Extremity MRI face-off; portable US in Nepal; opinion on CMS VC denial

Dear AuntMinnie Member,

The arrival of summer hasn't slowed things down at AuntMinnie.com, where we're featuring a wide variety of stories in this edition of the Letter from the Editor.

In our MRI Digital Community, check out a new story by staff writer Wayne Forrest on a study that compared a 1-tesla dedicated extremity MRI scanner to a whole-body 1.5-tesla system for knee disorders.

New York researchers found that the dedicated unit turned in an excellent performance for several areas of the knee, at a lower siting and capital cost compared to whole-body units. Get the story by clicking here, or visit the community at mri.auntminnie.com.

Portable US in Nepal

In other news, we continue our coverage of imaging's impact on global healthcare with a profile of the Nyaya Health project by contributing writer Alexandra Weber Morales in our Ultrasound Digital Community.

Nyaya Health is the product of Yale University clinicians who have placed a portable ultrasound scanner at a remote clinic high in the mountains of Nepal. Images are transmitted via satellite back to Yale for interpretation, giving Nepalese villagers access to high-quality imaging technology and expertise. Learn more by clicking here, or visit the community at ultrasound.auntminnie.com.

Opinion on CMS VC denial

Finally, we're featuring a Second Opinion piece in our Virtual Colonoscopy Digital Community by Dr. Len Lichtenfeld, deputy chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society.

Like many industry observers, Dr. Lichtenfeld was baffled by the recent decision by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to deny insurance reimbursement for screening virtual colonoscopy studies. But a recent editorial in the New England Journal of Medicine lauding the decision just poured salt into the wound.

Find out why Dr. Lichtenfeld objects to both the decision and the editorial by clicking here, or visit the community at vc.auntminnie.com.