HCI's Monthly Review of the Healthcare Industry
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Robert J. Stilley
President, CEO
HeartCare Imaging, Inc.
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Dear Colleagues,
As I’m writing this month’s intro to the ‘Spotlight’ I’m on a flight sitting next to two young men from China who are making their way home for the holiday break. Those of you that know me know I like to talk to people…so, of course, I introduced myself to them. They are high school students in FL staying with host families. After hearing about their amazing experiences I mentioned that I was in China in the mid-1980's which brought a reaction that was a combination of 1. they were sitting next to an really old guy!...and 2. what was it like in China back then? The conversation that followed centered around how much change had taken place in their home country and how it has evolved. When I was there it was a simple agricultural country with no modern comforts or technology, now it is a manufacturing giant with numerous large modern cites. They could not fathom the China I experienced many years ago. Why is this pertinent to this month’s newsletter. As we get ready to ring in yet another new year we need to remember that while it’s vitally important to live in the present and plan for the future, it’s equally important to remember lessons learned from the past. In other words experience and history matters. We like to think that at HCI we offer our client-partners both the foresight necessary to ensure the future is bright and the experience necessary to take advantage of knowledge gained over the years. We’ve learned that it’s necessary to stay on top of the latest trends and technology while also remembering the lessons learned along the way, especially the one about doing business based on always doing the right thing. We believe this combination is a large part of the reason 2019 saw growth across the US and was our best ever, and that we are poised for continued positive growth in 2020 and beyond. We hope you agree!
We wish you a wonderful Holiday Season and look forward to a great 2020 with everyone!
Best regards,
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Heart Failure Patients Receive Virtual Behavior Therapy, Improve Self-Care
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Heart Failure (HF) patients receiving targeted virtual behavior therapy found significant improvements in self-care, a recent study published in the journal Circulation found.
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Do Women With Diabetes Need More CVD Risk Reduction Than Men?
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Whether cardiovascular disease risk reduction efforts should be more aggressive in women than men with the diabetes depends on how you interpret the data.
Two experts came to different conclusions on this question during a heated, but jovial, debate last week here at the International Diabetes Federation 2019 Congress.
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How to integrate AI into the cardiac imaging pipeline
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Artificial intelligence may be perceived as a threat to some physicians, but, according to research presented at the Radiological Society of North America’s annual meeting in Chicago, it could have some real use for cardiologists.
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AHA: Geriatric syndromes affect care of older patients in cardiac ICU
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Despite older patients receiving the care they need in cardiac ICUs, they may experience worsening of geriatric conditions such as cognitive impairments and frailty, according to a American Heart Association scientific statement published in Circulation.
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Model Predicts Six-Month Post-AMI Mortality for Older Adults
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A newly developed model has good discriminatory ability for six-month post-acute myocardial infarction (AMI) mortality, according to a study published online Dec. 10 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
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Obesity Mediates Response to Antiarrhythmic Drugs in A-Fib
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Obesity may cause a differential response to antiarrhythmic drugs (AADs) used to suppress atrial fibrillation (AF), according to a study published online Nov. 27 in JAMA Cardiology.
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AHA News: Could Mammograms Screen for Heart Disease?
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By screening for breast cancer, mammography has helped save hundreds of thousands of lives. Using the test to also screen for heart disease might someday help save many thousands more.
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Elevated BMI, waist size increase congestive HF, mortality risks in type 2 diabetes
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Among adults with type 2 diabetes, the risks for congestive heart failure and all-cause mortality rise with increases in BMI and waist circumference, but there may be a need to reevaluate what constitutes obesity using these metrics, according to findings published in the Journal of Diabetes and its Complications.
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Optical imaging may be ‘game-changer’ for predicting heart attacks
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Massachusetts General Hospital-led researchers developed an improved optical coherence tomography imaging method that can distinguish life-threatening coronary plaques from those that are less dangerous. The findings, shared in JACC: Cardiovascular Imaging, may arm physicians with new information critical to predicting and treating damage in the heart's major blood vessels
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Fatal Embolism Infrequent, but Fuels Overdiagnosis
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According to the CDC, between 60,000 and 100,000 Americans die every year from deep venous thrombosis or pulmonary embolism and as many as 900,000 people could be affected.
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Death risk higher for government-insured breast cancer patients
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Women with breast cancer who were insured with Medicare or Medicaid had lower survival rates than those patients who had private insurance in two large treatment clinical trials, according to a study presented on December 13 at the 2019 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.
