June 2017
Current SCMR President, Matthias Friedrich,  published an article  in the European Heart Journal titled "The Future of CMR Imaging". The article covers CMR and its evolving role in clinical cardiology, recent developments shaping the future of CMR, big data, challenges, and outlook on the future. Article does not require a subscription to view.   Read full article >>


The Protecting Access to Medicare Act (PAMA) of 2014 established a program to promote the use of Appropriate Use Criteria (AUC) for advanced diagnostic imaging services.  Specifically, ordering professionals will be required to consult with AUC prior to ordering an advanced diagnostic imaging service (CT, MR, SPECT, or PET).   The furnishing professional will not be paid  by Medicare unless they document that the ordering professional consulted with AUC. The initial priority clinical areas for the AUC program include coronary artery disease (suspected or diagnosed) and suspected pulmonary embolism. As of this writing, it is expected this program will take effect January 1, 2018; however, multiple stakeholders have called on CMS to delay implementation of this program.  Additional details are expected to become available in early July, 2017. Read full article>>

As part of our international outreach initiative, SCMR sent two speakers to the recent Asian Society of Cardiovascular Imaging (ASCI) meeting in Kyoto, Japan. Representing SCMR was James Carr who presented on  CMR in Hypertophic Cardiomyopathy and Mark Westwood who presented CMR in Acute Myocarditis to over 1,000 attendees. Thank you to both for your participation and effort to help spread CMR education around the world.



The 2016 journal impact factors were released last week and the Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (JCMR),  the official journal of the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (SCMR), maintained an outstanding impact factor of 5.601. The 2016 Impact Factor reflects the frequency with which papers published in JCMR in 2014 and 2015 were cited by articles in 2016. This key indicator demonstrates the influence and scientific value of the journal. Read full article >>

Congratulations to Xavier Lyon for winning the membership raffle and receiving one-year free membership with SCMR. Dr. Lyon runs a  cardiac MR facility in Switzerland at Clinique de la Source, Lausanne where he shares his time between general cardiology, interventional activities and cardiac MR. He is a great fan of the SCMR meeting and hasn't missed one since 2001. "It really meets  my needs of continuous education and experience sharing with colleagues all around the world."

Thank you to all of our members who have completed the recent membership needs assessment survey. The Membership Committee is currently reviewing the results and will be working to improve the value of your membership.   

CASES OF THE WEEK

Catch up on current Cases of the Week posted to the SCMR  website:
SCMR is looking for new case submissions. To submit a case please click here to review the process.
Quick Links
To Improve Cardiovascular Health by Advancing the Field of CMR