Slightly more than one-third of patients without known disease, who underwent elective cardiac catheterization, had obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) out of nearly 400,000 patients at 663 sites, based on study findings published March 11 in the New England Journal of Medicine. However, in an interview, Timothy D. Henry, MD, from Minneapolis Heart Institute, said that when reviewing the studys data in its entirety, it appears that most practices are performing these procedures properly.

A coronary CT angiography-only approach -- when factoring in a $20,000 threshold level for cost per correct diagnosis and $50,000 per quality-adjusted life-year -- is the most cost-effective diagnostic strategy for the evaluation of patients presenting with stable chest pain without known coronary artery disease (CAD) with intermediate CAD prevalence, according to a decision analysis study published in the March issue of Radiology.

Rcadia Medical Imaging has been issued a CE Mark for its computer-aided detection software--the COR Analyzer system--that helps identify patients with significant coronary artery disease  by an analysis of coronary CT angiography (CCTA) studies.

Intermountain Healthcare will conduct the Speckle Tracking by Echo study, which will use advanced ultrasound technology to determine if asymptomatic diabetics are at risk for coronary heart disease.

Toshiba America Medical Systems has released a new cardiac CT software package for its Aquilion One and Aquilion Premium CT systems.

Sponsored by Toshiba America Medical Systems, the Society of Cardiovascular CT (SCCT) is now accepting submissions for the fourth annual Young Investigator Awards.

WASHINGTON, D.C.--Obese patients are more likely to be referred for costly SPECT testing; and they are more likely to have positive results and longer stays, according to a poster presentation displayed at the annual conference of Cardiovascular Research Technologies (CRT), Feb. 21-23.

Vital Images has posted $15.8 million in revenue for the fourth quarter of 2009, a 9.2 percent decrease compared to $17.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2008.