News & Updates

Check here regularly for news about medical imaging and updates from MITA.

• Industry News
  01.04.12

  MRI helps link silent strokes to memory loss

  Upon review of MRI results, the researchers found that individuals with subcortical and cortical infarcts were more likely to have a clinical history of stroke, and participants with no infarct had larger relative hippocampal volumes — the section of the brain associated with memory function — than those with subcortical infarcts.

• Industry News
  01.03.12

  Cancer screenings: Early detection equals cure in many cases

  Catch cancer early — that’s the point of a cancer screening. During an annual check-up we focus on early detection of cancer. There are things that you can do to monitor for early cancer development and tests your doctor should recommend you consider as well.

• Industry News
  12.29.11

  Medicare Payment Cuts For Osteoporosis Testing Reduced Use Despite Tests’ Benefit In Reducing Fractures

  Our study found that after a decade of growth, DXA testing in all Part B settings plateaued in 2007–09, resulting in 800,000 fewer tests than expected for Medicare beneficiaries—tests that might have prevented approximately 12,000 fractures. Testing declined in 2010, when the start of reimbursement relief under the Affordable Care Act was delayed, and increased outpatient testing failed to offset reduced use in physician offices.

• Industry News
  12.22.11

  Brain Scans Spot Alzheimer’s Changes Years Before Symptoms

  Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital and the University of Pennsylvania used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans to measure the thickness of the brain’s outer layer in 159 people who were free of memory problems.

• Industry News
  12.21.11

  AAPM Position Statement on Radiation Risks from Medical Imaging Procedures

  The American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) acknowledges that medical imaging procedures should be appropriate and conducted at the lowest radiation dose consistent with acquisition of the desired information. Discussion of risks related to radiation dose from medical imaging procedures should be accompanied by acknowledgement of the benefits of the procedures.

• Industry News
  12.20.11

  Developing Lung Cancer Screening Strategies

  After one of the largest clinical trials ever conducted, the medical community has demonstrated that screening for lung cancer saves lives. The next step is to put these and other research findings into perspective to develop screening strategies that work around the globe.

• Industry News
  12.16.11

  MedPAC Weighs Hospital E/M Cuts As Hospitals Lobby To Get ‘Pay For’ Out Of Doc Fix Bill

  “MITA is pleased that MedPAC has publicly validated that medical imaging spending and utilization are on the decline,” said MITA’s executive director David Fisher. “MITA encourages policymakers to consider these latest trends and not target medical imaging services for additional cuts.”

• Industry News
  12.15.11

  MRI Contrast Agent Prototype Targets Cancers

  The ability to accurately detect sites of malignancy by MRI would be an immediate improvement to existing contrast agents for certain breast cancer scans.

• Industry News
  12.14.11

  PET can benefit aortic stenosis patients

  PET detects inflammation, possibly related to fatty deposits, which can signal the very early stages of aortic stenosis, or narrowing or hardening of the heart’s aortic valve. The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, found that PET provided greater insight than ultrasound into the process that causes aortic stenosis.

• Industry News
  12.13.11

  Study of the Day: More Men Get Cancer, Fewer Bother to Get Tested

  A higher percentage of men said that they had never been tested for cancer, even though most respondents from both gender groups agreed that screenings were effective.