While studying infectious diseases as a fellow at Harvard Medical School in the early 80's, Dr. Kenneth Mayer saw some of the first AIDS patients in New England, and became immediately curious about the mechanism for HIV transmission. This interest has led to almost three decades of work, trying to understand the dynamics of HIV transmission, trying to develop new technologies to prevent the spread of the virus both in the US and internationally.

Dr. James Arrighi, Director of Nuclear Cardiology at RIH, reports the acquisition of a new cardiac SPECT camera in nuclear medicine represents a major advance in cardiac imaging. This camera, a GE Discovery 530c, represents new, advanced technology in nuclear imaging, and is the first of its kind in New England, and will be used in selected patients who are referred to the RIH nuclear cardiology lab for stress testing.

The camera has several important advantages over old SPECT technology. First, imaging times are reduced by 50-75% compared to older SPECT cameras. Images of the heart can now be acquired in as short as 3 minutes. These shorter imaging times reduce the inconvenience to the patient, and improve overall patient comfort and satisfaction. Second, the high sensitivity of the camera permits protocols that decrease radiation exposure to selected patients by up to 50%. Third, the availability of this new camera technology in Nuclear Cardiology at RIH permits us to perform "patient-centric imaging". For patients in whom there is a concern about radiation exposure, reduced dose protocols can be utilized. For other patients who may have difficulty in tolerating long imaging procedures, protocols can be used that minimize imaging time. Certain cameras and protocols may be more appropriate for a particular patient. Our staff will select the most appropriate protocol and camera for each patient.