Monthly Archives: April 2011

Aperio Awarded Patent for Innovation that Improves Digital Pathology Workflow

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Aperio continues to add to its IP portfolio with streamlined workflow patented technology.

Creation of complete digital slide image file - during scanning - results in fastest scanners, streamlines workflow and simplifies IT

VISTA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aperio, the global leader in providing digital pathology solutions that improve patient care, announced today that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued the company patent No. 7,826,649 entitled, “Data Management in a Linear-array-based Microscope Slide Scanner.”

The ‘649 patent describes techniques invented by Aperio for efficiently processing large image files — during the scanning process — to create a single high-quality digital slide image. The ability to create a single digital slide, including image compression, during the scanning process results in faster overall scanning and streamlines digital pathology workflow.

“This patent highlights our ability to create a single digital slide image during the scanning process, which is why our scanners continue to be the fastest on the market,” commented Dirk G. Soenksen, CEO of Aperio. “Our sub-95 second scan time includes all steps required to create a single digital slide image file by the scanning instrument. This patent requires others to divide the scanning process between the scanning instrument and a dedicated server, and to post-compress the imagery data on the server. Doing so takes much longer than their advertised scanning time, complicates the workflow, and requires moving and storing gigabytes of imagery data.”

Aperio has the highest throughput scanners available today. The company’s family of ScanScope® scanners are based on line-scanning, which has become the standard for scanning performance and image quality in the digital pathology industry. Line scanning rapidly produces seamless digital slide images with unsurpassed image quality, and is critical to a pathologist’s ability to make informed diagnoses and prognoses of diseases.

The patent strengthens Aperio’s comprehensive intellectual property portfolio comprising more than 80 issued and pending patents world-wide, and provides the company with ownership of key innovations that address critical pathology imaging needs.

With more system installations than all other digital pathology vendors combined, Aperio is the true global leader and reliable choice for world class digital pathology solutions. The company boasts a global installed base of more than 800 systems in over 30 countries, including more than 500 systems in hospitals and reference laboratories, the 13 largest pharmaceutical companies and a multitude of biotechnology and government organizations.

About Aperio

Aperio is the leading provider of digital pathology solutions in hospitals, reference labs, and pharmaceutical and research institutions across the world. Today, our affordable and complete product portfolio improves patient care by enhancing quality assurance, delivering more efficient workflows, facilitating access to new and more targeted therapies, and improving pathologists’ skills via lifelong education. Our comprehensive product line features our ScanScope® scanners, Spectrum™ image management (PACS) software, SecondSlide® slide sharing service for pathology, and image analysis tools and services. Aperio’s products are FDA cleared for specific clinical applications, and are intended for research and education use for other applications. For clearance updates and more information please visit http://www.aperio.com.

 

VA awards $1.38 billion in telehealth contracts

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Courtesy of FierceMobileHealthcare:

The Department of Veterans Affairs this week awarded contracts to six IT vendors to run its massive (and growing) telehealth program for the next five years. The winners: Authentidate, American Telecare, Cardiocom, HealthHero Network, Visual Telecommunication Network/ViTelCare, and Viterion TeleHealthcare.

The prize: About $1.38 billion in VA telehealth contracts. The individual vendor contracts run anywhere from $150 million to $372 million over the five-year period, VA officials tellFierceMobileHealthcare. That total isn't guaranteed, though. Each vendor starts out with a single-year contract, which is renewable in each of the following four years.

What's really interesting: The VA's clear leap into telehealth. The smallest of the new contracts--$150 million for Viterion Tele-Healthcare--is just shy of the agency's entire telehealth budget of$163 million last year. It is somewhat on trend, though, given that the 2010 budget was a 50 percent jump over 2009 spending.

The contracts do cover both traditional video-based telehealth systems, according to Authentidate officials. They also cover sensor-based remote monitoring systems in patient homes.

