• World's first full-body medical scanner generates astonishing 3D images
  November 20, 2018
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World's first full-body medical scanner generates astonishing 3D images
By: Rich Haridy
After over a decade of development, the world's first full-body medical scanner has produced its first images. The groundbreaking imaging device is almost 40 times faster than current PET scans and can capture a 3D picture of the entire human body in one instant scan.

Called EXPLORER, the full-body scanner combines positron emission tomography (PET) and X-ray computed tomography (CT). Following years of research, a prototype, primate-sized scanner was revealed in 2016. After expansive testing, the first human-sized device was fabricated in early 2018.

Developed in a collaboration between scientists from UC Davis and engineers from Shanghai-based United Imaging Healthcare, the very first human images from the scanner have finally been revealed. The results are being described as nothing short of incredible and the research team suggests EXPLORER could revolutionize both clinical research and patient care.

"The level of detail was astonishing, especially once we got the reconstruction method a bit more optimized," says Ramsey Badawi, chief of Nuclear Medicine at UC Davis Health. "We could see features that you just don't see on regular PET scans. And the dynamic sequence showing the radiotracer moving around the body in three dimensions over time was, frankly, mind-blowing. There is no other device that can obtain data like this in humans, so this is truly novel."

The new EXPLORER scanner offers remarkable improvements over current imaging systems. As well as offering faster scans, producing a whole-body image in as little as 20 to 30 seconds, the device is effectively up to 40 times more sensitive than current commercial scanning systems.

This means the scanner can produce detailed images using significantly lower doses of radiation tracers than are currently needed. The higher sensitivity also allows clinicians to image certain molecular targets that are beyond the limits of current scanning systems.

"The tradeoff between image quality, acquisition time and injected radiation dose will vary for different applications, but in all cases, we can scan better, faster or with less radiation dose, or some combination of these," says Simon Cherry, from the UC Davis Department of Biomedical Engineering.

Perhaps the most exciting and novel application of this new scanning system is its ability to capture entire body images in single momentary scans. Current PET systems are fundamentally slow and inefficient due to the necessity of having to scan single slivers of the body at one time. Over a long stretch of 30 or 40 minutes all these smaller images are aggregated into a larger 3D image, however this significantly limits the ability of clinicians to measure the effects of something moving across the entire body in real time.

The EXPLORER promises an entirely new kind of diagnostic imaging that could, for example, measure blood flow or the way a person takes up glucose, in real time across the entirety of the body. The new imaging system still has some testing and verification ahead before it moves into commercial production but Cherry is optimistic it shouldn't be too long before it is available to hospitals and research bodies worldwide.

"I don't think it will be long before we see at a number of EXPLORER systems around the world," says Cherry. "But that depends on demonstrating the benefits of the system, both clinically and for research. Now, our focus turns to planning the studies that will demonstrate how EXPLORER will benefit our patients and contribute to our knowledge of the whole human body in health and disease."

The new research will be presented at the upcoming Radiological Society of North America Annual Meeting in Chicago.

Source:
Haridy, Rich. "World's First Full-body Medical Scanner Generates Astonishing 3D Images." New Atlas - New Technology & Science News. November 20, 2018. Accessed November 20, 2018. https://newatlas.com/full-body-scan-explorer-medical-imaging/57303/.
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• AHRA names Daniel Kelsey as new CEO
  November 16, 2018
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AHRA names Daniel Kelsey as new CEO
The AHRA has announced that Daniel Kelsey, MBA, CAE will be their new Chief Executive Officer. He previously served as the CEO for the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists. Mr. Kelsey comes to the AHRA with over 20 years of expereince working with non-profit organization specifically working with strategic plannin and business development.

“As a veteran of the healthcare association world, I’m very excited to join AHRA, the preeminent organization for imaging leaders, who set and live up to high standards for quality care and innovation,” Kelsey said in a prepared statement. “All of my professional experience will enable me to enhance AHRA’s commitment to member success and education, advocacy, and certification. I look forward to upholding the AHRA’s strong priorities and financial soundness, while expanding its reach to increase the impact and awareness of the organization.”

