Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas Inc. announced that its Dynamic Digital Radiography (DDR) technology, introduced at the 2018 Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) annual meeting, has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The company says DDR represents the next evolution in X-ray imaging with the ability to capture movement in a single exam and is a fundamental change in the way clinicians can utilize radiography.

GE Healthcare showcases Senographe Pristina with its add-on-biopsy kit at the breast imaging symposium
GE Healthcare showcases Senographe Pristina with its add-on-biopsy kit at the breast imaging symposium

Signs of what the future may look like in women’s health dotted the exhibit floor of the Society for Breast Imaging (SBI)/American College of Radiology (ACR) Breast Imaging Symposium in Hollywood, Fla. Notable was an emphasis on productivity.

April 22, 2019 — Mentice AB, provider of endovascular performance solutions, has signed an agreement with the nonprofit public service RAD-AID to donate high-fidelity simulators for interventional radiology (IR) procedure training in various resource-constrained regions of the world. Under the agreement, Mentice pledges to contribute simulator software, hardware and expertise to RAD-AID IR educational teams.

The Medicare Hospital Insurance (HI) Trust Fund, which funds Medicare Part A, will only be able to pay full benefits for Medicare beneficiaries until 2026, according to the 2019 annual report from the Medicare Board of Trustees. The Supplementary Medical Insurance (SMI) Trust Fund, which funds Medicare Part B and D, is expected to be adequately financed in all years, but the aging population and rising healthcare costs are projected to grow SMI costs from 2.1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2018 to approximately 3.7 percent of GDP in 2038.

April 22, 2019 — A new study finds wide state-by-state variations in Medicaid reimbursements to physicians who treat cancer patients with radiation therapies. These differences could compound existing disparities in access to healthcare in rural communities, which tend to have higher Medicaid coverage rates than metropolitan areas.

Graphic courtesy of Pixabay
Greg Freiherr

Artificial intelligence (AI) may powerfully influence women’s health.

Ching-Jen Chen, M.D., of the neurosurgery department at the University of Virginia (UVA) Health System, was the winner of the Cerebrovascular Section Best Clinical Scientific Paper at the 2019 American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) Annual Scientific Meeting, April 13-17 in San Diego. Chen’s research investigated stereotactic radiosurgery for pediatric versus adult brain arteriovenous malformations (AVM). The aim of this international, multicenter, retrospective, matched-cohort study is to directly compare the outcomes after stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) for brain AVM in pediatric versus adult patients.

A short video describing the potential benefits and risks of low-dose computed tomography (CT) screening for lung cancer plus an informational brochure increased patients’ knowledge and reduced conflicted feelings about whether to undergo the scan more than the informational brochure alone, according to a randomized, controlled trial. The trial is published online in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is extending the public comment period by 30 days for two proposed regulations aimed at promoting the interoperability of health information technology (health IT) and enabling patients to electronically access their health information. The new deadline for the submission of comments – June 3, 2019 – will allow additional time for the public to review the proposed regulations.

GE Healthcare has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of its Deep Learning Image Reconstruction engine on the new Revolution Apex computed tomography (CT) device. The engine has also been approved as an upgrade to GE’s Revolution CT system in the United States.

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