To learn more:
- read Authentidate's press release
- check out MobileHealthWatch's coverage

Related Articles:
VA's telehealth budget may double, but strategic questions linger
Veterans using mobile devices for follow-up care
Telehealth prevents ICU deaths, VA research shows

 

The Essential Guide to Achieving the Perfect Pathology Fellowship: Useful Advice and “Must-Do’s” for First-, Second- and Third-Year Residents

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How to build teamwork, boost productivity, and enhance harmony
in your lab’s multi-generational workforce

Jared Gardner, MDRobert Petras, MD

YOUR PRESENTERS:

Jerad M Gardner, M.D., Chair, CAP Resident Forum and Fellow, Soft Tissue

Robert E. Petras, M.D., FCAP, FACG, Managing Director, Ameripath, Inc.

Justin M. Clark (Moderator), Director of Operations, THE DARK REPORT


LIVE Webinar April 28 – Register Now!

Early in their four-year residency programs, pathology residents should start searching for the perfect fellowship, and employers should emphasize the need for residents to acquire subspecialty expertise before they begin a career in pathology and laboratory medicine.

On Thursday, April 28, 2011, the Pathology Residents Education Program (PREP) has a timely learning opportunity designed to help pathology residents identify, apply, and interview for the perfect pathology fellowship. During this 50-minute webinar, you’ll learn precisely what it takes to demonstrate your skills and competencies—and then nail down an offer for the ideal pathology fellowship.

Our first speaker, Robert Petras, M.D., is internationally known for his subspecialist expertise in gastrointestinal pathology. Dr. Petras accepts fellows and will give you an insider’s perspective on all aspects of the fellowship experience. He has been active in promoting fellowship programs at the national level and has invaluable insights into how you can stand out as an applicant.

You’ll also hear from Jerad M. Gardner, M.D., Chair of the CAP Resident Forum and Fellow, Soft Tissue Pathology at Emory University. From the pathology resident’s perspective, Dr. Gardner offers practical information about the do’s and don’ts of submitting fellowship applications, handling the interview process, and responding appropriately to post-interview communications.

This webinar is perfect for first-, second- and third-year pathology residents who want to identify and obtain the ideal pathology fellowship. Pathology residency program directors and chairs of pathology will also find this information invaluable, and will want to make it available to their residents.

Pathology fellowships aren’t easy to get. To get a fellowship offer from your first choice, it’s essential for you to understand how to distinguish yourself from the other applicants. Find out what it takes to get a fellowship in either an academic or non-academic setting, including how to select a subspecialty, how to become a competitive candidate, and how to navigate the fellowship application process.

You’ll also learn about the fellowship interview and selection criteria and what you can do to prove you’re the best candidate for the position. We’ll even prepare you for handling an offer of acceptance—and what to do if you’re turned down.

If you’re a resident looking for a fellowship opportunity, this session will give you a head start by taking you through the application process and clearing up some of the more confusing aspects before you begin. Drs. Petras and Gardner offer insights, advice, and recommendations for conducting a search to find the best pathology fellowship in a non-academic setting.

Ask your chief resident or residency program director to register your residency program for this information-packed 50-minute webinar, “The Essential Guide to Achieving the Perfect Pathology Fellowship: Useful Advice and “Must Do’s” for First-, Second- and Third-Year Residents,” on Thursday, April 28, 2011.

And don’t forget the question-and-answer session at the end of this conference. It’s your opportunity to get answers to specific questions about how to apply for a academic or non-academic pathology fellowship.

THE DARK REPORT WEBINAR AT A GLANCE

PLACE: Your computer or your residency program’s conference room

COST: $249 per download *Add 30 days of post-conference online access to the recording of this event for $75

TO REGISTER: Click here or call Suzanne Galloway toll-free at 1-800-560-6363

For one low price—just $249—you and your entire team can take part in this fast-paced, insightful webinar. Best of all, you’ll be able to hear answers to your questions with the panelists when you here the Q and A session answers.

 Here’s just some of what you’ll learn during this in-depth 50-minute webinar:

  • How to select the right subspecialty.
  • Where to find out about the best pathology fellowship programs.
  • Easy steps for establishing yourself as the top applicant.
  • The best time to apply for pathology fellowships.
  • Why each fellowship program has different selection criteria.
  • Interviewing do’s and don’ts.
  • Advantages and disadvantages of the academic and non-academic experience.
  • Strategies for navigating the oft-confusing fellowship application process.
  • Must-do steps to take once you’ve been accepted into a fellowship program.
  • Why you need a backup plan—and what to do if you’re not accepted.

…and much more!

