Follow TomographyBlog on Twitter December 26, 2008
Posted by tomography in Nuclear Medicine.add a comment
Twitter is a so called microblogging service that allows users to notify each other via short 140 character long messages. It is very similar to sending text messages (SMS) on your mobile phone.
If you are using the Flock browser, Twitter can run right in your browser under the “people” tab and notify you of new activity with just a convinient flash of a button.
It is more convinient than blogging for the blogger because he or she does not have to write long sentences, and it is convinient for the reader because he or she may get the information quicker with less reading, or if you turn this sentence around, one may get more information within the same timeframe.
You may follow my activities and cathch-up with all the recent news on TomographyBlog using Twitter by adding yourself to my list. Just click on this link, and then click “follow” if you already have a Twitter account.
I am eager to read about what is happening to you!
- Andras
Christmas 2008 December 25, 2008
Posted by tomography in Holiday.add a comment
In the name of all the contributors to Tomographyblog and in the name of the developers of SEEKRadiology I would like to wish all of our readers a merry Christmas and a happy year 2009 with this CT scan of a real world christmas tree.
[Image source]
- Andras
My new toy: Google SketchUp December 18, 2008
Posted by tomography in Off Topic, Second Life.Tags: google, Second Life
1 comment so far
If you enjoy drawing or creating 3D models on computer, then you must try Google SketchUp. It is a lightweight, yet very powerful application that allows you to sketch virtually anything in 3D. For instance you can make a plan of your office or living room before you set out to change the flooring or apply new colors to the walls.
But it may be used for medical purposes as well. With a large collection of already available models, you may explore 3D models of various medical devices (similar to Second Life the virtual world), thought this might be a more hands on approach for students and patients. Here are two of my favorites, a linear particle accelerator:
and a GE gantry:
- Andras
Diagnostic Imaging 2.0: Communities December 14, 2008
Posted by tomography in Community sites, Diagnostic Imaging 2.0, web 2.0.Tags: community, Radiology, web 2.0
2 comments
A sense of community is an essential need of ours, and online social communities have made it easier for us to connect to, and stay in touch with people who are either important to us or share similar passions to ours, or both. So if your area of interest is diagnostic imaging, these online communities may be for you.
In order to participate in most communities, you must first create your own login name and password. This is necessary because there must be a way to indentify you if you write on a discussion board, or send short intranetwork messages to other users, and most communities also allow you to start your own blog within that particular community which also has to be connected to at least a login name.
What can you do on social community sites?
Connect:
- to old friends from residency and medical school
- to your next employer
Collaborate:
- Discuss, share, and see interesting cases with radiologists from around the world
- Share your research ideas and establish a new collaboration
- Find out the next time someone gives a lecture/CME on your area of interest
Get answers:
- Discuss the latest topics and turf battles of radiology
- Find another radiologist who can help with literally anything
- Find a mentor or a mentee
1. RadRounds.com, short for Radiology Rounds, is the largest social network site for Radiologist created by Radiologists. It is very similar to Facebook, MySpace and the others, but on a professional level. So it is the Tiromed of Radiologists. Members are either medical professionals, medical students, technicians, or programmers, so they are all somehow related to the field of Radiology.
2. RADiX.in : An Exclusive Online Radiology Community with over 2,200 registered members is the largest Radiology community in Asia, and the number 2 most visited Radiology community worldwide. It has a large collection of teaching files and videos.
3. Auntminnie.com is your Radiologist Aunt. “AuntMinnie provides a forum for radiologists, business managers, technologists, members of organized medicine, and industry to meet, transact, research, and collaborate on topics within the field of radiology with the ease and speed that only the Internet can provide. AuntMinnie features the latest news and information about medical imaging.”
4. Filmjacket.com is a website for all professionals affiliated with the field of radiology. You can post and browse radiology jobs, submit and read the latest radiology news, participate in discussion forums, read radiology-related articles and browse radiologic images and cases. Unfortunately Filmjacket is no longer available, but I will leave it in this list, because this was the very first community website dedicated to Radiology.
5. The object of CIDER is to contribute to the understanding of pulmonary radiology. It includes an e-Book on the basic concepts of pulmonary radiology, a Tutorial Section, a Case of The Month Section, a Show and Tell Section, a Boards Primer Section and a Benefactors Section. QUIZZ/GAMING features that reinforce the various concepts you have learned are available when considered appropriate.
6. In a world of advanced medical diagnostics, ultrasound remains a safe, reliable and affordable modality. It even has its own online community! SonoWorld is the ultrasound portal offering: images, lectures, study cases, product reviews, and conference information. A short registration procedure is required to access the collection.
7. DograRad is dedicated to all who teach, research, and promote education in ultrasound and other imaging modalities. Registered members can contribute interesting cases, share opinions and ideas, and make contacts for residencies and other opportunities in the practice of medical imaging.
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8. The latest community website for Radiologist is Radiolopolis. Connect to your peers, start a blog, upload your files, start a discussion. The options are virtually boundless. Check out why the Radiology blogosphere is raving about this site.
9. Radiologyforums is just what its name says, a large forum for Radiologists. You can start a discussion and create your own profile on this website.
10. Teleradiology Network is a forum for those interested in teleradiology and its global implications. Create your profile, add members to your groups, and start a discussion with a few clicks on this website. Since the topic is very specific this is a community site worth visiting from time to time.
