The Diagnostic Imaging MRI modality focus page provides information, videos, podcasts, and the latest news about industry product developments, trial results, screening guidelines, and protocol guidance that touch on the use of MRI across the healthcare continuum, including breast, neurological, cardiovascular, prostate imaging, and more.
October 14th 2025
While dynamic contrast enhanced breast MRI may help reduce biopsies for suspicious calcifications on mammograms, quantitative MRI features and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) may not provide additional diagnostic benefit in these cases, according to a new study.
Abundance of MRI scanners correlates to inappropriate use for low back pain care
November 25th 2009Patients with low back pain who live in areas with many MRI machines are more likely to get scanned and undergo surgery than those in low-availability areas, according to a study looking at Medicare claims data. Patients with low back pain, however, rarely benefit from MRI scans or surgery, so the procedures are often unnecessary.
Expanded MR protocol improves assessment of myocardial infarction
November 6th 2009Combining T2-weighted MRI to detect microvascular obstructions with delayed-enhancement imaging to measure myocardial viability offers clinicians a better way to assess myocardial infarction, according to a new study from Japan.
ACR predicts ‘access catastrophe’ from 16% Medicare rate cuts
November 4th 2009The American College of Radiology is predicting that imaging access will plunge and patient waiting times will soar from new Medicare Physician Fee Schedule rules that will cut Medicare payments for outpatient imaging by an estimated 16% next year.
2010 Medicare fee schedule boosts equipment utilization rate
November 2nd 2009CMS will increase the equipment utilization rate assumption used to determine the practice expense for all nontherapeutic medical equipment, including diagnostic imaging systems, from 50% to 90% under new Medicare fee schedule rules announced Friday. In a bit of good news for radiology, CMS said it remains on track to require that suppliers of advanced imaging services become accredited by 2012.
JAMA comment challenges cancer screening benefits; radiologists, others disagree
October 26th 2009A forward-looking commentary in the Journal of the American Medical Association and related news coverage in The New York Times have drawn public attention to the diagnostic limitations of mammography and prostate cancer screening and future opportunities to develop better tests.
University of Virginia dedicates institute for ultrasound ablation
October 16th 2009From the Focused Ultrasound Surgery Foundation & Fibroid ReliefA new research center for MR-guided focused ultrasound ablation at the University of Virginia is aiming to become a leader in translational and clinical research for emerging interventional procedures.
MRI cracks down on ‘age doping’ in international sports
October 6th 2009MRI has been adopted as a definitive measure for fair play by the International Federation of Association Football, the governing body for international soccer competition. FIFA will launch a program of random MRI wrist screening to verify the age of players competing in the Under-17 World Cup hosted by Nigeria Oct. 24 through Nov. 15.
MRI underutilized in scrutinizing DCIS, national scientific panel concludes
September 29th 2009MRI, possibly employing higher field strengths and dedicated breast coils, should be used more often for detecting ductal carcinoma in situ, according to a panel convened by the National Institutes of Health.
Blood test monitors breast cancer treatment effectiveness
September 16th 2009With the goal of tailoring cancer interventions for the individual, researchers at the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University have published the results of a prospective study that validates the use of a simple blood test to help doctors more reliably assess treatment effectiveness for patients with metastatic breast cancer.
Imaging advocates fire up opposition to healthcare reform
September 9th 2009On the eve of a major presidential speech on healthcare reform, medical imaging advocates weighed in with political broadsides urging Congress to set aside legislative proposals they say will harm imaging device sales and clinical practices.
Fetal MRI bests traditional-controversial-autopsies
August 18th 2009When it comes to determining the cause of death for fetuses, parents may have another option besides conventional autopsy. Whole-body high-field MRI offers a reliable option for postmortem exams in a less invasive way, according to British researchers.
Survey exposes infection-control procedures at MRI suites as poor
August 10th 2009Findings from a survey of 100 imaging centers suggest that MRI scanning facilities, particularly those run independently from hospitals, lack basic infection-control procedures. Patients and staff could be at risk of contracting and spreading life-threatening diseases during MRI exams.
fMRI proves honest people don’t even think about lying
August 5th 2009Honest people don't struggle with themselves about whether they should tell the truth when given the opportunity to lie, as shown in an fMRI brain study of truth telling and prevarication from Harvard University behavioral scientists.
New guideline recommends extending window for stroke thrombolysis
July 16th 2009The window for giving tissue plasminogen activator is extended from three hours to four and a half hours after the onset of stroke under new guidelines recommended by the American Stroke Association. Results from two large multicenter trials led the group to advise expanding the time window for tPA delivery.
Medical imaging given priority on comparative effectiveness research list
July 1st 2009Diagnostic imaging is the focus of 11 of 100 priority research projects identified in an Institute of Medicine report released Tuesday that promises to revolutionize how the clinical efficacy and cost-effectiveness of emerging medical technologies and treatment regimens are determined in the U.S.
Marathon runners earn clean bills of heart health with MRI
June 24th 2009Myocardial anomalies detected in long-distance runners after they cross the finish line should not be interpreted as signs of possible heart damage. Using cardiac MR, Canadian investigators have found evidence that these abnormalities are only temporary.
MedPAC study reveals high utilization rates for in-office self-referred imaging
June 19th 2009A study by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission has confirmed what critics of in-office self-referred imaging have long claimed. Physicians who have a financial interest in medical imaging equipment are more likely to refer patients to use it, and they incur higher costs generally than physicians who do not have similar financial incentives.
Patient demands fuel unnecessary lumbar imaging studies
June 11th 2009Patients who experience pain in the lower back are more likely to get an x-ray or CT scan within 28 days if their primary physician works in a larger practice as opposed to a smaller facility, according to a study by the Center for Studying Health System Change. The center also found that patient satisfaction incentives encourage unnecessary imaging.
Report from SIIM: Teleradiology-linked MR examines cerebral malaria in sub-Saharan Africa
June 8th 2009A 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.