Individuals who benefit from this webinar download:

  • Pathology chief residents, residents and fellows
  • Academic pathology chairs
  • Residency program directors
  • Pathology department administrators
  • Undergraduate and graduate medical educators
  • Pathology and laboratory professionals

How to Register:

1. Online
2. Call toll free: 800-560-6363

Your registration order includes:

  • A site license to attend the webinar (invite as many people as you can fit around your computer at no extra charge)
  • A downloadable PowerPoint presentations from our speaker
  • A full transcript emailed to you soon after the conference

Register Now! Or for more information, call us toll-free at 800-560-6363.

Distinguished Experts:

Jerad M. Gardner, M.D. is Chair of the CAP Residents Forum and has served on the Residents Forum Executive Committee for the past three years. He is the soft tissue pathology fellow studying under Sharon Weiss at Emory University. This will be followed by a dermatopathology fellowship, also at Emory, beginning later this year. Dr. Gardner received his M.D. from Tulane University School of Medicine in 2006. He completed his residency in anatomic and clinical pathology at The Methodist Hospital. During residency, Dr. Gardner founded the Pathology Resident Wiki, a website that can be freely edited by any user. The main intent of the Wiki is to provide a comprehensive list of pathology fellowship and residency programs, including feedback about those programs from current and past trainees. He is passionate about helping residents understand and navigate the seemingly treacherous waters of the fellowship selection and application process.

Robert E. Petras, M.D. has been the National Director for Gastrointestinal Pathology Services at AmeriPath Inc. since 2002. He is also Managing Director of AmeriPath Cleveland, Medical Director and GI Pathology Fellowship Training Program, Director at AmeriPath’s Institute of Gastrointestinal Pathology and Digestive Disease Chairman of AmeriPath’s Gastrointestinal Pathology Resource Committee and an Associate Clinical Professor of Pathology at Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine. Prior to 2002, Dr. Petras chaired the Department of Anatomic Pathology, was Vice Chairman of the Division of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and directed the Pathology Residency Training Program at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. He received his doctorate of medicine from The Ohio State University College of Medicine and completed his residency at the Cleveland Clinic. Afterwards, he received subspecialty training in gastrointestinal pathology at St. Mark’s Hospital in London. He has been active in the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP), the College of American Pathologists (CAP), and the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology (USCAP). He frequently presents as faculty at various courses and workshops. He has received numerous awards including the 1997 ASCP Distinguished Service Award and the 2001 Impact Paper of the Year Award from the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons. He has co-authored more than 200 publications in gastrointestinal pathology including Tumors of the Intestines, part of the AFIP Atlas of Tumor Pathology Fascicle series.

The Daily Scan on iPhone

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The Daily Scan - Aperio's daily news and views about Digital Pathology and many other services has an iPhone App that keeps you connected to the site.  Click on image below for larger size.  App free of charge from iTunes store.

2011-04-18_22-03-13

iPhone 5 Rumor Mill

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When Apple announced that it would be holding its annual Worldwide Developers Conference in June, the rumor mill started to heat up. From every corner of the world, so-called sources were saying what Apple will and won’t announce at the show. Many of those rumors surrounded the iPhone 5. Historically, Apple has announced details about the new iPhone at a keynote address to kick off the event. However, some say it won’t do that this year. Other reports, of course, say it will. In either case, it’s clear that there are many question marks surrounding the iPhone 5 that Apple is unwilling to answer. But that doesn’t mean that those questions should be ignored. Apple’s iPhone is integral to its success. And it relies upon consumer excitement to help maintain its increasing revenue and profits. Simply put, the iPhone 4 and the upcoming iPhone 5 are integral to Apple’s operation. And the sooner it answers the many questions consumers have, the better it will be for the company. Read more.

Visiting the Stigmatics of South Tyrol on Good Friday via The Wellcome Library, Circa 1840

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...In the 1840s there was a steady flow of foreign tourists and pilgrims to the idyllic valleys of [South Tyrol] ... solely to visit two women who were said to have received spontaneously bleeding wounds (stigmata) on their hands, feet, or head like those caused to Jesus Christ when he was nailed to the cross and forced to wear the crown of thorns. One of the two women was Maria Domenica Lazzari (sometimes spelled Lazzeri), and the other was Maria von Moehrl (also called Mörl). The former was known as L'Addolorata (the woman of pain), the latter as L'Estatica (the woman of ecstasy), for reasons which will become clear.

