More X-rays of a misplaced knife

This time through the frontal sinuses of this Utah Boy Scout, 2mm short of a vessel. Good thing this kid was "reverent."

WHOML for sure

Doctors Find 3 Needles Embedded in Patient's Brain. At least this guy's got an excuse for his version of the Worst Headache Of My Life (WHOML).
If you're reading this, you know that already.

Sword swallower provides ultimate proof

An X-ray is worth a thousand words. We all know that one view is no view, so check out the AP and lateral views of this carny.

from the Tucson Citizen

St. Joseph's Hospital now has a surgery suite with an endovascular X-ray diagnosis system that helps physicians see detailed images of a patient's vascular structure.

Handheld brain scanners for quicker stroke assessment

Portable brain scanner with Bluetooth for emergency stroke assessment is not a dream anymore, and is in fact being developed for use by EMT's and other paramedical professionals. Faster, cheaper evaluation of strokes in patients is the goal of Dr Alistair McEwan and his EIT unit. And no radiation to the patient.

"Electrical impedance tomography (EIT), (also called applied potential tomography) is an imaging technique that uses an electrical current applied to the body by a set of electrodes and measuring the voltage developed between another set of electrodes. EIT is about a thousand times cheaper and a thousand times smaller than X-ray and positron emission tomography, but has lower resolution and more variability between subjects. "

Montana hospital not honoring NP's scripts

Clinic patients picket hospital after the hospital decided it would not honor prescriptions for anything other than basic X-ray exams that were signed by nurse practitioners. I must agree that advanced imaging tests should not in the realm of NP duties, as their training is not as complete or rigorous as that of MDs.

Doctors For Medical Liability Reform

Great Animation here from Doctors For Medical Liability Reform, a group dedicated to driving down the high cost of health care.

Conflict Resolution Workshop

CanTeach - Conflict Resolution Workshop -- More helpful info

Conflict resolution

Looks like I'll be spending some time with Conflict Resolution this week, particularly with the second shift. Why is it that 2nd and 3rd shifts always feel shorted and neglected? I should know - I worked it the last 5 years.

Resolving Interpersonal conflicts

Conflict Resolution

More

Ghandi and Conflict

No one and nothing is against you

Gadget of the Day

from James D. Hudnall"s Blog o Rama

Techs - Share your Stories

RT Image is asking techs for inspiring stories of their work and the lives they've touched. With Radiologic Technology Week coming up in November the stories have extra meaning.

New radtech school in the NW

Clark College of Clark County, Washington announced that they will soon add a program for training rad techs at the college. Mention is made of the extreme shortage of techs and the need for quality training. The pinch is felt here in Tucson, with new magnets and MDCTs being installed with scant few techs to run them.
Might be a good time to ask for a raise, guys. Or at least a salary survey.

Pants on Fire

from New Scientist: Liars's brains make fibbing come naturally

Scientist: MRIs Can Serve as Lie Detectors

Scientist: MRIs Can Serve as Lie Detectors

Energy from magnets?

Or just a bunch of Casimir? Here's a guy in CA who thinks he might have the answer. Just a countertop version to run my Mr. Coffee would be a good start.

Jobs4Katrina

My company has posted several job openings on the Jobs4Katrina website. Relocation assistance is available and even a temporary housing allowance for new hires displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Please register at the Jobs4Katrina website if interested.

Best of luck and best wishes to all affected by this disaster.

Job opening - CT/MRI tech

Now that I'm supervising at TIA I'm very aware of the shortage of RT's, esp. those interested in CT and MRI. A recent job posting within our company and in the local papers yielded 2 responses.

Any displaced tech from the hurricane ravaged Gulf Coast is welcome to apply - please. Relocation help available.

Accidents will happen

So says Elvis Costello in his song by that name. Unfortunately, accidents involving MRI machines are usually pretty unpleasant. This article from the NY Times and Wilmington Star will only serve to feed the frenzy of undereducated patients. More lawsuits are sure to follow.

Emotional Intelligence

E/I looks like a big buzzword with corporate America so I'd better step in line. The key could be hiring smart people who care about what they do to work for you. To keep 'em, keep 'em happy.

Gadonanotubes improve MR contrast by 40% over regular gad

From the buckyball to the gadonanotube - a safer more effective contrast.

In the future, the researchers hope to use existing methods of attaching disease-specific antibodies and peptides to gadonanotubes so they can be targeted to cancerous tumors and other diseased cells.


What's the order number again?

Indiana Twp. police dog Bosko passes his MRI, to stay on the job

Indiana Twp. police dog Bosko passes his MRI, to stay on the job

Sounds like just another malingerer to me.

