CHICAGOAs the 94th annual meeting of Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) opened this morning to overcast skies, misty rain and the possibility of snow, RSNA Scientific Program Committee Chair Robert Quencer, MD, highlights several foci of this years conference for Health Imaging News.

A debate at the recent 2008 VEITH Symposium in New York City concluded that there is still a role for diagnostic angiography, specifically in patients with clear-cut evidence of coronary disease and unstable syndromes. The caveat concerning CT angiographydiagnostic angiographys main competitorhowever, is the radiation risk, according to participant Glenn Hirsch, MD, who spoke to Cardiovascular Business News.

Vital Images, a provider of advanced visualization and analysis software, and Toshiba Medical Systems have agreed to renew their global distribution agreement for another five years, through Dec. 31, 2013.

Along with the promise of stents comes the problem of in-stent restenosis. One solution posed by manufacturers is drug-eluting stents (DES), however, even with DES, stent apposition and stent fracture can aggravate in-stent restenosis. Multiplanar reformations (MPRs) of CT images can successfully identify stent fractures.

Coronary CT angiography is an excellent noninvasive imaging modality to visualize stent fractures, even fractures that are not clearly depicted by conventional angiography, according to researchers from South Korea.

Barco announced this morning it is selling its advanced visualization business to Toshiba Medical Systems of Tokyo, Japan, via its newly formed, wholly owned subsidiary, Toshiba Medical Visualization Systems Europe (TMVS), located in Edinburgh, Scotland. For Toshiba, the acquisition will build in-house critical core competenciesthe development of 3D volume rendering and advanced visualization capabilities for all Toshiba modalities.

The healthcare business of Thomson Reuters has released its annual study, identifying 100 U.S. hospitals that are setting the benchmarks for cardiovascular (CV) care.

By 2012, providers of nuclear imaging will need to be accredited to obtain reimbursement. Technologist Timothy L. Dunn, BS, CNMT, wants his colleagues to lead the charge for quality and safe imaging.