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11. I saved a unique community for last. If you are ready to test not only your skills in Radiology but you would also like to navigate through a site in Russian, Radiomed is this editor’s choice.
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Breast Cancer and Low Radiation Detection Techniques December 13, 2008
Posted by tomography in Cancer, Radiology.Tags: breast cancer, mammography, US
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If there’s a dreaded word in the medical fraternity, it’s cancer. Even the most ignorant of people know that it’s a killer; cancer may be treatable if you discover the malignant cells in the early stages, it may go into remission if you begin treatment once the disease has set it, it may even hoodwink you into believing it’s gone forever. But the disease only hibernates, sometimes for six months, sometimes for 10 years. It’s like the Sword of Damocles hanging over your head, and you’re in constant fear of death, a very painful one at that.
The only people who have some kind of hope of meeting cancer and living to tell the tale are those who have it detected early. Some forms of cancer are more benign than others, and by benign I mean they are more merciful – they allow you to survive if you succeed in removing the cancerous organ in its entirety. Breast cancer is one such disease – women who are prone to it, either through hereditary factors or because of overexposure to radiation and/or cancer-causing substances, can get themselves checked regularly to prevent falling victim to this deadly disease.
Early detection can save your life, and although you lose your breast in the process, the tradeoff is more than fair when you consider that you live a healthy life for many more years. Breast cancer is screened through a mammography, the procedure where x-rays are used to detect the presence of cancer cells in your breast. It’s safe because it uses a low amount of radiation.
New research has proved that a mammography combined with a breast ultrasound is your best bet to detect the disease as early as possible if you have a history of breast cancer. Results from the American College of Radiology Imaging Network’s ACRIN-6666 trial have shown that women with the early stages of breast cancer are more likely to have the cancer identified when both mammograms and ultrasound scans are performed.
On the plus side, scans are available everywhere, tolerated easily by all kinds of patients and use no radiation. But there is a negative aspect to this testing; it apparently increases the number of false diagnoses too – many people without cancer are told that they have the disease, leading to emotional distress, additional expenditure, and in worst case scenarios, a mastectomy if the patient does not bother to get a second opinion.
At the end of the day though, it’s a known fact that early detection through regular screenings is the best hope that we have today of fighting cancer and keeping this deadly killer at bay. And when the screening methods are not harmful themselves, the smartest thing we can do is to protect ourselves by getting tested.
By-line: This article is contributed by Sarah Scrafford, who regularly writes on the topic of Radiology Technician Training. She invites your questions, comments and freelancing job inquiries at her email address: sarah.scrafford25 [at ] gmail.com.
A picture for a better diagnosis December 9, 2008
Posted by tomography in Radiology.Tags: CT, empathy
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I have found a very interesting post on Medgadged that I must share with you. According to research done at Shaare Zadek Medical Center in Jerusalem, Israel, attaching a patient’s photo to his or her diagnostic study not only adds valuable information about the patient’s condition, but may result in a more meticulous evaluation.
Here is a more detailed description of the study:
For the study, 318 patients referred for CT agreed to be photographed prior to the exam. The images of the patients were added to their files in the hospital’s picture archiving and communication system (PACS), a network for storage and retrieval of medical images. The photograph appeared automatically when a patient’s file was opened.
After interpreting the results of the exams, 15 radiologists were given questionnaires to gather data about their experience. All 15 radiologists admitted feeling more empathy towards the patients after viewing their photos. In addition, the photographs revealed medical information such as suffering or physical signs of disease.
More importantly, the results showed that radiologists provided a more meticulous reading of medical image results when a photo of the patient accompanied the file.
Incidental findings are unexpected abnormalities found on an image that may have health implications beyond the scope of the original exam. In order to assess the effect of the photographs on interpretation, 81 examinations with incidental findings were shown in a blinded fashion to the same radiologists three months later but without the photos. Approximately 80 percent of the radiologic incidental findings reported originally were not reported when the photograph was omitted from the file.
The radiologists involved in the study commented that while the addition of the photo did not lengthen the time spent reading, it was a factor in how meticulously they interpreted the images. All 15 radiologists agreed that the inclusion of a photograph in a patient’s file should be adopted into routine practice. The photos can also be included in long-distance teleradiology practices.
“The photos were very helpful both in terms of improving diagnosis and the physicians’ own feelings as caregivers,” Dr. Turner said. “Down the road, we would like to see photos added to all radiology case files.”
- Andras
FluidSurveys December 3, 2008
Posted by tomography in education.Tags: survey
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Since I hope to work in academics soon, I am always on the lookout for novel tools that might make my work easier one day. And here is one I think I will be using: FluidSurveys. With it, creating an online survey becomes as easy as dragging and dropping, and results may be viewed online or exported to a spreadsheet software.
- Andras
The Fantastic Human Body November 25, 2008
Posted by tomography in Art.12 comments
In light of the recent Bodies exhibition I saw in Budapest, Hungary, and the latest edition of the Saw series, I warmly welcomed a recent post on Mediq about a Thai artist , Kittiwat Unarrom, who literally bakes human body parts from good-old-fashioned bread. I believe this picture describes it best:
Further reading:
- Andras
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