CT comps

This from Canada -
CT Program

Like Flipping a Switch - Researching Magnetic Fields to Treat Depress

Like Flipping a Switch - Researching Magnetic Fields to Treat Depress

High Five!

Good news...I'm going to the day shift.
Better news...I'll be the new Technical Supervisor at TIA starting on or around July 10.
I've been reading a few books on management and team-building ("The One-Minute Manager," "Dogbert's Top Secret Management Handbook"), listing areas of concern and importance, but mainly chompin' at the bit, waiting to roll up my sleeves.
I'll try to track my ups and downs on these pages, and learn along the way.
Get 'R Done

Another disease that will drive up our healthcare costs

TB seen in many aliens, study says - The Washington Times: Nation/Politics - June 08, 2005

Healthcare for Everyone

OpinionJournal - Extra

Gauss Rifle

Fun with magnets and science:

Gauss Rifle

Definition of Radtech

Job Profile: Radiologic Technologists and Technicians - Radiology Job & Career Advice from Monster.com

The supervisor's position is opening up at my imaging center. Question is - can anybody really follow Chip at TIA? It will be like having to replace Pope JPII.

Magnets at work

Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | How to float like a stone:

How to float like a stone


What goes up no longer has to come down. British scientists have developed an antigravity machine that can float heavy stones, coins and lumps of metal in mid-air. Based around a powerful magnet, the device levitates objects in a similar way to how a maglev train runs above its tracks.
The device exploits diamagnetism. Place non-magnetic objects inside a strong enough magnetic field and they are forced to act like weak magnets themselves. Generate a field that is stronger below and weaker above, and the resulting upward magnetic force cancels out gravity.

It won't be long, folks, until exeryday applications of this technology takes us into the Jetson age.

X-Rays Of Strange Items In Kids' Stomachs Amaze Doctors

Wow ...how'd they do that

More on MRI and $

toledoblade.com:

"Ohio has more than 250 MRI units, including 26 in Lucas County, and another is scheduled to come online today in partnership with Medical College of Ohio. Michigan has 155 MRI units. Canada has a total of 151 MRI units."

MRI, CT centers offer doctors way to profit on scans

MRI, CT centers offer doctors way to profit on scans

Curbing costs of medical scans / Insurers seek to rein in fast-growing use of pricey high-tech MRIs and CTs

Curbing costs of medical scans / Insurers seek to rein in fast-growing use of pricey high-tech MRIs and CTs
"'Imaging is a cash cow,' said John Donahue, chief executive officer of National Imaging Associates. "

Neuroeconomics - Your iguana is ruining your future

Haaretz - Israel News - Neuroeconomics / Your iguana is ruining your future

"That is the new science called neuroeconomics. It exploits cutting-edge medical magnetic resonance imaging technology allowing scientists to watch which parts of the brain are active when economic decisions are made. MRI technology is more commonly used to find problems in brain functioning, but it works just as well to investigate neuroeconomics."

While most economic decisions are made in the forebrain, there is also the "primordal" system at work deep inside the limbic system (among others). Imagine being able to exert some control over the way consumers decide and make purchases. Put this together with the soundless sound system and we are beyond science fiction.

Boston.com / News / Local / Mass. / Surgeon left in midst of operation

Boston.com / News / Local / Mass. / Surgeon left in midst of operation

Processed meat consumption results in 6700% increase in pancreatic cancer risk, says new research

Processed meat consumption results in 6700% increase in pancreatic cancer risk, says new research

According to this study, the perfect diet consists of fish, poultry, dairy products, and eggs.

And 86 the sodium nitrite altogether - it causes cancer.

Top Neurologist's Report on Terri Released

Top Neurologist's Report on Terri Released

Gotta match?

They waited 2 years to report it.

"16/4/2005 1:04:26 AM ( Source: Reuters)



Seattle man catches fire during surgery

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Seattle police launched an investigation on Friday to determine how a patient undergoing emergency heart surgery caught on fire at a local hospital in 2003.
The male patient, who was not identified, went up in flames after alcohol poured on his skin was ignited by a surgical instrument.
The patient died after the surgery but that was due to heart failure and not the fire, said Dr. Robert Caplan, medical quality director of Virginia Mason.
Caplan said fires are known to occur in operating rooms although they were extremely rare.
The two-year-old incident became publicly known after an anonymous letter sent to the media mentioned it as a sign of unsafe health care at the hospital, and said the patient burned to death.
Caplan strongly disputed its contents. 'That letter is factually incorrect,' he said."

hydrocele from hell

Ward Churchill at Anarchist Bookfair, March 26, 2005..................scroll down a few pictures.........warning

My Way News

My Way News

Canadian Health

CBC Toronto - Cut wait times or lose funding, hospitals told: "One area the study did not cover was wait times for MRI and CT scans.
The report's authors found that wait-time statistics for those procedures are not routinely collected."

