October 10, 2008 – Siemens Healthcare is introducing molecular CT, a new concept in integrated imaging that provides a premium imaging platform, and is a practical solution for today’s shrinking healthcare budget.
This new technology, Biograph mCT, represents the evolution of integration in imaging; a CT with molecular capabilities, a PET scanner with unlimited capabilities in CT, and a high performance integrated imager that an be used to achieve true collaboration and cooperation between diagnostic imaging specialties.
“As the inventor of positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT), Siemens wants to lead the evolution of hybrid imaging to maximize innovations and make them available where they will have the most impact,” said Dr. Bernd Montag, CEO, Siemens Healthcare, Imaging and IT Division, Erlangen, Germany. “With Biograph mCT, we’ve taken the best Siemens has to offer in CT and enabled the introduction of ‘smart’ contrast – molecular contrast – using the most advanced PET technology available,” he said, at the Siemens Forum in Munich, where the new system was first shown to a select group of customers from around the world.
Biograph mCT is the ideal solution for an integrated imaging environment. It was designed to obtain functional, anatomical and molecular information from one, noninvasive diagnostic exam, and adapts to virtually any patient and any clinical need with higher resolution, contrast and speed. The clinician has the option of using the industry’s highest resolution CT in conjunction with the high-definition PET technology or as a standalone CT. Depending on the case, molecular contrast can be used for additional metabolic information. Biograph mCT is the only imaging device to offer whole-body PET/CT scanning in just five minutes, a revolutionary feature that optimizes flexibility and efficiency.
From an investment standpoint, using one, all-encompassing scanner is a highly efficient means of making the most of an institution’s imaging equipment and strengthening the existing workflows between radiology and molecular imaging.
“Biograph mCT is the quintessential definition of efficiency; one team, one room, one machine, and one comfortable patient,” said Montag. “It offers the potential of diagnosing disease earlier and more effective management of disease at reduced costs. Speaking directly to the bottom line, with Biograph mCT, an institution may only need to purchase one imager instead of two, representing a huge cost-savings potential in a time when healthcare budgets are tight.”
The consolidation of equipment, staff and scan times can enable major cost savings, return on investment and excellence in patient care, as well as patient and staff satisfaction when innovation and integration work in tandem.
With a small footprint, large bore, a short tunnel and an extra-wide, 500-pound-capacity bed (227 kg), Biograph mCT is designed to accommodate all kinds of patients – including pediatric, bariatric, and geriatric – comfortably and easily. The ability to complete studies in less time can reduce patients’ anxiety. Biograph mCT’s large 78 cm bore can also help to alleviate patients’ sense of claustrophobia and allows better positioning of RTP devices, such as breast boards, and makes scanning of obese patients easier.
Biograph mCT adapts to virtually all patient types and clinical needs. Its unmatched isotropic resolution in CT, combined with its industry-best rotation time, brings out the finest anatomical details in every scan – routine and advanced – limiting motion artifacts. It is available in detector configurations of 40-, 64-, and 128-slices, a first in integrated scanners. Biograph mCT’s powerful HD/PET technology delivers highly detailed images with up to four times as much contrast. In fact, it is the world’s only PET technology that offers 2 mm uniform resolution throughout the field of view (FOV).
Biograph mCT also addresses two of the foremost concerns related to scanning: scan time and radiation dose. With its ultra-low dose capability and super-fast PET acquisition time, scanning can be less stressful for the clinician and the patient.
“The ability to provide a high-quality imaging environment for patients that is accommodating, comfortable and reliable plays a key role in the success of a healthcare provider,” said Montag. “The investment made in imaging equipment, such as this, will provide clinicians the information necessary to best diagnose and treat patients.”
With Biograph mCT, a single room can be transformed into a fast, dual-modality scanning facility, where both CT and PET can be operated in one room with one staff, one schedule, and if required, one comprehensive exam. As a result, space, time and costs that would be required to implement such high-end systems separately can be reduced, while maximizing dual-modality utilization.
For more information: www.siemens.com/healthcare
July 02, 2024 