“Dan’s strategic drive, distinguished career in the association management community, and passion for membership make him the perfect choice to lead AHRA and help shape the strategic focus and advocacy efforts of the next phase of its development,” Bill Algee, AHRA president, said in the same statement. “We’re thrilled to welcome Dan aboard.”

The CEO roles was previously held by Ed Cronin, Jr.for fourteen years. Mr Cronin retired earlier this year.
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• 5 Trends to watch for at RSNA 2018
  November 13, 2018
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5 Trends to watch for at RSNA 2018
By: Jef Williams and Laurie Lafleur
Every year in late November tens of thousands of diagnostic imaging professionals from all over the globe descend upon the city of Chicago to learn what’s new in the industry, visit the technical exhibits and network with colleagues — both old and new — at a variety of professional meetings and social gatherings.

2018 has been an interesting year for health innovation. More than $15 billion in investment capital was poured into digital health firms in the first half of the year alone — outperforming every previous year overall for the past decade and amounting to 70 percent more than in the first half of 2017.(1) With new innovations and applications seemingly popping up everywhere, we were curious to learn how this would shape attendees’ hopes and expectations at this year’s RSNA.

We reached out to more than 3,500 diagnostic imaging professionals, including healthcare executives, radiology and IT leaders, radiologists, technologists and clinicians to ask about their top reasons for attending the show, and what new and exciting innovations they are hoping to see and learn about this year. The results are in!

Who’s Coming?

Given the steadily increasing number of mergers and acquisitions between provider organizations in industry it is no surprise that there will be significant representation from integrated health enterprises at this year’s show, followed (not so closely) by independent hospitals, outpatient centers, private practices, and teleradiology providers (see below).

The majority of attendees fall into front-line roles including radiology administrators, practicing radiologists and technologists. There is some representation from clinical and IT leadership, but very little at the executive level. This is indicative of the importance of experience from the ‘trenches’ and the level of influence retained by such stakeholders within their organizations — even in an environment of consolidation, expansion, and change (see below).

What are Their Top Reasons for Attending?

Continuing education (CE) and visiting the technical exhibit were in close contention for the top reason for most respondents attending RSNA this year, once again demonstrating the show as a destination for scientific and technological education, advancement and procurement. Of course, one cannot dismiss the popularity of social and professional networking events — and the many dinners and happy hours that are sure to be well attended (see below).

What are the Top Trends for RSNA 2018

By aggregating the responses to questions related to continuing education (CE) topics of interest, active shopping plans for the technical exhibit, and what new innovations/ technologies and associated applications respondents were most excited to see at this year’s show we were able to identify five key trends for RSNA 2018 (which we will expand upon in the following sections):
• Continued shift toward subspecialty practice
• Focus on optimization rather than replacement
• The nebulous potential of artificial intelligence (AI)
• Cloud confusion
• What didn’t make the list?
Trend #1: Continued Shift Toward Subspecialty Practice

Once again imaging modalities are the most popular shopping list item among RSNA attendees this year, with 30 percent of respondents noting that they will be actively shopping for new modalities — in particular magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasound systems — at the show this year. Following this trend, advances in modality technologies and best practices lead in terms for CE topics of interest, with 30 percent of respondents planning to attend sessions related to scientific and technological innovation, dose management and imaging workflow optimization across a wide array of specific clinical specialty applications, once again with a heavy emphasis on MRI.

Driven by shifting reimbursements and growing consumer demand for specialized care services, this trend highlights the increased focus on subspecialty practice, and subsequently image acquisition workflow. Consequently, healthcare organizations are seeking to leverage new technologies to enable more accurate diagnosis, improve clinical outcomes and derive increased value from their imaging service lines.