Must be a software problem.

Dynamic contrast imaging

New Cancer Imaging Can Predict Treatment Results: "Here's how it works. A special contrast dye is injected into the patient before an MRI. If the tumor takes the dye well, that means there is good blood flow so chemotherapy and radiation will also penetrate well But if the tumor indicates poor blood flow, that's a sign it won't respond well to treatment."

Cheap hand-held MRI scanners may one day be a reality

Cheap hand-held MRI scanners may one day be a reality: "Today's MRI scanners typically cost $1 million. If atomic magnetometers came into use, the cost could one day be slashed to tens of thousands of dollars, the researchers claim. "
It's not science fiction anymore.

"Rosie" goes high tec

Robo-docs check in at Detroit Medical Center

CodeBlueBlog: CSI MEDBLOGS: CODEBLUEBLOG ANALYZES TERRI SCHIAVO'S CT OF THE BRAIN

CodeBlueBlog: CSI MEDBLOGS: CODEBLUEBLOG ANALYZES TERRI SCHIAVO'S CT OF THE BRAIN

Radiologists Tell House Committee Unnecessary and Inferior Medical Imaging Lowers Quality of Care and Costs Taxpayers Billions of Dollars

Radiologists Tell House Committee Unnecessary and Inferior Medical Imaging Lowers Quality of Care and Costs Taxpayers Billions of Dollars:
"Other examples include Arizona where imaging by non-radiologists is up as much 1,317 percent -- or ten times the national average. In Georgia, it�s up 503 percent; Louisiana, up 852 percent; Minnesota, up 442 percent; and in Texas, up 1,630 percent."

Stress OTJ

A recent Canadian survey ranked stress and workload as top issues among healthcare workers. It's a fact. We're in the down-cycle now on techs available and trained, but more are being trained all the time.
Survey results.

The MRI effect

MRI Scans Could Have Antidepressant Effect : "'We found that when we administered the magnetic stimulation to the rats, we saw an antidepressant-like effect, the same effect as seen after administration of standard antidepressant drugs,' said William Carlezon"

MRI may soon spot Alzheimer's

MRI may soon spot Alzheimer's:- - India News - Webindia123.com: "MRI may soon spot Alzheimer's:-
London March 14, 2005 1:55:15 PM IST

The markers of Alzheimer's disease - amyloid plaques in the brain - can now be detected in living mice using MRI( magnetic resonance imaging) scanners with the help of a new flourine tracer, claim scientists in Japan.
The finding raises the possibility that people without overt symptoms may soon be diagnosed and treated in time. Currently, the standard way to confirm the presence of the plaques, and thus the disease, is by autopsy.
Amyloid plaques are insoluble protein clumps in the brain which form early on in Alzheimer's disease and can precede dementia by many years. Identifying people with Alzheimer's while they are still asymptomatic means the disease could in theory be slowed, or even stopped, before irreversible neuron loss takes place. Other attempts to use brain scans, including PET and SPECT, have had some success. But PET, for example, is fifty times as expensive as MRI, has lower resolution and exposes patients to radiation.
Takaomi Saido at the Riken Brain Science Institute in Wako, Japan, and his team, have developed a new, non-toxic tracer that attaches itself to the amyloid plaques in the brain and can be detected by regular MRI scanners. The tracer is made from a form of fluorine that is a common additive in drinking water, and a form of hydrogen, which is known to bind to amyloid.(ANI)"

Modern Implantable Heart Devices Safe For Use In MRI Scans

That's what this article says, reporting findings of a study done at Johns Hopkins. Among the recommendations: keep the SAR below 2W/kg, and have a cardiologist and radiologist on hand. That's a trick in itself sometimes.
Modern Implantable Heart Devices Safe For Use In MRI Scans

Should have had aCT

IOL: A Step Beyond
He wouldn't last 8 hours at El Dorado without a CT.

Did you hear the one about the doctors who bought a hospital?

Sick of red tape, physicians are buying hospitals in an attempt to drive down health care costs. Should be interesting to check in on this group a little later on.

Newsday.com: Doctor exodus may cost Lawrence & Memorial millions of dollars

Newsday.com: Doctor exodus may cost Lawrence & Memorial millions of dollars

The Brain

Homer Simpson's X-ray and everything else about the brain can be found here.

mri ct

Technical stuff on mri &ct here.

The Basics of MRI

Nice online guide to MRI at The Basics of MRI.

