At this year’s Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) annual meeting, exhibitors will be able to demonstrate live ultrasound imaging on people instead of depending on phantoms. The organization decided to lift the ban that has been in place since at least 1989.
“We had any number of companies that sell ultrasound equipment and participate in the exhibition that have asked us from time to time if RSNA would ever consider relaxing that policy,” Steve Drew, assistant executive director of scientific assembly and informatics at RSNA, told HCB News. “After we heard this for so many years and from so many different people, we thought [to] consider it.”
Other organizations like the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine (AIUM) and the Society for Vascular Ultrasound (SVU) have allowed live ultrasound imaging on humans at their annual meetings for some time.
“Our exhibitors pointed out the fact that it has been the case, and that there haven’t been any problems,” said Drew. “We checked with them and it seemed like it has worked okay.”
Many of the exhibitors believe that if they are able to perform live ultrasound, it better demonstrates what their equipment and services are capable of. Live subject matter, they believe, allowing them to give much more realistic demonstrations.
RSNA is hoping this will strengthen its position as the "forum of choice" for presenting new imaging technologies, according to a newsletter sent to exhibitors. Specific criteria and rules are currently under development and will be released mid-July.
In the past, RSNA didn’t always permit the imaging of phantoms, but exhibitors persuaded them to change that 13-year policy in October 2000.
Live scanning at RSNA had led to some exhibitors having the equivalent of a peep show in an effort to create more booth traffic. I remember being in the Acuson booth, standing around, and asking one of my colleagues why there people jammed around and in a competitor's booth down the aisle. They had a beautiful young woman being scanned on the cardiac version of their latest system...with her blouse opened for more than access to the intercostal window!
Jim Carr
Best establish some guidelines
April 19, 2016 12:39
Live scanning at RSNA had led to some exhibitors having the equivalent of a peep show in an effort to create more booth traffic. I remember being in the Acuson booth, standing around, and asking one of my colleagues why there people jammed around and in a competitor's booth down the aisle. They had a beautiful young woman being scanned on the cardiac version of their latest system...with her blouse opened for more than access to the intercostal window!
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