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May 13, 2013
New California State Law Regarding Dense Breast Tissue
A new California State Law (Senate Bill 1538) requires that lay summaries about a woman’s breast density be sent in addition to the letter she already receives from the radiologist after every mammogram. Thus, on April 1, 2013, in compliance with the new California state law, we began sending the following information to patients with heterogeneously or extremely dense breast tissue:
“Your mammogram shows that your breast tissue is dense. Dense breast tissue is common and is not abnormal. However, dense breast tissue can make it harder to evaluate the results of your mammogram and may also be associated with an increased risk of breast cancer.
This information about the results of your mammogram is given to you to raise you awareness and to inform your conversation with your doctor. Together, you can decide which screening options are right for you. A report of your results was sent to your physician.”
Imaging Healthcare Specialists realizes that receipt of this information may raise patient anxiety and result in more inquiries to you. Our radiologists strongly support evidence-based medical decision-making and have resources to help guide patients and their clinical providers to determine if any supplemental screening is recommended.
November 30, 2012
Imaging Healthcare’s 9th Annual Charity Golf Tournament Raises Over $85,000 For Fresh Start
Our 9th annual charity golf tournament was held on Monday, October 29, 2012 with all proceeds benefiting Fresh Start Surgical Gifts. This was the first year we held the tournament at the exclusive Del Mar Country Club and it was our most successful tournament to date. The 108 golfers were treated to a fun filled day of food and beverages on the course as well as activities on the holes such as complimentary massages and prize opportunities. Dinner and awards followed with Hank Bauer as our Master of Ceremonies who also performed our live auction and raffle giveaways. Fresh Start’s CEO Shari Brasher introduced a very special guest speaker, Beloved Jefeti, who became a Fresh Start patient in 2010 and has since received over $100,000 in donated medical care from Fresh Start’s organization. Fresh Start Surgical Gifts is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit who provide reconstructive plastic surgery and related services to children and young adults with physical deformities. All services are provided free of cost to these families. Our event raised over $85,000 for Fresh Start which will help future patients like Beloved get the medical care they need. Please join us for our 10th annual tournament in 2013 (TBD) that will surely be an anniversary event to remember! Thank you again to all of our sponsors, golfers, volunteers, and vendors who made this year’s event such a huge success!
November 6, 2012
Imaging Healthcare Specialists Develops Successful Radiation Dose Reduction Program, Reducing Patient Radiation Exposure Up to 90 Percent
Reston, VA (Nov. 5, 2012) — According to an article in the November issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology, Imaging Healthcare Specialists, has implemented a successful radiation dose reduction program, reducing radiation exposure by up to 90 percent in some patients.
“In the past decade, there have been unparalleled technological advances and growth in CT imaging, with many lives saved and more costly and invasive procedures avoided. This growth in CT imaging, however, has also been accompanied by an unavoidable increase in cumulative radiation exposure to the public,” said John O. Johnson, MD, author of the article.
At Imaging Healthcare Specialists, a highly successful program of radiation dose reduction was created, and dose savings of up to 90 percent have been achieved in select patients.
“Our primary focus was to reduce radiation dose for CT examinations of the chest, abdomen and pelvis because these constitute the most frequent studies in our practice and those with the highest radiation dose. Ultimately, all imaging protocols were revised,” said Johnson.
The following dose reduction strategies were developed over months of careful computed tomography (CT) dose adjustment and imaging analysis:
- Decreased Peak Kilovoltage
- Low-dose Automatic Dose Modulation
- Decreased Length of Coverage
- Pitch
- Iterative Reconstruction and Noise Reduction Software
In addition, the imaging facility focused on limiting double scans and multiphase examinations; performing low-dose follow-up CT examinations; and the use of iterative reconstruction and noise reduction software. A low-dose strategy for CT-guided biopsies was also developed.
“To implement such a program requires dedication, leadership and commitment. Key components include a lead CT physician, a lead CT technologist, a CT applications specialist, a continuous feedback loop and systems in place to educate staff members and audit compliance,” said Johnson.