On this Good Friday -- the holiday commemorating Jesus Christ's death by crucification -- why not take a moment to consider the medio-religious condition of stigmata, ie. spontaneous bleeding (mostly found in the female persuasion) on the hands, feet, and/or head, mimicking the wounds caused to Jesus Christ when he was nailed to the cross and forced to wear the crown of thorns?

All of the above text and images are drawn from two recent fascinating posts on the Wellcome Library blog; To read the full articles, click here and here.

Happy Good Friday!

Images, top to bottom (please click images to view larger, more detailed versions):

  1. Maria Domenica Lazzari. Coloured engraving, ca 1840. Wellcome Library no. 260i
  2. Maria von Moehrl. Watercolour by L. Giuditti after L.G. de Ségur, 1846. Wellcome Library no. 708243i
  3. Maria Domenica Lazzari. Watercolour by L. Giuditti after L.G. de Ségur, 1846. Wellcome Library no. 708242i

Tonight and Tomorrow at Observatory: Extreme Taxidermy and Dubiously Sourced Bodies and Anatomical Learning!

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Tonight and tomorrow night at Observatory; hope to see you there!

Kitten Tea Parties, Auto Icons, and Habitat Groups: A Brief History of Taxidermy
An Illustrated Lecture by Dr. Pat Morris, Royal Holloway, University of London
Date: TONIGHT! Thursday, April 21
Time: 8:00 PM
Admission: $5

Tonight, taxidermy scholar and collector Pat Morris will discuss the fascinating and sometimes bizarre history of taxidermy as explored in his new book A History of Taxidermy: Art, Science and Bad Taste. Along the way, Morris will discuss anthropomorphic taxidermy of the sort made famous by Victorian museologist and taxidermist Walter Potter, "extreme taxidermy" (ie. human taxidermy), and the role of taxidermy in the history of scientific display and popular culture. He will also detail the development of taxidermy as an art form, tracing its development from the stiff rudimentary mounts which characterized its beginnings to the artistic triumphs of the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.

Copies of his new book History of Taxidermy: Art, Science and Bad Taste will also be available for sale and signing.

Dr. Pat Morris is a retired staff member of Royal Holloway College (University of London), where he taught biology undergraduates and supervised research on mammal ecology. In that capacity he has published many books and scientific papers and featured regularly in radio and TV broadcasts. The history of taxidermy has been a lifelong hobby interest and he has published academic papers and several books on the subject. With his wife Mary he has travelled widely, including most of Europe and the USA, seeking interesting taxidermy specimens and stories. They live in England where their house is home to the largest collection and archive of historical taxidermy in Britain.


Ill-gotten Brains: The Grisly History of Sourcing Bodies for Anatomical Learning
An Illustrated Lecture with Megan Curran, Norris Medical Library, USC
Date: TOMORROW, Friday, April 22
Time: 8:00 PM
Admission: $5

The idea of donating your body to science is actually a very new concept. There wasn’t even a national law governing the process until the late 1960s. How, then, did medical illustrators, going back hundreds of years, acquire bodies to draw? Many bodies were “donated” alright, but the dead people didn’t know they were being so generous. Prisoners, the indigent, robbed graves, and even murders helped supply medical schools and doctors for centuries.

This wild history of sourcing human bodies spans from the dawn of modern anatomy in the Renaissance with Vesalius (and even artists like Da Vinci and Michelangelo), through the 19th century's institutionalized medical school body snatchings, and up to Nazi medicine and the controversy over plastinated bodies in exhibits like Body Worlds.

For tonight's lecture, join Megan Curran of USC's Norris Medical Library for fascinating accounts of how bodies were procured for the advance of science, often through less than ethical means, accompanied by images from USC's rare medical books.

Megan Curran is the Head of Metadata & Content Management for the Norris Medical Library of the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, CA. Megan manages the history of medicine and rare books collections at USC and has been working to promote that collection. Megan serves on the editorial board of the Journal of the Medical Library Association, and is on the board of the Archivists & Librarians in the History of the Health Sciences. Megan originally hails from Philadelphia and is a dyed-in-the-wool rare book nerd.

