June 18, 2007 - Siemens Medical Solutions Ultrasound Division is showcasing its comprehensive cardiovascular risk assessment solutions on its ACUSON X300 ultrasound platform at the 18th Annual Scientific Sessions of the American Society of Echocardiography (ASE), in Seattle, with the purpose of testing patients’ vascular age.
The company’s syngo Arterial Health Package (AHP) for cardiovascular risk assessment provides semi-automated quantification tools for users that help to assess the cardiovascular risk potential of patients using the concept of “vascular age.”
Using the syngo AHP application, available on the ACUSON Sequoia C512 echocardiography platform and the new ACUSON X300(TM) all-purpose ultrasound system, users can now perform a vascular age assessment. The technique renders a combined risk score that includes factors such as a measurement of the carotid intima-media thickness, Framingham risk index assessment and comparison with the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) database. syngo AHP combines all of that information to estimate vascular age, enabling physicians to predict a person’s risk of coronary heart disease.
"Pathological studies have shown that the atherosclerotic burden is quite similar in the carotid and coronary arteries," said John Davidson, senior marketing director for cardiovascular ultrasound at Siemens Medical Solutions. "It helps to measure a person’s preclinical risk. At the same time, it also serves as a visual aid to help patients understand the status of their vascular health. And that increasingly proves to be a valuable tool, especially when it comes to making lifestyle changes."
For more information: www.usa.siemens.com/medical