The latest studies related to advanced visualization show how new technology is bringing home the ideal trifecta of reduced costs, improved efficiency and better quality of care and outcomes.

The Medical Device User Fee and Modernization Act (MDUFMA) is a go. Three weeks after the Senate and House produced a reconciled version of the bill, President Barack Obama signed it into law July 9 as part of the Food and Drug Safety and Innovation Act.

Philips Healthcare and Therapeutic Monitoring Systems are collaborating to integrate clinical decision support (CDS) software, being developed by Ottawa-based Therapeutic Monitoring, into Philips' cardiopulmonary monitors.

Novation, a U.S. group purchasing organization serving the healthcare industry, has awarded Triad Isotopes with a contract to become one of its radiopharmaceutical suppliers.

The modern electronic medical record (EMR) is a gold mine of data for the health care executive, but that gold too often goes un-mined. At Illinois-based NorthShore University HealthSystem, accessing the mother lode of usable information begins with a database of about two million patients and 100 million transactions.

Source: Radiology 2012;264:225-233MR imaging utilizing ultrasmall superparamagnetic iron oxide (USPIO) particles in combination with the current standard of a gadolinium-based contrast agent enabled detection of over 50 percent more multiple sclerosis (MS) lesions than imaging with gadolinium alone, according to research published in the July issue of Radiology.

For health IT hiring trends, Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) reported employers realize transferable (skills acquired in the past that can be used in present) and soft (like communication) skills are becoming important in the workforce.

The use of acute dialysis after surgery increased three-fold between 1995 and 2009 and occurred primarily after cardiac and vascular surgery, according to a study published June 25 in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. Almost half of those who received acute dialysis died within 90 days after surgery.