You can find out more about these events on the Observatory website by clicking here and here; You can get directions to Observatory--which is next door to the Morbid Anatomy Library (more on that here)--by clicking here. You can find out more about Observatory here, join our mailing list by clicking here, and join us on Facebook by clicking here.

Images: Top: The Auto-Icon of Jeremy Bentham. Mr. Bentham requested in his will that his body be preserved and stored in a wooden cabinet. It has been on display since 1850 at University College London. Photo by Joanna Ebenstein.
Bottom: Opera omnia anatomica & chirurgica, Andreas Vesalius

Italian Devil Automaton, 15th or 16th Century, From the Wunderkammer of Ludovico Settala

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Automata were... theologically and culturally familiar, things with which one could be on easy terms. They were funny, sometimes bawdy, and they were everywhere... Mechanical devils were...rife. Poised in sacristies, they made horrible faces, howled and stuck out their tongues to instill fear in the hearts of sinners. The Satan-machines rolled their eyes and flailed their arms and wings; some even had moveable horns and crowns. A muscular, crank-operated devil with sharply pointed ears and wild eyes remains in residence at the Castello Sforzesco in Milan.
--Jessica Riskin, “Machines in the Garden.” Republics of Letters: A Journal for the Study of Knowledge, Politics, and the Arts 1, no. 2 (April 3, 2010)

In her article "Machines in the Garden," Jessica Riskin discusses the use of automatons for religious purposes. Some of my favorite examples include mechanical devils intended to frighten church visitors into obedience (as shown and quoted above); mechanical passion plays; and a mechanical Christ on the crucifix popular in the 15th Century, which was able

to bow down and lifte up it selfe, to shake and stirre the handes and feete, to nod the head, to rolle the eies, to wag the chaps, to bende the browes, ... and gathering a frowning, forward, and disdainful face, when it would pretend offence: and shewing a most milde, amiable, and smyling cheere and countenaunce, when it woulde seeme to be well pleased. --William Lambarde, A Perambulation of Kent: Conteining the Description, Hystorie, and Customes of that Shire. Written in the Yeere 1570. by William Lambarde of Lincolns Inne Gent

I highly encourage you to read this fascinating article in its entirety; you can do so by clicking here.

Images: Italian Automaton (The Devil), carved in wood, 15th and 16th centuries, from the Wunderkammer owned by Ludovico Settala. It could, in the words of the Cosmodromium Blog, "roll its eyes and move its tongue, emit a noise and spit smoke from the mouth." Images sourced here.

All images and ideas sourced from the Cosmodromium Blog; read whole post--and see additional images--by clicking here.

Did Gutfeld just come out as a Birther?

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Red Eye Greg-alogue on Fox

From Eric Dondero:

The Gregger opines for Michigan Congressman and amateur metal guitarist Thaddeus McCotter to join in for the GOP presidential nomination; it would add a little principled humbleness to the race.

FF to 20 second mark. A lot of "Hmmns" can be heard from fellow set members.

Requiring Sustainability

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Procter & Gamble recently rolled out an expanded sustainability program that will rate suppliers on their environmental behavior — examining efforts in product and packaging waste generation, energy demand and other measures. Ultimately, the scorecards will impact a supplier's opportunitie

The Kentucky liberal media wants to tame Rand Paul

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Why can't he just be more like our boy Mitch?

From Eric Dondero:

An amazingly revealing editorial on libertarian Republican hero Senator Rand Paul, coming out of the ultra-liberal establishment Lexington Herald-Leader (Kentucky.com), by Tom Eblen,
"Rand Paul, a Senate show horse, not a workhorse" April 24:

The Kentucky Republican's election last November came amid a perfect storm of voter discontent with the political establishment. Otherwise, Paul never could have defeated an accomplished secretary of state in the primary and an accomplished attorney general in the general election.

Paul has become one of the most high-profile members of the Tea Party movement in the freshman class of Congress. He owes much of his celebrity status to his father, Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, who has been a gadfly presidential candidate for both the Libertarian and Republican parties.

His appeal may also have something to do with his first name, which reminds people of the late novelist Ayn Rand, whose fairy tales of libertarian utopia still enthrall some conservatives.

