As computer-aided detection continues to make inroads into virtual colonoscopy territory, studies presented Tuesday at the RSNA meeting highlighted its potential for spotting polyps.

GE Healthcare joined the ranks of believers in mega-slice PET/CT with the formal release of its Discovery VCT on the RSNA exhibit floor. The 64-slice hybrid, shown as a work in progress at the 2004 meeting, will compete with the Siemens biograph 64 and Philips Gemini GXL, both 64-slice PET/CT scanners launched one year ago.

Philips and Schering are collaborating in breast imaging, using a fluorescent dye developed by Schering and an experimental optical scanner under construction by Philips. The two technologies will be merged as part of a phase I clinical trial that could begin some time next year.

Once again, I spent much of the day in a case-based review course, this one on interventional radiology. In my practice, we have one real interventional radiologist and two pseudo-interventionalists. The prime difference being that a real interventional radiologist knows what he’s doing. The other big difference is an IR enjoys what he is doing.

CT screening of head and neck vascular injuries by emergency departments could lead to more aggressive therapies that result in improved outcomes, according to a pair of papers presented Monday.

Toshiba is introducing the latest improvements to its Aplio and Xario ultrasound systems at the 2005 RSNA meeting. The Aplio system has been enhanced with the company’s exclusive expanded Differential Tissue Harmonic Imaging (DTHI), while the Xario features 4D imaging.

Many radiology departments aren’t waiting for commercial information systems to address pressing needs like automatic work list prioritization. They are developing their own tools for tackling this common problem, according to presentations at a Monday scientific session.

Continuing medical education is a must for radiologists planning to perform CT colonography, according to two studies presented by U.K. researchers at the RSNA meeting on Sunday.

Computed radiography’s new needle-like phosphor imaging plate technology provides comparable diagnostic performance with only half the radiation exposure required by its predecessor, according to a study presented Sunday. Findings suggest the gap between CR and digital radiography is shrinking as well.

High-field 3D MR angiography can put up a good fight against conventional x-ray digital subtraction angiography for the diagnosis of brain aneurysms and other intracranial vascular malformations, according to studies presented at the RSNA meeting Monday. Three-D MRA also provides reliable follow-up after treatment.

Medweb’s Advanced 3D Web PACS widens access to many 3D imaging functions and features previously available only on dedicated 3D workstations. With Medweb’s new product, introduced today at the RSNA meeting, users working on a standard PC can employ 3D templating and autosegmenting of image data from spiral CT scanners.

Agfa HealthCare designed its next-generation PACS, the IMPAX 6.0, to meet the specific workflow requirements of multiple users. Introduced at the RSNA meeting, the IMPAX 6.0 is a Web-deployable application that improves the planning, capture, interpretation, distribution, and archiving of images throughout an enterprise, according to the company.

The latest version of 3viseon software from 3mensio Medical Imaging gives radiologists and referring physicians real-time access to advanced 3D functionalities, such as color and gray-scale volume and slab renderings and MPR/MIPs, on an off-the-shelf PC.

A mammography upgrade to Kodak’s DirectView CR system, shown Sunday at the RSNA meeting, promises to allow hospitals and imaging centers to move toward digital breast imaging on existing computed radiography platforms from Kodak.

New productivity tools have been added to 3D diagnostic colon, lung, and vascular software products from Viatronix. Upgrades to the V3D-system, shown at the RSNA meeting on Sunday, improve PACS functionality and unify user interfaces across the company’s product line to create a more user-friendly workflow.

At a time when many radiologists are still trying to determine the best way to integrate 3D postprocessing into their workflow, it’s no surprise that they want the best of both worlds. Most radiologists want to perform their own image processing in addition to using the services of a dedicated 3D imaging lab, according to research presented Sunday at the RSNA meeting.

Myelination, the development of a protective sheath for nerve fibers, may dramatically increase when adults enter their forties before beginning to decline in old age, according to a study presented Sunday. The finding contradicts long-held beliefs that myelination is a normal process of brain maturation that is largely complete by early adulthood.

Siemens’ new Axiom Luminos TF, introduced today at the RSNA meeting, incorporates tableside fluoroscopy system enhancements suggested by company luminaries, who were an integral part of the engineering team.

Siemens is radically changing the direction of its CT program with the introduction of its Somatom Definition. The new scanner, publicly announced Nov. 17 and featured Sunday at the RSNA meeting, packs two imaging chains in a single unit, generating 128 slices per rotation. But Siemens is downplaying the number of slices in favor of the speed of the scanner and how its use might change the clinical application of CT.

Hot on the heels of favorable findings from the Digital Mammographic Imaging Screening Trial, digital mammography systems are in high demand on the RSNA exhibition floor. But buyers may have a rude awakening when they encounter problems with interoperability of systems from different vendors, according to a mammography task force.