Ultrasound

As I type this article in the newsroom at McCormick Place, subtle but clinically significant changes may be occurring in my fingers. If ever I undergo an imaging examination of my hands and wrists, the radiologist will need to know that increased fluid in my 2nd and 5th flexor sheaths is probably quite normal because I am a regular typist.

Ultrasound-guided therapy using adult stem cells could expand the modality’s role in the diagnosis and management of urethral and bladder conditions. New applications include endoluminal probes, Doppler technology, and 3D imaging capabilities, according to papers presented at the RSNA meeting Sunday.

A new shared services system built around an advanced processing chip was released jointly at the RSNA meeting by TeraRecon and Fukuda-Denshi.

The industry jumped back on track in October, clearing 36 new devices compared with 25 the month before. October’s pace was slower than the same month a year earlier, when 42 radiological devices passed review. But for 2004, vendors stayed slightly ahead of the previous -- record --year: 283 to 277.

PET pioneer acquires micro-CT firm CTI Molecular Imaging plans to acquire ImTek, a provider of micro-CT systems for imaging laboratory animals used in medical research. The $3.75 million cash deal is expected to close by the end of November. Financial performance and milestone achievements hold the potential for future incentive payments. The acquisition of ImTek, which designs and manufactures the MicroCAT scanners, would complement CTI Concorde, a business unit of CTI Molecular Imaging dedicated to the manufacture of micro-PET scanners.

Healthcare grows more complex and unwieldy with each innovation. Faster CTs, hybrid imaging, 4D ultrasound, and digital radiography threaten to overwhelm practitioners with data. Better communications offer some hope.

Philips’ new echocardiography platform, iE33, promises to do for cardiology what its iU22 scanner began doing earlier this year for radiology: boost image quality while providing an integral connection to volumetric imaging that allows 3D visualization and quantification.

A lull enveloped September, as FDA reviewers cleared just 25 new radiological devices -- a slight dip from August and well below the earlier summer months, which rode into the high 30s. The industry was still well ahead of last year, however, in the total number of devices cleared for marketing in the U.S.

GE Healthcare will focus on volumetric ultrasound at the RSNA meeting this year - not the postprocessing, time-consuming kind that has come to characterize 4D ultrasound for much of the past decade, but one that acquires volumes of data that remain intact and can be interrogated later on. It's an important distinction that GE executives hope will change the practice of ultrasound and provide the company with an edge over its competitors.

Sales of gamma cameras have been flat for so long they have become one of the few certainties in the otherwise unpredictable marketplace of medical imaging. True to form, the two factors in a major predictor of future change, equipment orders versus sales, were virtually equal for gamma cameras in the first half of 2004 at about $185 million for North American customers. But there is reason to believe that will change and that the progenitor of this change will be SPECT/CT.

Keeping up with accreditation requirements enhances the quality of service in ultrasound practices, according to a multicenter study in the August issue of the Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine.

Philips cuts deal with healthcare enterpriseMarietta Memorial Hospital and Philips have struck a multiyear strategic agreement to bring advanced medical technology, clinical support, and staff education to the southeastern region of Ohio. Marietta and Philips have worked together for more than 10 years to outfit Marietta’s Cancer Center with digital x-ray and CT simulator systems.

The FDA gave final approval last Friday for marketing of the first MR-guided focused ultrasound ablation system for treatment of uterine fibroids. Application caveats remain, however.

Though still in the research stage, freehand 3D ultrasound is showing promise in helping to guide surgery and radiotherapy in the clinical setting, according to researchers at the University of Cambridge in the U.K.

Handheld ultrasound is more sensitive than x-ray for detecting occult pneumothoraces produced by severe chest trauma, according to a Canadian study published in the August issue of Trauma.

The average selling prices for GE Healthcare’s new ultrasound scanners, the Vivid 7 Dimension and Vivid i, will be close to $200,000 and less than $100,000, respectively. Our story on these new products (SCAN 9/29/04) incorrectly stated that these would be the list prices.

Transvaginal sonography, with its superior ability to resolve rectal wall layers, was the imaging modality of choice for female patients in a study performed at Toronto General Hospital in Canada.

Tokyo-based ultrasound manufacturer Aloka introduced a new diagnostic ultrasound system at the World Congress On Ultrasound In Obstetrics And Gynecology held Aug. 31 to Sept. 4 in Stockholm, Sweden. The ProSound Alpha 5(1) is the first member of a new family of products that will feature Aloka’s next-generation digital processing technology.

A new lightweight handheld ultrasound unit may soon be on the U.S. market. The FDA has cleared for sale the Mobilsonic VUE100, a low-cost device weighing less than three pounds. The system was developed by Mobilsonic and will be distributed in the U.S.

There are milestones and then there are milestones. Toshiba Medical Systems is claiming a jim-dandy-the shipment of its 150,000th diagnostic ultrasound system. Contributing to the Tokyo company's achievement are its two latest products: Aplio, an

New PACS software allows the storage of ultrasound cine-loops, which give surgeons an opportunity to better plan certain procedures based on ultrasound's functional evaluation of various organs. Dr. Peter Kovacs and colleagues from University Hospital in

Data storage manufacturer Fujitsu Computer Products of America demonstrated a PC-based display and manipulation solution for ultrasound images at the 10th Congress of the World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology June 1 to 4 in Montreal.

EnVisor, a new ultrasound scanner from Philips Medical Systems, emphasizes ergonomics and scalability, according to the company. Priced under $100,000, EnVisor promises high-performance features, as well as an on-board workstation and external

Tim Chaney has taken the helm of the ultrasound division at Toshiba America Medical Systems. As Toshiba vice president, Chaney will manage the ultrasound field sales organization, the alternate distribution sales channels, and its profit and loss

Hitachi unveiled its fully digital ultrasound system at the American Institute of Ultrasound Medicine convention in San Francisco this month. The Hitachi 6000 platform uses a Microsoft Windows operating system that will support software upgrades. The

The ultrasound group of Siemens Medical Systems last month donated $110,000 in ultrasound equipment and technical training to Albania in an effort to support the United Nations Population Fund in its medical care of Kosovo refugees. The Issaquah,

The diagnostic ultrasound market saw 5% growth in per-site volume in hospital radiology units in 1998, according to the latest Technology Marketing Group report, published last month. The TMG Diagnostic Ultrasound Census, conducted in

Ultrasound vendors Acuson and Siemens Ultrasound are the latest recipients of contracts from HMO Kaiser Permanente. After naming Acuson to be its sole provider of radiology and vascular ultrasound systems (SCAN 9/3/97), Kaiser has also named Acuson its

The battle between ultrasound contrast companies over patents continues to rage on. Molecular Biosystems has announced that it received notice from the U.S. Patent Office (PTO) that the firm's petitions seeking reexamination of two patents held by rival