Our Dr. O is taking his expertise to Indonesia!

Dr. Hugue Ouellette, one of the radiologists at Canada Diagnostic, is currently in Sumatra, Indonesia lecturing on musculoskeletal radiology topics.

First up, is his lecture series at the International Skeletal Society Radiology Outreach Program in Sumatra where he will be lecturing on the imaging of bone tumours, imaging of arthritis, and imaging of Metabolic bone disease.

After that, Dr. O. will be lecturing at the Indonesian Society of Radiology on MRI of the Painful Hip.

All of the radiologists at Canada Diagnostic are very active in research/academics, teaching and clinically. They divide their time between Canada Diagnostic, UBC Hospital, Vancouver General Hospital and the Faculty of Medicine at UBC. Read more about the team here.

 

Primary Care Doctors say Imaging Improves Patient Care

Do we use too much medical imaging? Not according to primary care doctors in a new study published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology.

The study surveyed 500 primary care doctors in the U.S. – 88% of the physicians surveyed said that diagnostic imaging allows them to be more confident in their diagnoses and to make better clinical decisions. All that equals better patient care in their books.

In both the United States and Canada, medical imaging is viewed as a costly component of the healthcare system and ways to cut those costs are being explored. Practical guidelines have been developed both in Canada and the U.S. to help doctors choose the most appropriate type of imaging for their patients’ particular symptoms. The goal of these guidelines is to help eliminate unnecessary or redundant testing.

At Canada Diagnostic, we are able to offer MRI, CT and Ultrasound so that you can get the best test possible for your unique needs. Our radiologists are available to speak with your doctors anytime to help determine what the best test is. Each type of test provides a different type of information, so its important to choose the best one for diagnostic accuracy.

Find out how we can help – call us today at 604-709-8522 or email us at info@canadadiagnostic.com

Heading Soccer ball leads to brain injury

According to a study published June 11 in the journal Radiology, soccer players who frequently use their heads to field the ball have brain abnormalities that show up on MRI and that are similar to those found in people with traumatic brain injury.

Soccer balls can travel as fast as 50 miles per hour, and a player may head the ball up to a dozen times during a game.  During practices, it might be common to perform heading drills – where the ball might be bounced off of a player’s head several dozen times.  During the repeated impacts, the brain is accelerating/decerlating inside the skull.

We already know the effects of multiple concussions and how sports like north-american football are starting to grapple with those effects.  But what about impacts that don’t cause concussion like repetitive heading of a soccer ball?

Testing has shown that cognitive (memory) performance decreased in soccer players after a threshold of 1800 headings per year.  However, the changes seen in the brain on MRI show tissue changes that preceed cognitive decline at thresholds of 900 – 1500 headings per year.  The cumulative effects of repetitive minor injury might not be apparent for many years.

How can this type of cumulative brain injury be avoided?  One of the studies authors suggested that players heading counts be monitored and the players be given a recovery period once a certain number of headings has been reached.  Baseball does something similar with pitchers to save their arms/shoulders from permanent damage.

for more information about MRI, CT and Ultrasound services at Canada Diagnostic, please call us at 1-877-709-8522 or send us an email at info@canadadiagnostic.com.  You can also visit our website at www.canadadiagnostic.com.

A cure for “Jumper’s Knee”?

Do you have patellar tendinitis or tendinopathy – also known as Jumper’s Knee?  This can be a stubborn condition that causes pain when jumping or kneeling and is usually caused by overuse.

Tendinopathies can be hard to heal – tendons don’t have a rich blood supply which is necessary for healing.  Blood carries “repair” components to the injury site including, healing cells, and the body’s own chemicals necessary for healing (growth factors).

When Jumper’s Knee becomes chronic and traditional conservative therapies (rest, physiotherapy, bracing) haven’t improved matters, it might be time to try something new:  hcPRP.

hcPRP, or highly-concentrated platelet-rich plasma, is a concentration of blood platelets, made from your own blood and injected directly into the tendon.  What does it do?  Well, it delivers platelets, full of the healing ingredients that can kick-start the repair process of stubborn injuries.