Trend #2: Focus on Optimization Rather Than Replacement

For those who are actively shopping at this year’s show, analytics/business intelligence (BI) and AI were in contention for second place at the top of the list, with 21 percent and 20 percent of respondents, respectively. The top reasons cited for adopting these technologies include:
• Improve workflow efficiency and reduce manual effort for technologists and radiologists
• Increase patient throughput and modality utilization
• Improve accuracy of interpretation results
• Gain prospective and retrospective insight into quality and organizational performance
Conversely, taking a popularity hit from previous years was enterprise imaging systems and PACS replacements, each appearing on fewer than 9 percent of attendees’ shopping lists. This is a surprising statistic, given the strong focus on both of these topics at previous shows.

Combined, these statistics highlight a strong shift toward optimization of existing systems and workflows and away from large-scale system replacements, and a demand for evidence-based decision making for both clinical and operational roles. This results in a greater-than-ever need for interoperability between vendors — especially up-and-coming BI and AI companies — to support the level of integration required to deliver on the expectations of this year’s shoppers.

Trend #3: The Nebulous Potential of AI

It should come as no surprise that AI was a leading topic for both CE sessions and the technical exhibit. At a high-level most respondents noted that they were looking to AI to optimize workflow, improve efficiency and accuracy, and increase satisfaction scores for providers and patients alike. These are common yet ambiguous answers that continue to reinforce trend #2 above, however very few respondents offered specific examples when asked what specific use cases and benefits respondents are hoping AI could offer. This is highly indicative that AI is still in its healthcare infancy, and that the industry in general continues to be unsure about what the most immediate and impactful applications of this emerging technology could be.

With AI appearing in numerous CE sessions and vendor booths, this year’s show should provide some much-needed education about what AI is, the role of related machine and deep learning technologies, and what they mean for healthcare. However, it remains to be seen whether RSNA 2018 will shed some light into which near-term applications will really take off in the diagnostic imaging realm, and whether vendors will be able to move the needle in terms of adoption in 2019.

Trend #4: Cloud Confusion

Somewhat unexpectedly, cloud-hosted solutions demonstrated a lack of interest among active shoppers, appearing on only 7 percent of respondents’ shopping lists, and not appearing at all on lists related to CE topics of interest or exciting new innovations. This is a surprising result, given the continued pressure on healthcare organizations to operationalize budgets and reduce cost, and eludes to lingering uncertainty regarding the technical, operational, or economic feasibility of vendor-managed infrastructure, systems and data within the industry at large.

Cloud technology has become a standard data model in many other industries, and offers several advantages including reduced operational complexity and capital expense and improved redundancy and security. The lack of adoption to-date reinforces healthcare’s slow movement to new technologies in general, which is further exacerbated by the confusion resulting from differing capabilities, pricing models, and business cases across vendors in the industry. Ultimately, spurring adoption of this new(er) technology in healthcare will begin with education regarding the capabilities and benefits of cloud-hosted environments so that IT leaders can become informed consumers and gain the confidence and trust required to move forward.

Trend #5: What Didn’t Make the List?

Equally telling to what respondents identified as ‘hot topics’ is what didn’t make the cut. A couple of the technologies that have been leading headlines and water-cooler conversations in 2018 include blockchain and consumer wearables, however they failed to emerge as top-of-mind for respondents when asked what new and exciting innovations they were hoping to see at the show.

Blockchain

Most popular for its applications in the financial industry, blockchain has been lauded for its potential in managing patient identities and sharing information and images between unaffiliated domains, as well as for the role it could play in supporting population health, AI and machine learning by aggregating data and making it accessible for research and algorithm training purposes. However, very few within the healthcare industry truly understand what blockchain is and how it works, and more questions than answers exist when it comes to the feasibility of deploying this resource-intensive technology, which is likely why it failed to make an appearance.

Consumer Wearables

Innovations like the Apple Watch with the ability to take ‘anytime, anywhere’ ECG readings continues to be a popular topic of discussion. While a good idea in theory, care providers have challenged whether the industry is ready for this type of innovation — citing questions such as how the resulting information can be meaningfully shared with and used by care providers, what to do when there is an inevitable influx of false positives to manage, and how will this fit into existing reimbursement models? These are not trivial concerns, which is why it is likely too soon for this type of technology to make a meaningful appearance on the RSNA 2018 agenda.