The MRI Lie: A Matter of Economics

Unnecessary imaging exams? Unheard of. Not according to this guy.

Portrait of Nikola Tesla

A well-rendered Portrait of Nikola Tesla can be found here along with a bio that contains facts I wasn't aware of, such as his belief that he'd made contact with ETs. And I thought there were no long-term effects of MRI.....
Interesting to note in this article is the total absence of any mention of the MRI, focusing on electricity and Edison. More on Tesla here at his museum in Belgrade

Fortunate "incidental" findings

Serendipity: [n] pure luck in discovering things you were not looking for; see also fortune, luck

Somethings are just meant to happen, it's just the way that they happen sometimes.....

Getting conked with beer bottle saves her life

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

NAPLES, Fla. - A blow to the head with a beer bottle may have saved Sally Hampton's life.

While doctors were examining her after the barroom attack, they discovered a brain tumor that could have killed her.

The tumor was removed, and Hampton, 64, is fully recovered.

On Monday, she testified against her attacker, Fidel Trujillo, who was convicted of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and sentenced to 12 1/2 years in prison.

"It was one of the worst things that could happen to an elderly person, but in the end it saved her life," prosecutor Erik Lombillo said.

Hampton was attacked July 4 at a bar in Immokalee. According to prosecutors, she put her hand on Trujillo's shoulder to lead him out when the bartender wanted to close. Trujillo bashed her with a bottle and kicked her when she fell.

Had an experience similar to this "good news bad news" "by the way" case at my work late last year. A male patient in his 40's was involved in an MVA and hit his head on the windshield. A CT scan to r/o bleed instead showed a rather large meningioma which was successfully removed days later. Another patient inhaled some sawdust, resulting in sinus problems and a "woody smell" in his nose. An MRI revealed a pituitary tumor.

Anybody else seen anything like this?

New STD

According to this Reuters News Article, NYC has recorded the first US cases of LGV (Lymphogranuloma venereum).
The disease, known as LGV or Lymphogranuloma venereum, is caused by specific strains of chlamydia and is often marked by painful, bloody rectal infection and genital ulcers.
Preceding brought to you Europe. Thanks again.

ACR - Health Care News Archives

Nice list of current stories
ACR - Health Care News Archives

ACR - MRI snaps clear, detailed pictures

ACR - MRI snaps clear, detailed pictures: "What is an MRI?
Magnetic resonance imaging uses radio frequency waves and a strong magnetic field, rather than x-rays, to provide clear, detailed pictures of internal organs and tissues.
What are some common MRI uses?
Because an MRI procedure can give such clear pictures of soft tissue structures near and around bones, it is the most sensitive examination for spinal and joint problems.
MRI is used to diagnose sports-related injuries, especially those affecting the knee, shoulder, hip, elbow and wrist. The images allow doctors to see even very small tears and injuries to ligaments and muscles.
Organs of the chest and abdomen, including lungs, liver, kidney, spleen, pancreas and abdominal vessels can be examined in high detail with MRI, enabling diagnosis and evaluation of tumors and functional disorders.
What do patients experience during an MRI procedure?
MRI causes no pain, but some patients can find it uncomfortable to remain still during the examination. Some experience a sense of being closed in, though the more open construction of newer MRI systems, including the one at Markham Stouffville Hospital, has done much to reduce this reaction
If a contrast injection is needed, there may be discomfort at the injection site, and patients may have a cool sensation at the site during the injection. Most bothersome to many patients are the loud tapping or knocking noises heard at certain phases of imaging. Ear plugs may help.
Who interprets the results and how do patients obtain them?
A radiologist, who is a physician experienced in MRI and other radiology examinations, analyses images and sends a signed report with his or her interpretation to the patient''s personal physician. The patient receives MRI results from the referring physician "

Jan 22,2005

Joan Ransberry

QA Questionnaire from ACR

Here's one I printed out. Overall things look good so far, just need to find out when all this hoopla takes place.

Did you take your wallet out?

One ACR phantom for MRI $730
One magnet onsite (discount for second) $2100
MRI physicist to verify results $500
ACR Accreditation for your MRI facility .. Priceless

Or, in my case filmless, paperless, occasionally helpless.
ACR - Frequently Asked Questions

Nice license plate

MRI FIZX Toyata Prius Hybrid

At this price it's a real ganga

Phantom holder for the weekly test.

ACR - Magnetic Resonance Imaging Accreditation Program

Since I've been giving the task of ACR Accreditation, my first link will be to the ACR. The physicist will be onsite Feb.9 so the countdown has begun.

Gotta get to know the Toshiba 1.5T a little better, too. Most of my training has been mainly of the OTJ type. Surprised?