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Midlife Obesity in Women May Increase Risk for Dementia Later
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In women, midlife obesity is associated with increased risk for dementia later in life, while no clear associations are apparent for low body mass index (BMI), low caloric intake, or inactivity at baseline, according to a study published online Dec. 18 in Neurology.
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Losing weight after age 50 linked to lower breast cancer risk
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Post-menopausal women who are able to lose even a modest amount of weight — and keep it off — may reduce their risk of developing breast cancer, research published Tuesday finds.
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How fish oil might reduce inflammation
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Recent research has revealed a mechanism through which fish oil, which contains omega-3 fatty acids, might reduce inflammation. A study that tested an enriched fish oil supplement found that it increased blood levels of certain anti-inflammatory molecules.
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Biopsy protocol rules out surgery for women after chemo
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December 16, 2019 -- Vacuum-assisted image-guided breast biopsy can reliably predict which breast cancer patients treated with chemotherapy have responded well enough that follow-up surgery is not required to remove residual cancer, according to a December 13 presentation at the 2019 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS).
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Light Therapy May Brighten Alzheimer's Disease Outcomes
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Focused light therapy may improve sleep and reduce symptoms of depression and agitation in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related dementias, new research suggests.
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Cancer Drug Shows Promise for Parkinson's Patients
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A drug used to fight chronic myeloid leukemia might also relieve symptoms of Parkinson's disease, a new study finds.
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EATING A DIET FEATURING KETONES COULD PROTECT BRAIN CELLS AGAINST ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE, STUDY ON MICE SUGGESTS
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Eating a diet featuring chemicals known as ketones could protect brain cells from the progress of Alzheimer's disease, according to a study on mice.
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Molecular imaging approach advances personalized cancer therapy treatment
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The noninvasive, whole-body imaging approach, known as 89Zr-immuno-PET, allows clinicians to quantify the uptake of antibodies in patients' tissue to predict the effectiveness of cancer therapy. Yvonne Jauw, MD, with the Cancer Center Amsterdam in the Netherlands, and colleagues shared their research in the December issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.
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7 ways radiologists can harness imaging informatics to reduce burnout
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Informatics-based changes to imaging tech, when deployed correctly, could end up reducing time spent away from interpreting, while also decreasing interruptions and fueling connections with other clinicians. Experts from Seton Hall University and Penn’s Perelman School of Medicine recently made their pitch for informatics as a burnout-buster in a new analysis, set to be published in February’s Clinical Imaging.
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mHealth Tools Improve Discharge Planning for Patients and Providers
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With CMS' new discharge planning rule giving patients more control over their post-acute care options, hospitals are using mHealth to make that process more effective and less costly.
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Politics that Affect Medicine
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Senate confirms Dr. Stephen Hahn as FDA commissioner
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he US Senate on Thursday confirmed Dr. Stephen Hahn to be the next commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration. The Senate vote was 72 to 18.
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SITE-NEUTRAL BACK PAY: CMS TO GIVE HOSPITALS MORE MONEY FOR 2019, CARRY FIGHT INTO 2020
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The administration agreed to comply with a federal judge's order that vacated site-neutral payment provisions of OPPS 2019, but it appealed her decision and will keep pushing for related provisions in OPPS 2020.
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US appeals court rules Obamacare individual mandate unconstitutional, leaves law intact
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A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate provision is unconstitutional but punted on deciding whether the rest of the landmark health-care law should be tossed out.
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HHS moves forward with prescription drug import plan
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The Trump administration on Wednesday moved forward with two regulatory actions that would allow states and drugmakers to import prescription drugs, a top healthcare priority for the president's 2020 re-election campaign.
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For over 25 years, HRSI has provided Authorized User (AU) classroom and laboratory training to physicians. HRSI's training is recognized by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and fulfills the didactic training required by law.
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The 106th Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America, RSNA 2020 will be held in Chicago, Illinois between 29 November - 04 December 2020.
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September 24-27, 2020
Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, Washington, D.C.
We invite you to the 25th Annual Scientific Session of the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology to be held in Washington, DC. Join physicians, scientists, technologists, nurses, colleagues in industry and many others from around the world in this educational event and celebration.This year’s program highlights many exciting developments in the field of nuclear cardiology, and is designed to offer value to attendees of all levels of expertise and seniority.
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HeartCare Imaging, Inc. | Phone: 561-746-6125 | Fax: 561-741-2036 | info@heartcareimaging.com
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