October 13, 2008 - GE Healthcare and Boston Scientific Corp. agreed to collaborate to improve intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) workflow between the GE Healthcare Innova Cardiovascular X-ray System and the Boston Scientific iLab Ultrasound Imaging System.
Boston Scientific and GE will offer advances in the field of IVUS to joint customers, and are displaying the iLab and Innova Systems at the Oct. 12-17 Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) Scientific Symposium in Washington, D.C.
"We recently installed an iLab system alongside our GE cath lab and have found that the use of both technologies has improved the ease of use in performing IVUS," said Francis Boucek, M.D., of Naples Community Hospital, FL.
The Innova System is a family of all-digital cardiovascular imaging systems. The Innova X-ray imaging systems provide users with excellent image quality with industry leading dose efficiency. Built on GE’s Innova digital detector, the Innova System helps physicians visualize fine vessels, place stents and perform critical procedures. Cardiologists in the cardiac cath lab use it when performing procedures to view and treat potential coronary artery blockages that could cause heart attacks or other serious cardiovascular damage. The system is designed to provide cardiologists with more information than ever before, resulting in better diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular disease.
The Boston Scientific iLab Ultrasound Imaging System can be directly installed into the cardiac catheterization lab or radiology suite alongside the GE Innova X-ray System, enabling physicians to more readily incorporate IVUS technology into their procedures. With IVUS, a tiny catheter is inserted into the heart or into a vessel where high-frequency sound waves reflect off tissue or vessel walls. The reflected sound waves create a cross-sectional image from within the vessel or heart to aid in visualizing vessel and heart structure. IVUS is an important tool in determining treatment options because it is designed to offer a more complete picture from inside the artery or vessel and helps to optimize stent outcomes.
GE already has a partnership with Volcano to offer its IVUS system as part of GE's integrated cath lab solution.
For more information: www.bostonscientific.com and www.gehealthcare.com