16-Slice PET-CT System Provides Affordable Access to High-Quality Imaging

New cost-effective 16-slice positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) technology provides features such as high-definition PET and routine 10-minute, whole-body imaging.

Siemens Healthcare (Erlangen, Germany) recently expanded its imaging system range with the addition of the Biograph TruePoint 16-slice PET•CT imager. The Biograph TruePoint PET•CT imaging family is the first range of imaging systems to include high-definition PET-CT and now expands its offering with 16-slice CT capabilities. The system was presented in March 2009 at the European Congress of Radiology, March 6-10, in Vienna, Austria.

"The introduction of this particular system is critical as we continue to search for the balance between innovation and access. The likelihood that universal adoption of PET-CT technology will increase with accessibility is a shared industry vision. As an industry leader, it is our responsibility to make that vision more readily attainable," said Michael Reitermann, CEO, molecular imaging, Siemens Healthcare. "The Biograph TruePoint 16-slice PET•CT is a means to achieve that end, with high performance technology housed in an economical package."

As the United States and international economies struggle to increase the quality of patient care and, simultaneously, reduce healthcare costs, the Biograph TruePoint 16-slice PET•CT represents a viable solution for healthcare providers. The system is built for patient comfort and reflects features of the Siemens flagship Biograph mCT model. It is equipped with a 227-kg capacity patient bed and efficient workflow system. The system offers faster scan speeds at lower patient doses; important when patients need multiple scans for oncology treatment planning and follow-up.

The complete Biograph family of PET•CT imagers now offers options in TruePoint PET•CT for 6-, 16-, 40-, and 64-slice CT configurations, as well as the Biograph mCT technology platform with 40-, 64-, and 128-CT slice capabilities. The expanding Biograph family of imagers continues to be a comprehensive range of systems with upgrade possibilities and nonobsolescence protection. The new Biograph 16-slice PET•CT system is also mobile-ready, equipped to maximize on-location patient throughput with fast, 10-minute imaging.

The Biograph 16-slice PET•CT provides 2-mm uniform PET resolution throughout the field of view and a two-time improvement in signal-to-noise ratio, which provides for small lesion detection. Fast scanning and low patient radiation dose is accomplished through Siemens TrueV extended PET field-of-view. Providers can achieve scans at twice the scan speed or half the patient dose.

Siemens' dose protection, Care Dose 4D (four dimensional), is also included with Biograph TruePoint systems. With advanced imaging tools, the Biograph 16-slice PET•CT system provides a cost-effective imaging solution that can satisfy the needs of an institution of any size, and is able to grow at the same rate as clinical requirements dictate.

This product is a Works in Progress (WIP) pending 510k approval and is not yet commercially available in the United States or in the European Union.

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