If young buck Paul doesn't tame himself, KY voters ought to just "put him out to pasture"

Then [writer] Eblex expresses that Paul's Paul Ryan like budget cutting plan, is too radical and would cause an economic disaster if implemented:

The most significant thing Paul has done so far as a senator is to propose a budget-balancing plan that has no chance of ever happening. It would slash $4 trillion in spending by basically doing away with much of the federal government.

Like a somewhat less-radical plan by Rep. Paul Ryan, a Wisconsin Republican, it is based on the same tax-cutting, anti-regulation philosophies that caused the economic crisis and ballooned the federal deficit in the first place. Both schemes would be good for corporations and wealthy people and bad for everyone else.

He goes on to wish oh so dreamily, that the young Paul would just be more of a compromiser like McConnell:

If Paul has any desire to become an influential member of Congress — and not just a show horse — he should take some lessons from the Senate's Republican leader and his fellow Kentuckian, Mitch McConnell.

Even those who don't agree with McConnell's politics or admire his values acknowledge that he is a master politician. He can aggressively push his agenda but still find ways to achieve beneficial compromise. McConnell knows how to work with opponents and get things done.

Finally, he snarks:

The media will eventually find another show horse to ride, especially if the public continues growing weary of the zealots of the Tea Party movement. Unless Paul can find ways to serve his constituents and actually accomplish something in the Senate over the next six years, I suspect Kentucky voters will be quick to put him out to pasture.

Photo h/t equineartists.com

Late Late Cocktail Party Physics | Bad Astronomy

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My pal Jennifer Ouellette, who writes the delightful blog Cocktail Party Physics, was recently interviewed at Tech Republic. As usual, she’s fun to read.

On that page they embedded the video of Jennifer when she appeared on Craig Ferguson’s TV show, which I totally forgot to do when she was on! So here’s the video of her talking about her book The Calculus Diaries:

See? Told you she was cool.

Related posts:

- Diary of dangerous curves
- Significant praise
- Extermicraig!
- Your late night talk shows: giff dem to me


Expressing extreme disdain for Libertarian Republicans

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From Eric Dondero:

Well, fellow libertarian Republicans, not everyone out there loves us. In fact, some people think we're downright disgusting.

From HuffPo, Miami Herald, "Rick Scott To EPA: Water Guidelines Aren't Necessary In Florida" 04-23:

The day after the Florida House passed a bill to ban implementation of water quality standards set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Administration, Gov. Rick Scott on Friday asked the agency to rescind a January 2009 determination that the federal rules are necessary for Florida.

And a featured comment by a HuffPo-er in regards to the Scott article:

“Ewwwwww...­.a republican­/libertari­an........­.....”

You can see a photo of the "nice" retired couple known as "SPacific" making the comment at this link.

Editor's comment - One supposes that all those gentle island breezes and a few too many sips of pineapple and rum may have frozen a few of their brain cells.

A certain lack of knowledge

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by Clifford F. Thies

Elliot Spitzer, the disgraced former Governor of New York State and currently the director of ethics for CNN, was broadcasting some kind of investigation into the background of Donald Trump, a sort of, maybe candidate for President.

The Donald didn't care too much for this investigation as, just to cite one little reason, he has a bunch of current and potentially future ex-wives who have a pecuniary interest in his net worth. Then, there's the banks, limited partners and venture capitalists pursuing foreclosure on various properties of his.

So, the Donald called up Spitzer right on the air to take issue with the idea with that the American people might have a right to know about his finances. Spitzer replied, and I quote,

"The issue here, and I also agree as a private entity and a private company you do not have the obligation to make the disclosures that a public company does.

"And therefore there's a certain lack of knowledge that all of us bring to this conversation ... "

A certain lack of knoweldge???

What about the mystery man himself? You know, the guy whom we don't have a right to know in what country he was born, or what's recorded on his birth certificate, his coursework and grades when he was a student, why it took him so long to graduate, the reason he was given scholarships to Ivy League universities, who wrote his book, how he got a loan for millions of dollars to buy his mansion, his relationship tp Jeremiah Wright, Louis Farrakhan, Bill Ayres, Rod Blagojevich, Tony Rezko, etc., etc.

Oh, wait, we already know everything we need to know about that person.

He's a Democrat.