Dear AuntMinnie Member,
Ultrasound expert Dr. Jason Birnholz is back with his latest Practice of Ultrasound column. While the article focuses on imaging of the placenta, it also touches on one of the most important issues in healthcare: how much time physicians spend with patients.
Dr. Birnholz sees a disturbing subtext in medicine's focus on productivity and efficiency -- processes that often occur at the expense of the patient. He believes that attempts to shave minutes off ultrasound exams can impinge on efforts by ultrasound specialists to achieve the highest image quality, which can be critical in making a diagnosis.
Read Dr. Birnholz's thought-provoking comments by clicking here, or visit our Ultrasound Community at ultrasound.auntminnie.com.
Breast CT's bright future
While dedicated breast CT is still an investigational tool, researchers from New York and Massachusetts believe that it could develop into a modality well-suited for a wide variety of breast imaging tasks.
That's according to a new article in our Women's Imaging Community that explores the potential of this intriguing technology. Chief among breast CT's advantages is that it is a true 3D modality with better contrast and 3D anatomic detail, according to the researchers.
Concern about radiation dose has been one issue holding breast CT back, but in reality the radiation dose is comparable to that of combined exams with digital breast tomosynthesis and mammography, the group believes. Read more by clicking here.
Software-based FFR
In other news, be sure to visit our Advanced Visualization Community for an article on a new technique using a prototype software application for generating fractional flow reserve (FFR) images from CT data. Investigators believe it's a better alternative than two other techniques, one of which requires an invasive catheter to be placed near the heart, and another that requires data to be shipped to an offsite lab for processing. How well does it perform? Find out by clicking here, or visit the community at av.auntminnie.com.
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![Examples of ultrasound findings and techniques. (A) Images in a 39-year-old male patient with a mass in the left thigh. The mass is heterogeneous on the B-mode US image (compared with the patient in D) and showed increased microvascularity (superb microvascular imaging [SMI]) and shear-wave elastography (SWE) values. Undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy (with pleomorphic rhabdomyosarcoma in surgical specimen). (B) Images in an 18-year-old male patient with a mass in the left leg. The mass is hypoechoic on the B-mode image, with no other findings suggestive of malignancy. The lesion is in contact with the cortex of the tibia, which is slightly irregular. CT revealed a doubtful anteromedial tibial erosion. The microvascular study demonstrated high vascularization, suggestive of malignancy. Periosteal Ewing sarcoma was diagnosed with both histologic and immunohistochemical confirmation. (C) Images in a 69-year-old female patient with a lump growing on the outside of the left leg. Multiple SWE examinations were performed (please note the high values obtained in the measurements, whereas the color map highlights the stiffness relative to adjacent tissues). SMI showed areas of increased vascularization to target for sampling. Undifferentiated spindle cell sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with residual leiomyosarcoma in the surgical specimen after neoadjuvant therapy. (D) Images in a 56-year-old female patient with a mass in the right thigh. The mass is heterogeneous at both B-mode ultrasound (similar to patient A) and MRI (coronal T2-weighted spectral attenuated inversion recovery [SPAIR]; T1-weighted pre-contrast and postcontrast imaging), which even shows uptake after the administration of paramagnetic contrast material, which is traditionally suggestive of malignancy. Low values at SMI and elastography are suggestive of benignity. Spindle cell lipoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with atypical spindle cell lipomatous tumor in the surgical specimen.](https://img.auntminnie.com/mindful/smg/workspaces/default/uploads/2026/08/images-radiol250278fig2.APCFLSvX6p.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&dpr=2&fit=crop&h=167&q=70&w=250)
