Dear MRI Insider,
The practical difficulties of guaranteeing quality in prostate MRI have held back the clinical implementation of the technique in recent years, but the signs are that leading European radiologists and urologists are getting their act together.
A consensus paper was published on 19 May, and this seems to represent a significant breakthrough. Although the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a large reduction in the number of prostate MRI exams conducted across the continent, the prospects for the future now appear to be rosy.
Our second article posted today focuses on how machine learning based on functional MRI data is showing great promise as a tool to assess the prognoses of comatose patients. A research team from Geneva University Hospitals in Switzerland published its findings on 21 May in the American Journal of Neuroradiology, and they're worth a close look.
F-18 FDG PET/CT is of well-established value in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma, but how does it compare with contrast-enhanced MRI in this area? A group from Henri Mondor University Hospital in Créteil, near Paris, has addressed the question and unveiled its results in a recent article in European Radiology -- read more about the story in Demand for MRI scans is growing by 9% a year, which is three times the speed of the radiologist workforce, according to the latest annual census from the U.K. Royal College of Radiologists. Shortages of interventional and breast radiologists are an area of particular concern, the authors wrote.
Last but definitely not least, investigators from Zurich have found that an artificial intelligence algorithm can accurately reconstruct 4D flow MRI exams in seconds, potentially enabling near-real-time assessment of cardiac blood flow while the patient is still in the scanner.
This letter features only a handful of the many articles posted recently in the MRI Community. Please scroll through the full list below and contact me if you have any ideas for coverage.