Conclusion

The trends identified for RSNA 2018 reinforce that the industry’s top priorities continue to be measurably improving the quality, scalability and cost of care. Imaging leaders and practitioners alike are cautiously looking to technology to provide transparency into clinical and business operations, optimize workflow and resource utilization, and improve interpretation accuracy.

While the rate of adoption typically lags behind the pace of innovation in healthcare, it will be interesting to see if this year’s show will provide the knowledge and confidence needed to diffuse some of the industry’s newer technologies into clinical practice in 2019.

About the Authors

Jef Williams is Managing Partner at Paragon Consulting Partners LLC. With decades of Healthcare IT experience, he has a diverse and creative approach to problem-solving and solution design. He specializes in assisting organizations with organizational strategy, operational improvement, software design and selection, and enterprise imaging deployment initiatives. Williams contributes to the industry at-large as a member of the AHRA, IHE and by participating in the HIMSS-SIIM working group.

Laurie Lafleur is a senior imaging consultant at Paragon Consulting Partners, providing consultative and advisory services for healthcare and technology organizations. Having worked with care providers and vendors across Canada, the United States and Europe, she brings over 18 years of relevant experience in software engineering, product marketing, and business strategy within the Healthcare IT and imaging informatics industries. She is a member the IHE Radiology Planning Committee, and serves as a technical advisor on an academic Software & Electronics Engineering advisory board.

Reference

1. 2018 Forbes, ‘Theranos? Whatever. Healthcare startups have raised $15 billion so far this year’, https://www.forbes.com/sites/matthewherper/2018/07/09/theranos-whatever-healthcare-startups

Published from:

Williams, Jef, and Laurie Lafleur. "5 Trends to Watch for at RSNA 2018." Imaging Technology News. November 09, 2018. Accessed November 13, 2018. https://www.itnonline.com/article/5-trends-watch-rsna-2018.
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• Konica Minolta Announces New Tools in Exa® Enterprise Imaging Platform to Increase Clinical Productivity and Enhance Communication
  November 7, 2018
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Konica Minolta Announces New Tools in Exa® Enterprise Imaging Platform to Increase Clinical Productivity and Enhance Communication
Wayne, NJ, November 7, 2018 – At RSNA 2018, Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc. will showcase new features and tools for the Exa Enterprise Imaging platform. Exa is a breakthrough solution comprised of multiple modules, including PACS, RIS, Billing and specialty viewers, across a single, shared database that can be used individually or together for a complete Enterprise Imaging experience.

“As technology continues to evolve and mature, we have worked to keep Exa on the forefront of Healthcare IT advancements,” says Kevin Borden, VP of Product, Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, HCIT. “With input from our customers, we developed a series of new and advanced features and tools that will help radiologists increase productivity, enhance communication with peers and other clinicians, and improve the patient experience. With this, facilities can maximize the value of their Exa investment while providing excellent patient care.”

The new features include:
• Exa Voice Recognition transforms the user interface of Exa transcription into a more customized and user-based reporting experience that allows each radiologist to report in their most efficient manner. Exa Voice Recognition is truly zero footprint (ZFP), as there is nothing to install on workstations. Voice recognition and dialect detection used in the application have been dramatically improved to more accurately capture dictation and support more languages.
• Exa Chat is an easy-to-use system that lets users communicate one-on-one or with entire departments. It allows radiologists to quickly and securely discuss and share patients, studies, approved reports and more. This helps improve communication within and between the outpatient imaging center and hospital radiology department, with the assurance that patient health information is being communicated in a secure manner.
• Exa Peer Review is embedded into the radiologists' workflow to quickly share and reference specific patients, studies, approved reports and more. Exa Peer Review has customizable criteria including percentage of studies, total number of studies, RVU based or value based on modality and/or exam and timeframe per criteria. Exa Peer Review is built into the Exa Platform, eliminating the need for managing third-party peer review systems.
• Exa Patient Kiosk is a self-service tool that allows patients to easily check-in virtually or on-site for appointments, update demographic and insurance information, and complete and sign electronic forms. It’s available online through the Patient Portal and on-site via tablets with touchscreen capabilities. This new feature will ease bottlenecks in the front office, decrease patient wait times and improve the overall registration process, leading to a better patient experience.
• An improved Study Form Template helps the department move to a paperless workflow with an easy-to-use form builder to create forms more quickly and easily than ever before in Exa. The user-friendly form builder interface delivers greater flexibility and customization options than previously available.
About Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc.
Konica Minolta Healthcare is a world-class provider and market leader of integrated, best-in-class intelligent innovations in imaging technology. As a globally recognized leader, Konica Minolta is committed to helping healthcare providers make better decisions sooner by delivering new solutions that increase productivity, improve clinical outcomes and enhance the patient experience throughout the healthcare system. Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc., headquartered in Wayne, NJ, is a unit of Konica Minolta, Inc. (TSE:4902). For more information on Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc., please visit www.konicaminolta.com/medicalusa.
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• Patients want to learn imaging results as soon as possible, from their own doctor
  November 7, 2018
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Patients want to learn imaging results as soon as possible, from their own doctor
Patients prefer to receive imaging results as soon as possible, according to new research published in Radiology. They also want that information to come from their physician and over the telephone, not through a patient portal.

