Healthcare is ever changing, so it’s important to stay up to date on advancements and issues that may impact the development, operation, maintenance, and growth of your services. Here are some important developments:
Researchers identify features least-sensitive to PET system variations
Researchers from the Medical University of Vienna in Austria provided new guidance for selecting optimizing features from 18F-FDG-PET/CT studies—demonstrating feature variations can be minimized for selected image parameters and imaging systems, in a new study published in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine. Laszlo Papp, PhD, and colleagues imaged a whole-body phantom with 13 PET/CT systems at 12 different sites. Continue reading…
Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) myocardial perfusion imaging guidelines: Instrumentation, acquisition, processing, and interpretation.
Recent advances in Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) have fundamentally changed acquisition, processing, and interpretation of myocardial perfusion images. Myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) can now be personalized and tailored to the individual patient and the clinical question. Review the most up to date MPI guidelines for conventional and novel SPECT for qualified medical professionals engaged in the practice of nuclear cardiology. Continue reading…
Radiopharmaceutical tracers for cardiac imaging
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death and disease burden worldwide. Nuclear myocardial perfusion imaging with either single-photon emission computed tomography or positron emission tomography has been used extensively to perform diagnosis, monitor therapies, and predict cardiovascular events. Several radiopharmaceutical tracers have recently been developed to evaluate CVD by targeting myocardial perfusion, metabolism, innervation, and inflammation. Continue reading…
Blue House, Red Senate: What Now For American Healthcare?
The 2018 midterms left the Republicans with the Senate majority and the Democrats with control of the House. The congressional split bodes poorly for the 71% of voters who labeled healthcare as “very important” in determining their vote. In this article, would-be voters were asked to get specific about which healthcare issues matter to them most. See the top six issues and how likely they are to be addressed by Congress in the next two years. Continue reading…
Type 2 Diabetes an independent risk factor for coronary artery disease
According to study results published in Heart Rhythm Society, type 2 diabetes is an independent risk factor for sudden cardiac arrest and death in patients with coronary artery disease with preserved ejection fraction. With this prospective observational study, researchers sought to compare the incidence of sudden cardiac death in Finnish patients with and without T2D who had CAD and preserved ejection fraction. Continue reading…
How to set up shop as an independent MD
Physicians everywhere are realizing the benefits of breaking free from the drudgery of full-time employment with a large healthcare corporation. As the healthcare pendulum has swung away from private practice to employed physicians—the desire has escalated to return some autonomy back to those once independent doctors. There’s a huge supply-demand mismatch that is working in physicians’ favor and if they’re savvy about it, they’ll consider the options they have at their disposal to help them move away from full-time clinical work. Continue reading…
4 ways to prepare for MACRA in 2019
The new year is here, and practices must keep pace with evolving Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) policies. With the new final reporting rule, it’s often difficult to balance optimizing the revenue cycle while monitoring impacts on performance scores and operational workflows. To combat these challenges, practices can apply four tips to enhance cash flow while being mindful of MACRA’s Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) reporting requirements. Continue reading…
