Knowledge-Based Applications Developed for High-Risk Obstetrics

A new ultrasound measurement application is an advanced clinical tool that automates routine biometry measurements of the fetus.

Siemens Healthcare (Erlangen, Germany) presented its latest ultrasound solutions for obstetrics at the 29th annual meeting of the Society of Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) in San Diego, CA, USA, January 29-30, 2009, featuring innovative knowledge-based workflow and four-dimensional (4D) applications that increase diagnostic confidence and improve clinical workflow.

The syngo AutoOB measurements are available exclusively on Siemens' performance Acuson S2000 ultrasound system. "Up until now, users needed to perform biometry measurements manually,” said Klaus Hambuechen, chief executive officer, ultrasound, Siemens Healthcare. "syngo AutoOB measurements eliminate this time-consuming manual process by saving up to 75% of the keystrokes in routine fetal measurements. This may also help to reduce repetitive stress injury [RSI].”

Measurements include the biparietal diameter (BPD), head circumference (HC), abdominal circumference (AC), femur length (FL), humerus length (HL), and the crown rump length (CRL). The application also addresses the challenges related to user-dependence and variability, as well as consistency and reproducibility in fetal biometry.

Moreover, Siemens presented its Advanced fourSight technology package, which includes Fetal Heart STIC (spatiotemporal image correlation) imaging on the Acuson S2000 system. This application captures data over multiple heart cycles to create a 3D fetal heart volume.

"Obtaining a 3D volume of the fetal heart will allow easy interrogation of the anatomy and may help detect fetal cardiac anomalies more easily during routine obstetrical exams,” said Barbara Del Prince, worldwide market manager for obstetrics and gynecology at Siemens Ultrasound. "The earlier anomalies are detected and referred to a pediatric specialist, the better the clinical prognosis for the postnatal infant.”

The Advanced fourSight technology package also features Amnioscopic Rendering, a novel surface-rendering tool, which provides photo-realistic images of the fetus. The Siemens workflow solutions for obstetrics/gynecology also encompass applications that were migrated from the high-end performance S Class into the X Class product series.

The Acuson X300 ultrasound system, Premium Edition (PE), for example, provides advanced fourSight volume imaging technology providing a complete 3D/4D solution. It delivers streamlined, intuitive workflow and advanced acquisition, data rendering, and postprocessing functionality for all examinations, including 2D and Doppler.

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