Dear AuntMinnie Member,
It might be safer than you think to perform MRI scans on patients with implanted devices, as long as a few criteria are met.
That's according to a new study we're featuring in our MRI Community. Researchers from California studied more than 1,000 cases of patients who received MRI scans but whose devices weren't cleared for use in the MRI environment. They found very few cases of adverse outcomes or device failures.
The trick was restricting MRI scans to nonthoracic studies, and also performing a rigorous patient screening protocol that involved device reprogramming if necessary. Learn more by clicking here.
Mammo guidelines and screening
How much do guidelines from sources like the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) actually affect how often women get screened for breast cancer? Not as much as recommendations from their doctors.
Researchers from Washington tracked how often women received mammography screening over a time period that spanned the USPSTF's change in breast screening guidelines in 2009. They found that the interval actually didn't change that much, and most physicians said they didn't change what they told patients after the switch.
Learn more by clicking here, or visit our Women's Imaging Community at women.auntminnie.com.
#MyRadGirlfriend and the ED
In the next installment of #MyRadGirlfriend, Andy and Dr. Roth deal with one of radiology's trickiest relationships -- working with the emergency department (ED). Find out how it goes by clicking here.
