Dear AuntMinnie Member,
Radiology has a less-than-stellar record when it comes to retaining control of cardiac imaging modalities, and some pundits are wondering whether cardiac CT angiography (CTA) will join echocardiography, cardiac cath, and cardiac SPECT among the technologies lost to cardiologists.
Not so fast, according to imaging utilization expert Dr. David C. Levin. He sees a number of reasons why radiologists can retain control of cardiac CTA, and we offer a few of them in an article by contributing writer Cynthia Keen in our Cardiac Imaging Digital Community.
Radiologists have a better understanding of the physics behind CT, and are trained to look for extracardiac findings that might elude cardiologists. Radiologists are also not a threat for overutilizing cardiac CTA -- an issue that is gaining increased attention from government regulators and insurance payors.
In fact, Dr. Levin sees the momentum shifting in favor of radiology thanks to the current bête noir of the specialty -- the Deficit Reduction Act (DRA) of 2005. Find out how the DRA might actually be working in radiology's favor with respect to cardiac CTA, and how radiologists can retain control of the technology, by clicking here, or visit our Cardiac Imaging Digital Community at cardiac.auntminnie.com.
