March 25, 2008 - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved the registration of antimicrobial copper alloys, with public health claims acknowledging that copper, brass and bronze are capable of killing harmful, potentially deadly bacteria.

Copper is the first solid surface material to receive this type of EPA registration, which is supported by extensive antimicrobial efficacy testing, said the Copper Development Association.

March 25, 2008 - Ochsner Health System of New Orleans will enhance patient safety and improve workflow throughout its perioperative (surgical) process with technology from DocuSys Inc.

"With the acquisition and implementation of DocuSys, Ochsner will strategically focus on enhancing anesthesia medication management and dispensation, and anesthesia medication inventory, with the aim of creating a superior anesthesia record," said Mark French, vice president of surgical services at Ochsner Health System.

March 25, 2008 - Covidien will display its new VersaStep PLUS 15mm Bladeless Trocar during the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) 2008 congress March 30-April 3 in Anaheim, CA.

While many professionals in the radiation oncology field insist that true adaptive radiation therapy is not yet taking place due to a lack of time and resources, a growing number of these professionals are in fact “adapting” technology to make it suitable for treating a wide array of cases with more precision and accuracy.

Breast imaging is no longer a single modality specialty. Although mammography continues to lead the pack as the most accurate, accessible and cost-effective screening modality, magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasound are quickly becoming elevated to the same standard of care, particularly for women at high risk.

Most notably, the American Cancer Society released recommendations last year that women at high risk of developing breast cancer should receive annual screening MRIs in addition to mammograms.(1)

The ACS panel recommended breast MRI for women who:


There are many types of cancer, where the severity of symptoms depends on the site and character of the malignancy and whether there is metastasis. A definitive diagnosis usually requires the histological examination of tissue by a pathologist. Most cancers can be treated and some cured, depending on the specific type, location and stage.

CHICAGO – Three-digit-slice and high-definition computed tomography may have turned heads at The Radiological Society of North America’s annual meeting and exhibition at Chicago’s McCormick Place during its usual post-Thanksgiving holiday berth (Nov. 25-30, 2007), but souped up CT scanners didn’t necessarily overshadow some of the key – and newsworthy – technology trends at the show.

RSNA 2007 stressed several themes that have become quite familiar in the last few years.


The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) left its mark on outpatient imaging center operators. There is no denying that the imaging industry has changed forever. Some may think that the 10 percent of operators on the brink of bankruptcy or in default on payments to finance vendors is a mere market correction for years of overgrowth. But do the math. With more than 11,000 imaging centers nationwide there are approximately 1,100 failing facilities.

March 24, 2008 - Researchers have developed a three-dimensional scanner that combines positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), in which PET spatial resolution and signal sensitivity are not compromised and MRI images are not substantially affected.

March 25, 2008 - ScImage will bring to ACC the latest additions to its Web-based cardiology viewing suite, PicomEnterprise, reportedly allowing gated SPECT and nuclear stress test images to be viewed from anywhere, eliminating the need for dedicated workstations in routine clinical viewing.

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