“It is possible to perform high-quality CT at a fraction of the radiation dose previously thought possible. Using a combination of dose reduction strategies with or without iterative reconstruction, risks can be minimized, thereby ensuring the health and welfare of our patients,” he said.
October 26, 2012
Important Information Regarding New England Compounding Center
As you may be aware from news reports, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is investigating a multi-state outbreak of meningitis and fungal infections among patients who received spinal or joint injections of a potentially contaminated corticosteroid known as Methylprednisolone Acetate manufactured by New England Compounding Center (NECC).
We want to reassure our patients and physician community that Imaging Healthcare Specialists has not purchased or used Methylprednisolone Acetate or any other products manufactured by NECC.
The safety and well-being of our patients is our primary concern and we will continue to provide relevant information as it becomes available. To learn more about this investigation or to get a list of NECC customers, please visit the FDA website.
July 12, 2012
IHS First in U.S. to Offer Imaging Diagnosis for Alzheimer’s
On Friday,July 6, 2012, Imaging Healthcare Specialists became the first imaging center in San Diego County and among the first in the nation to offer patients PET brain imaging with Amyvid™, the radioactive agent which can detect the presence or absence of amyloid plaques in the brain as part of a diagnostic evaluation to determine if a patient has the pathology of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Amyvid was FDA approved in April 2012 and released to select imaging centers across the United States by Eli Lilly on June 1, 2012. In accordance with FDA guidelines, Imaging Healthcare Specialists will use the scan only in people who already have cognitive decline and in conjunction with traditional clinical evaluation.
In this new procedure, patients are injected with a short-acting radioactive agent called florbetapir (Amyvid), which binds to amyloid plaques in the brain that are the hallmark of AD. The patient is then scanned with positron emission tomography (PET) which can detect the presence or absence of amyloid plaque.
According to Mark Schechter, MD, a board-certified diagnostic radiologist and Medical Director of PET Imaging at Imaging Healthcare Specialists, the release of Amyvid for use in patients is a major advance in diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease.
“Until now, the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease has been made clinically” said Dr. Schechter, “and could only be confirmed at autopsy.” He added, “This test is a diagnostic adjunct to other clinical evaluation methods, such as physical examination, laboratory evaluation, and neuropsychiatric/cognitive testing, and should only be used to confirm an AD diagnosis in the cognitively impaired patient. Although this test cannot detect very low levels of amyloid plaque, a negative test means that the cognitive impairment is likely due to some cause other than AD.”
This news comes following the May announcement by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius of a national plan to fight Alzheimer’s disease and find effective treatment and prevention methods by 2025. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, 90 percent of what we know about Alzheimer’s has been discovered in the last 15 years.
Jon M. Robins, M.D., CEO of Imaging Healthcare Specialists, emphasized that the organization has a long-standing tradition of being an early adopter of technology.
“We are truly privileged to become the first imaging center in the region to implement the use of Amyvid in patients outside of a clinical research study. We believe that this is an important diagnostic tool that advances the early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease.”
Currently, health insurance does not cover this scan so patients must pay out of pocket.
About five million Americans already have Alzheimer’s disease and the numbers are expected to soar as Baby Boomers age to approximately 15 million. The Alzheimer’s Association says the annual cost of Alzheimer’s to the United States could increase from $200 million in 2012 to more than $1 trillion by 2050.
Imaging Healthcare Specialists (IHS) has 11 offices throughout San Diego and south Riverside Counties, including Temecula, Oceanside, Encinitas, Poway, La Jolla, Chula Vista and San Diego.
