Left ventriculography was performed in most coronary angiography cases and often when an alternative imaging modality had been recently completed, and thus, new clinical practice guidelines should be considered to decrease the overuse of this invasive test, according a study published online March 30 in the American Heart Journal.

Jack C. Lewin, MD, is leaving the post of CEO of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) after serving in that role for more than five years to pursue other opportunities and challenges, according to a statement by the college to its members.

 The FDA has approved Amyvid, a radioactive diagnostic agent from Eli Lilly and Avid Radiopharmaceuticals that is indicated for brain imaging of beta-amyloid plaques in patients with cognitive impairment who are being evaluated for Alzheimer's disease and other causes of cognitive decline.

Intervention in asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis is controversial and screening for carotid artery stenosis has received a D grade from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Despite the questionable evidence supporting the procedure, an increasing number of Medicare beneficiaries are being screened with carotid duplex ultrasound, possibly driven by self-referrals from specialists performing revascularization, according to a study published in the April issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology.

CHICAGOA case study on a patient with dyspnea raised questions about evaluation for ischemia in women and protocols for stress testing March 26 at the 61st annual American College of Cardiology (ACC) scientific sessions.

The number of overweight and obese individuals in the U.S. is increasing, and studies have shown that CT radiation dose is affected by patient size. New research has quantified this effect and shown that forced change of operation parameters to increase image quality for obese patients can result in an increase of up to 62 percent in organ radiation exposure compared with lower weight patients, according to a study published April 6 in Physics in Medicine & Biology.

Costs associated with privately insured patients receiving radiation therapy vary between freestanding radiation treatment facilities and the hospital outpatient setting, with freestanding facilities being less costly for treatment episodes lasting one or two months, and the hospital setting being less expensive for treatments of a longer duration, according to a study by Avalere Health.

Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia, a radiation oncology practice located in Decatur, Ga., and its affiliates have agreed to pay $3.8 million to settle claims that they violated the False Claims Act after allegedly billing Medicare for medical treatments that were unnecessary or went beyond what is permitted by Medicare rules, according to the U.S. Justice Department.