Non-contact thermography
| Thermography (medical) | |
|---|---|
| ICD-9 | 88.8 |
| MeSH | D013817 |
Non-contact thermography, thermographic imaging or thermology is the field of thermography that derives diagnostic indications from infrared images of the human body. Thermology is sometimes referred to as medical infrared imaging or tele-thermology and utilizes thermographic cameras.
Thermography is used to determine areas of the body that have irregular blood flow. It is commonly used by sports physicians and veterinarians to determine areas of the body that have inflammation.
In alternative medicine
For medical uses, thermography has been mainly promoted by the majority of alternative medicine practitioners as a means to discover "irregular heat signatures in the breast" - areas of blockages to blood flow and inflammation that could have the potential to develop into cancer. Some health care practitioners and breast cancer clinics have incorrectly made claims that thermography can be used directly to diagnose breast cancer and this has resulted in government licensing bodies to regulate the use of thermography cameras for medical purposes.
Thermography is non evasive and has no biological effect on the patient. A thermal camera captures the heat signature of the patient that is emitted as infrared light and this light is not visible to the human eye. As a medical device, it is commonly used on animals - especially horses to determine areas of the body that show signs of stress as inflammation. Animals can't tell the doctor where they feel the pain. A thermal camera can show areas where underlying problems may occur. Torn muscles, inflamed joints, bruises etc and then treatment is applied to that area.
Thermal cameras are also used to detect allergies. Slight variations in skin temperature are seen when "suspect" substances are placed on the skin. Instead of the scratch test that is used for allergy testing, a sample of the allergen is placed on the skin which often results as a heat signature rash that is only visible to the infrared camera.
Breast screening controversies
There has been much controversy about the use of thermography for the detection of breast cancer. The public has become aware that regular breast mammography examinations might actually promote the growth of breast cancer because it uses ionizing radiation to x-ray the breast. Thermography is non-evasive and has no effect on the breast. This has led to an explosion of unlicensed, unregulated thermography breast screening clinics that have little training in actual breast cancer detection. Radiologists on the other hand are licensed and certified to perform mammograms on licensed medical devices to detect breast cancer and medical licensing boards are warning doctors and clinicians not to use thermography as the only method for the detection of breast cancer.
Thermography is discouraged in North America by the Canadian Cancer Society, The American Cancer Society, most radiologists and the FDA for early breast cancer detection. Most unlicensed clinicians that only practice thermography now state that thermography can only detect inflammation and irregular asymtrical patterns in the breasts that could be early warning signs of a developing illness and that may include breast cancer. The patient can then decide if they want to follow up with a mammogram. Unfortunately for the patient, most thermal photographs will show some sort of irregularities. Since there are no official government licensed medical thermography schools in North America, anyone can open a thermography clinic. This often results in a lot of untrained and inexperienced clinicians operating inexpensive infrared consumer cameras in uncontrolled environments. The false positives and missdiagnosis can lead to a lot of unnecessary worry in the patient. For patients that have had mamaograms first, thermography will often confirm the problem areas in the X-ray and this is the FDA suggested method for breast cancer screening - using both methods - not one over the other.
In the United States, the FDA has cleared thermography only as an adjunct method of screening. "Thermography devices have been cleared by the FDA for use as an adjunct, or additional, tool for detecting breast cancer." However, they stop short of recommending it, citing the lack of evidence of its effectiveness in breast cancer screening from the limited studies that were performed in the US. [1]The FDA has issued a public warning notice stating that breast thermography is not an alternative to mammography[2] and has ordered Joseph Mercola to stop making excessive claims for thermography.[3]
In Canada, thermography is viewed by medical experts in radiology and the Canadian Cancer Society to be ineffective to diagnose cancer.[4] Health Canada has issued "cease and desist" orders to clinics offering breast thermography as a cancer diagnostic device because there are currently no thermography cameras licensed as a medical device in Canada.
In Germany, medical thermography is widely accepted by government health regulators, doctors and patients. The medical use of infrared thermography started shortly after 1950. In 2007 the first medical infrared imaging systems received a CE certification allowing them to be used as thermal measuring medical devices (Category 1) and matching the European Medical Directive legislation. Medical infrared imaging can only be applied by physicians who have been educated and trained intensively and have received a medical certificate (either by the German Society for Thermography and Regulation Medicine, the European Association of Thermology, or the University of Glamorgan, Wales). [5]
Advertisements in the United Kingdom have been found to be misleading.[6]
See also
References
- ^ http://www.fda.gov/forconsumers/consumerupdates/ucm257499.htm
- ^ FDA Safety Communication: Breast Cancer Screening - Thermography is Not an Alternative to Mammography, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration June 2, 2011
- ^ Tsouderos, Trine (25 April 2012). "FDA warns doctor: Stop touting camera as disease screening tool". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 8 January 2013.
- ^ Clinics ordered to stop 'useless' breast cancer tests, CBC News, Nov. 27 2012
- ^ http://www.ndt.net/article/dgzfp-irt-2007/Inhalt/v04.pdf
- ^ "ASA Adjudication on Medical Thermal Imaging Ltd". Advertising Standards Authority. 2013-01-09. Retrieved January 5, 2015.