June 12, 2012
Vendor Neutral Tool Helps Lower Dose
Imaging Healthcare Specialists was once again featured in an article by Imaging Economics. In the article, our own Dr. Robins talks about the advantages of using SafeCT to help lower the radiation dose in a CT scan. You can read the article here:
http://www.imagingeconomics.com/issues/articles/2012-06_11.asp
June 6, 2012
San Diego Radiology Group at Forefront of Dose Reduction
Imaging Healthcare Specialists was featured as a progressive provider by Imaging Economics. Read about how IHS is leading industry dose reduction at their website here: http://www.imagingeconomics.com/techedge/2012-06-06_06.asp#.T8-pHxBF91k.email
May 25, 2012
National Leader in CT Imaging Dose Reduction
Imaging Healthcare Specialists Emerges as a National Leader, Achieving Exemplary Success in CT Imaging Dose Reduction
The first release of results compiled by the American College of Radiology Dose Index Registry has placed Imaging Healthcare Specialists at the forefront in achieving significant reductions in radiation dose in CT imaging. Imaging Healthcare Specialists emerged as a leader when compared to other outpatient imaging centers nationally, and among imaging centers (outpatient and hospital based) both in the western region and in metropolitan areas nationally.
In addition, Imaging Healthcare Specialists has reaffirmed its leadership role in San Diego by becoming the first freestanding imaging company in the nation to acquire the SafeCT™ advanced dose reduction technology (MedicVision Image Reconstruction) for CT imaging.
According to John O. Johnson, M.D., Chief of CT Imaging at Imaging Healthcare Specialists, SafeCT™ offers numerous benefits to Imaging Healthcare’s patients. “The incorporation of SafeCT™ into our CT scanners enhances our low dose initiatives that have reduced radiation exposure by as much as 90% in select patients. We are proud to be a leader in incorporating smart imaging protocols to emphasize patient safety while maintaining imaging quality for our referring physicians.”
Computed Tomography (CT) scanning, and related medical technologies, are towering milestones that have revolutionized the medical profession. Approximately 67 million CT scans are performed each year in the United States. This means that about one in five adults receive a CT scan annually. The scans, which are a specialized form of X-RAY, resulting in cross-sectional computerized images and occasionally 3-Dimensional images of a person’s head or body, can prove life saving. They have eliminated millions of exploratory surgeries and have allowed physicians to make critical diagnoses while excluding others that showed no merit. The medical profession could not function without them.
Jon M. Robins, M.D., CEO of Imaging Healthcare Specialists, emphasized that the organization has a long-standing tradition of being an early adopter of technology.
“To assure all of our imaging protocols achieve the highest standard of patient safety,” he said, “we closely examined all of our methodology to maximize image quality while reducing dose. This has become a national goal for all imaging centers, but Imaging Healthcare Specialists did it earlier and in a way that resulted in significantly reducing dose without compromising our scan quality.”
Imaging Healthcare Specialists has set an extremely high standard of image quality and safety for each patient. Through adoption of the Image Wisely and Imaging Gently initiatives, Imaging Healthcare Specialists is committed to avoiding the use of unnecessary ionizing radiation and to using the lowest optimal radiation dose for necessary studies. Radiation dose is appropriately lowered to correlate to each patient’s body mass.
Dr. Robins added, “We take special care to educate and counsel patients and their referring physicians who request additional information regarding radiation risk. We provide individualized monitoring and surveillance of patients’ dosage through review for appropriateness and frequency of multiple exams.”
“Our goal at Imaging Healthcare Specialists,” he said, “is to assure our patients and the medical professionals with whom we work, that we deliver the safest, smartest, and most accountable imaging possible.”
Imaging Healthcare Specialists has 11 offices throughout San Diego and south Riverside Counties, including Temecula, Oceanside, Encinitas, Poway, La Jolla, Chula Vista and San Diego.
January 4, 2012
Birth Defect Detection on KUSI News
Dr. O’Shaughnessy of Imaging Healthcare Specialists was featured on the KUSI morning news to discuss birth defect detection for Birth Defects Prevention Month.
December 3, 2011
Lung Cancer Awareness on NBC
Imaging Healthcare Specialists’s Dr. Schechter was featured on NBC San Diego News recently to talk with Whitney Southwick about lung cancer and technology used by Imaging Healthcare Specialists to detect it. Watch the video below.
