development, a goal heavily funded with federal stimulus money. A panel Thursday at the Society for Imaging Informatics in Medicine meeting discussed this opening as one way to define radiology’s role in the massive spending effort to stimulate the economy.

A routine patient admission for left lower quadrant pain leads to a malpractice lawsuit because a chaotic hospital system allows a malignant lung nodule, observed by a radiologist, to go unreported to the patient’s physician.

In my first daily newspaper reporting job many years ago, I covered a state legislature.

Systems that effectively archive today’s thin-slice CT images are the wave of the future, but they aren’t here yet. In the meantime, PACS administrators need to be aware of this trend and consider scalable solutions that keep their options open for future developments, according to a presentation at the 2009 International Symposium on Multidetector-Row CT.

High calcium scores are commonly considered a risk factor for coronary stenosis, but even a zero calcium score doesn’t assure coronary health in a high-risk population, concluded a pair of studies presented at ECR 2009.

A CT-based lung cancer screening strategy that combines tumor morphology and tumor doubling times to evaluate cancer risk is producing good results, according to interim data from a Dutch-Belgian screening trial presented at ECR 2009.

A CT-based lung cancer screening strategy that combines tumor morphology and tumor doubling times to evaluate cancer risk is producing good results, according to interim data from a Dutch-Belgian screening trial presented at the ECR.

High calcium scores are commonly considered a risk factor for coronary stenosis, but even a zero calcium score doesn’t assure coronary health in a high-risk population, a pair of papers presented Monday concluded.

A protocol involving contrast-enhanced ultrasound could better target tumors and reduce the number of unnecessary prostate biopsies, according to a pair of studies presented Sunday. One of the studies involved more than 2000 patients.

Digital breast tomosynthesis was found to be superior to 2D digital mammography for determining tumor boundaries, a value at a time when more women with breast cancer are choosing breast conservation therapy, according to a study presented Friday.