Canada Diagnostic Centres in Vancouver is the only place in Canada that you can get hcPRP treatments.  There are other platelet-rich-plasma treatments available, but they only concentrate the platelets to 5-8x baseline and multiple injections are usually required.  With hcPRP, we concentrate the platelets to 25-45x baseline and one injection is generally all that is required.

An important component to our treatments is that we use image-guidance for our injections.  We use either ultrasound or CT to help the radiologist visualize exactly where the injection needs to go and to help him ensure the needle delivers the hcPRP to the exact spots it is needed most.  Result?  More accurate placement of hcPRP resulting in better healing.

Will hcPRP help you?  We have had a lot of success treating a number of chronic tendinopathies with hcPRP, so if you have been diagnosed with Jumper’s Knee or patellar tendonopathy, give us a call to learn more about hcPRP.

Call us today at 1-877-709-8522 to learn more.

MRI can change diagnosis and treatment plan for knee problems

Did you know that using MRI for knee disorders can often change the diagnosis and treatment plan?

With an accurate diagnosis, confirmed by MRI, its easier for doctors and their patients to choose the best course of action – patients will get the more effective treatment.

A small study done by the Cleveland Clinic and presented in November at the Radiological Society of North America’s annual international conference found that an MRI changed the primary diagnosis in 37% of the cases and altered patient care in 29% of the cases including whether to do surgery or not, and which type of surgery to do.

The patients who were studied were all referred for MRIs by orthopedic or sports medicine doctors, who are the most skilled at evaluating knee problems.  The study hypothesized that if the expert diagnosis changed, then diagnosis done by non-surgeons or non-sports med doctors would probably be effected more. 

Looking for the right place to have your knee checked out?  Our radiologists are all skilled musculoskeletal MRI interpreters and work closely with the sports medicine doctors and surgeons at Allan McGavin Sports Medicine at UBC.  Call us today for more information at 1-877-709-8522 or visit us online at www.canadadiagnostic.com

And don’t forget to check out our options for pain management!  http://www.canadadiagnostic.com/content/services/pain-management.php

 

Mayo Clinic study finds PRP safe and effective

A study done at the Mayo Clinic, and published in the October 2011 Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, finds that needle tenotomy plus PRP is a “safe and effective treatment for chronic, recalcitrant tendinopathy”.

The patients who participated in the study each had stubborn tendon problems.  The tendons treated in the study were located in the upper arms (including elbows), legs, ankles and feet. 

The researchers at the Mayo Clinic used needle tenotomy (in simple terms, “poking” the tendon with a needle) before injecting the PRP into the injured tendon.  Their aim was to create more surface area for the PRP to latch on to, increasing the amount of tissue regeneration stimulation that could occur.

Highly-concentrated platelet-rich plasma (hcPRP) is now available at Canada Diagnostic .  Email us at info@canadadiagnostic.com or call us at 1-877-709-8522 to learn more.

Knee Injuries Rise Sharply in Kids

A presentation made in October 2011 at the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference showed how knee injuries in children and teens have increased at “an alarming rate”.

Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) and meniscus tears in young people have each increased significantly over the past 10 years.  What is causing this increase in diagnosed injuries?  The most likely explanations are that many kids now play a single sport at a high level, year-round – increasing their chances for overuse and other injuries.

There is also increased awareness into injuries, increased use of MRI which can diagnose tears (xray cannot), and even earlier visits to an orthopedic specialist.

So, what is a parent or coach to do?  There is increased emphasis on injury prevention in junior sport including screening for athletes who may be more at risk for these types of injuries.  Athletes, parents and coaches should seek out injury prevention programs that can be added to the practice/training programs.

If you think your child has a knee or other injury, getting an accurate diagnosis and timely treatment will not only get them back playing sooner, but could prevent more long-term serious joint problems.  Contact us today to find out how we can help.  Canada Diagnostic Centres (BC) Ltd. 1-877-709-8522 / 604-709-8522 or info@canadadiagnostic.com

Stay Safe & Healthy!