Low back pain is among the most common reasons for physician visits in the United States, and is associated with considerable patient distress, limitation of normal activities, and work-related disability. The routine use of imaging for patients with acute back pain is controversial. Imaging is recommended for patients who have certain high-risk features that suggest the presence of a serious underlying disease process (for example, cancer or a spinal infection). This article will discuss imaging techniques commonly used to evaluate different types of back pain, as well as summarize guideline recommendations about the role of imaging in patients with back pain.
Screening and diagnostic breast studies are important services provided by imaging facilities, and require trained medical imaging professionals who are familiar with the modalities used to evaluate the breast and accurately distinguish between benign and malignant disease. Although mammography is the most well-established imaging modality to screen asymptomatic patients at risk for breast cancer, a multimodality approach is becoming more widely used, encompassing mammography in addition to breast sonography, magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography, and, when necessary, surgical and needle biopsy to provide a more thorough analysis of the underlying pathology, and an accurate assessment of a diverse population of women. This article will provide an overview of breast anatomy and pathology, a brief review of each modality, a discussion of a multimodality approach to imaging, and surgical techniques currently used to assess the breast.
Medical imaging fusion plays an important role in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with cancer who are receiving radiation therapy. The image fusion and registration process involves combining multimodality images to delineate the anatomical and physiological differences from one dataset to another. This article will discuss various imaging modalities and examine how significant their roles are in the treatment and management of radiation therapy patients. Image registration processes will be introduced as well as the recommended quality assurance procedures. In addition, DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) networking requirements will be explained as they apply to image fusion, registration, and storage, and the DICOM-RT (Radiotherapy) networking will be discussed as it applies to the radiation therapy department.
Dementia is the gradual and progressive loss of cognitive ability that is caused by disease or injury of the brain. Many neurologic disorders can cause symptoms of dementia, including Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, stroke, and other neurodegenerative diseases, making it challenging to diagnose. Dementia is common in radiology practice, and neuroimaging is often an essential step in establishing a correct diagnosis and selecting an appropriate treatment option. This article discusses the typical clinical presentation of dementia, imaging techniques used in routine diagnosis, and the unique patient safety and communication issues for imaging patients with dementia.
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In a prospective trial to test the feasibility of laparoscopic high-intensity focused ultrasound ablation of uterine localized adenomyosis, Chinese researchers found the procedure to be a safe and effective procedure.
Data from a preclinical study presented at the Society of Nuclear Medicine 56th Annual Meeting suggest that α therapy, in association with fast-clearing peptides, can be effective in treating prostate cancer.
The application of a skin patch that delivers radiotherapy can be an effective alternative to surgery to treat skin cancer, according to data presented at the Society of Nuclear Medicine 56th Annual Meeting.
Fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography can provide a more precise assessment of recurrence and outcome in ovarian cancer than the standard serum tumor marker, a study presented at the Society of Nuclear Medicine 56th Annual Meeting has found.
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