Division of Body Imaging

The Section of Abdominal Imaging is an integral section of the Department of Radiology. It has extensive links with the vast majority of other departments on the Health Sciences Campus (HSC) and also integrates very well with the other radiology divisions. The section is proud to have in its fold a number of leaders in the field of abdominal imaging. We provide a number of clinical services at multiple sites on the HSC campus; we provide excellent quality imaging services catering to a wide variety of clinical needs. These include:

• Fluoroscopic and conventional radiographic services:
  We provide a wide range of fluoroscopic imaging for the evaluation of the digestive tract, from the mouth to the anus. Dynamic imaging, including esophagography and defecography, is provided as part of perioperative planning. Bariatric imaging and therapeutic procedures are also provided.
• Cross sectional imaging services:US: We provide a full range of abdominal and pelvic examinations as well as arterial/venous vascular exams. We also both provide imaging for biopsy localization and perform US guided percutaneous biopsy and drainage procedures.Computed Tomography:
  We provide a full range of diagnostic examinations including multiplanar and 3D imaging and state of the art CT colonography (virtual colonoscopy).Magnetic Resonance Imaging:
  With the latest in 1.5T and 3T MRI technology, we provide the highest quality imaging of the abdomen and pelvis, including dynamic contrast enhancement, MR enterography, MR urography, high resolution prostate imaging, dynamic pelvic floor imaging and transplant imaging, to name only a few of our services.
• Imaging guided interventional proceduresIncluding, but not limited to CT and US guided drainages of fluid collections, biopsies of masses and ablation of tumors, as well as fiducial placements.The Section of Abdominal Imaging has several prominent goals at its core. These encompass the breadth of the section’s missions in terms of its clinical, research, and training objectives:
  1. Optimize the quality of our work in abdominal imaging and incorporate new advanced techniques in our practice.We are proud of the high quality of our clinical work, which is made possible by the availability of state of art imaging equipment and excellent support staff. We continuously incorporate new techniques and optimize current techniques in order to provide excellent clinical care.We have an extremely collegial relationship with the medical and surgical divisions devoted to treating patients with complex abdominal problems, including oncology, gastroenterology and hepatology, and urology. We work together to ensure that our clinical colleagues and the patients receive excellent service, which we constantly improve by incorporating new techniques when available.
  2. Maintain and improve an outstanding radiology training program. We also actively participate in and improve the quality of teaching for residents and fellows, in radiology as well as related clinical services.We have an extensive teaching conference schedule for residents and fellows. In addition, we also participate in the teaching conferences for other departments. A detailed list of our conferences is available separately.
  3. Encourage and mandate staff, fellows and residents participation in clinical research and other scholarly activities.We have regular journal clubs as well as research meetings. Our attending staffs and fellows are regularly involved at local as well as national level scientific meetings. Our attending staffs are regular reviewers for journals, such as, AJR, Radiology. Publication of books, chapters and review articles is also encouraged.The body imaging fellows and faculty are supported and encouraged to participate in research
  4. Maintain and improve digital educational resourcesDue to our clinical exposure to a great variety of disease processes we are able to compile an extensive teaching file. Useful references, information and data are also available on our division’s educational website: www.trojanimaging.com.

The section of Cardiothoracic Imaging is a cohesive group incorporating both thoracic imaging with cardiac imaging. We have developed strong interdepartmental relationships with pulmonary medicine, cardiology and cardiothoracic surgery in order to provide comprehensive care for our patients. We work in a stimulating environment with the goals of developing both new areas of research and implementation of new clinical services.

We provide a number of clinical services at multiple sites on the HSC campus; we provide excellent quality imaging services catering to a wide variety of clinical needs. These include:

• Chest radiographs in adults
• Chest CT and high-resolution lung CT in adults
• Cardiac CT and coronary CT
• Cardiac MRI in adults, with an emphasis in congenital diseases
• Thoracic MR angiography in adults
• Thoracic interventions, including biopsies, ablations, pleural and pericardial drainages

The section of Cardiothoracic Imaging has the following clinical, research and training objectives:

1. Optimize the quality of our clinical care in Cardiothoracic Imaging and incorporate new advanced techniques in our practice.We are exceptionally proud of our high quality of patient care, which relies primarily on advanced imaging techniques such as Cardiac CTA, Cardiac MRI, Functional MRI and Dynamic CT of the chest. We have strong working relationships with the medical and surgical departments in our various sites but primarily we deal directly with the cardiologists, cardiothoracic surgeons, vascular surgeons and pulmonary/critical care physicians. We routinely observe and tailor studies to suit the needs of individual patients and clinicians. This requires close working relationships with technical and radiologic staff as well as support staff. We participate in multiple interdisciplinary conferences to help provide a high level of patient care, resident and fellow education and assistance to our referring physicians.
2. Maintain and improve an outstanding residency training program that includes advanced cardiothoracic imaging as a core component of training.We are responsible for the training of residents in chest radiology. By providing exposure and instruction to all aspects of thoracic radiology, we assist in the training of future leaders in the field. We have weekly and daily conferences that residents and fellows are required to attend. In addition, during their senior year, the residents spend up to six weeks on a rotation entirely devoted to cardiac imaging, vascular imaging, and chest CT.A detailed list of our conferences is available separately.
3. Encourage and mandate staff, fellows and residents participation in clinical research and other scholarly activities.We have monthly staff meetings to promote the research participation of our staff. This enables all of us to be aware of the clinical and research activities of each of us and assist more effectively.
4. Maintain and improve an extensive teaching file and create a digitized teaching file in cardiothoracic imaging.

The pediatric radiology section, which is centered at the USC+LAC Medical Center, strives to serve the imaging needs of our youngest patients as well as provide an excellent educational experience for our residents and medical students. All of our goals in the pediatric section reflect our mission of service and education.

1. The safe use of state of the art imaging in children.All imaging modalities are available for our patients including radiography, fluoroscopic studies, ultrasound, CT, MRI, nuclear medicine and PET-CT. Percutaneous biopsy and drainage under ultrasound or CT guidance is also offered. To insure accuracy, interpretation of these studies is either done by a CAQ certified pediatric radiologist or by other radiologists who are experts in their fields. For all studies using ionizing radiation there is strict adherence to ALARA principles with frequent monitoring of radiation dose so that adult protocols are never used on pediatric patients.
2. Integration of radiology into the pediatric health care team.We maintain an excellent relationship with the pediatric department and consult with them on a daily basis to determine the best imaging plans for our patients. We have daily radiology rounds with the neonatology division and participate in weekly pediatric problem rounds in cases that involve imaging. The Violence Intervention Program and Forensic Clinic, one of the largest child abuse prevention programs in the state, uses our department for imaging and consultation.
3. Provide an excellent educational experience for our residents and medical students.Not only do we provide a rich educational program for our radiology residents, the rotation is also a popular elective for medical students and pediatric residents. We have weekly lectures for all the radiology residents in the program as well as daily interesting case conferences for the residents assigned to pediatric radiology. We also provide a weekly radiology conference for pediatric residents. Journal articles are assigned for discussion based on current cases of interest. Completion of internet teaching modules from the Cleveland Clinic is required for all residents and medical students who rotate through the department. Radiology residents are also encouraged to participate in research projects.
4. Maintenance and expansion of our teaching files.
   
   We have thousands of teaching file cases from the past fifty years, which are available to our residents as well as to our radiology and pediatric staff. We have digitized the majority of these images and the maintenance and expansion of this collection is an ongoing process.