“Although hospitals are implementing [patient portals] at an accelerated rate, there is a lack of guidance regarding how best to release potentially sensitive information such as radiologic test results, which fosters variability in hospital policies,” wrote lead author Matthew S. Davenport, MD, of Michigan Medicine and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and colleagues. “Some centers may prioritize the ability of the physician to communicate results before a patient is able to see them whereas other centers may prioritize the ability of the patient to view the results without physician oversight.”

Davenport et al. noted that it sometimes takes physicians one or two weeks to find time to communicate results to a patient. A patient portal, meanwhile, can allow results to be shared within three days, but there may not be physician oversight. Either time frame may increase anxiety on the part of the patient.

The researchers sought to measure patient preferences regarding the method of communication and the timing of when imaging results should be communicated. A total of 418 patients completed a “discrete choice conjoint survey” following an imaging exam from December 2016 to February 2018. The survey consisted of three questions regarding patient preferences for receiving results for a potential or known cancer diagnosis.

Overall, the researchers found that 43 percent of the surveyed patients had experience with an online patient portal. Of those who had experience utilizing it, 95 percent liked like the process. About 61 percent of patients said they would use the portal in the future.

“We found that when given a series of choices in the context of a known or possible cancer diagnosis, patients preferred to receive imaging results as soon as possible, from their physician, and over the telephone,” Davenport and colleagues noted. “In the clinically relevant scenario of immediate release of results followed by short-term follow-up, an office visit at seven days will be more preferable than immediate release if immediately released results are not followed by an office visit within two days or a telephone call within six days.”

The survey also revealed that most patients did not want to receive their imaging results before their physician—rather, they wanted the results at the same time or after their physician received the results. The telephone was the overall preferred method of communication, followed by an office visit and then the patient portal. Not surprisingly, those who had prior experience with a patient portal were less likely to want to wait for their results in comparison to those who did not have previous experience with such a system.

In an accompanying editorial, author Ronald L. Arenson, MD, of the University of California, San Francisco, noted that online portals please most patients as they are very timely and do not impact a physician’s time. There is one caveat, however: cancer.

To combat the anxiety around embargoed receipt of cancer imaging communication, Arenson suggested that physicians should be able to have their reports embargoed until the physician can review. Another option would be to give patients the choice between an immediate release or waiting for the physician to review.

“Our results can be used to inform local policy and indicate that the embargo period can and possibly should vary by site, depending on the availability of referring physicians and their extender staff to contact patients with results,” Davenport et al. concluded. “Future study into offering patients the ability to customize the use and length of their specific embargo period may be warranted because different patients and those in different age groups may have different wishes with regard to receipt of sensitive imaging results.”


Source
“Patients Want to Learn Imaging Results as Soon as Possible, from Their Own Doctor.” Radiology Business, 7 Nov. 2018, www.radiologybusiness.com/topics/care-delivery/patients-want-imaging-results-quickly-phone-doctor?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=rb_news.
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