soulxtc
July 28th, 2006, 08:19 PM
BEIJING, July 28 (Xinhuanet) -- A growing number of obese patients in North America are having trouble in getting adequate medical care because they either cannot fit into scanners or have fatty tissue that blocks X-rays or sound waves, a new study has found.
"There are things that you can miss because the X-ray beams are just not able to penetrate deep enough," said study author Raul Uppot, a radiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. The study is published in the August issue of the journal Radiology.
In some cases, the quality can be so poor that doctors could fail diagnose small lung, abdominal and liver tumors, Uppot said.
With 64 percent of the U.S. population either overweight or obese, the problem is worsening, but it represents a business opportunity for equipment makers and hospitals, he said.
Canadian hospitals are also struggling with the difficulties of diagnosing an increasing number of obese patients.
Stewart McNeil, patient equipment co-ordinator at Hamilton Health Sciences, said the hospital can rent over-sized equipment when it is called for, but noted that patients who are very obese are sometimes sent to nearby veterinary colleges. (ha ha ha)
"The MRI and X-ray machines there are designed for horses," he said. "How would you feel?"
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-07/28/content_4886655.htm
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-07/28/xinsrc_322070328084592130461.jpg
"There are things that you can miss because the X-ray beams are just not able to penetrate deep enough," said study author Raul Uppot, a radiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. The study is published in the August issue of the journal Radiology.
In some cases, the quality can be so poor that doctors could fail diagnose small lung, abdominal and liver tumors, Uppot said.
With 64 percent of the U.S. population either overweight or obese, the problem is worsening, but it represents a business opportunity for equipment makers and hospitals, he said.
Canadian hospitals are also struggling with the difficulties of diagnosing an increasing number of obese patients.
Stewart McNeil, patient equipment co-ordinator at Hamilton Health Sciences, said the hospital can rent over-sized equipment when it is called for, but noted that patients who are very obese are sometimes sent to nearby veterinary colleges. (ha ha ha)
"The MRI and X-ray machines there are designed for horses," he said. "How would you feel?"
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-07/28/content_4886655.htm
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-07/28/xinsrc_322070328084592130461.jpg