A growing number of Americans are replacing their traditional television sets with high-definition flat panels for a clearer, better picture. The same is true in the world of medical imaging, where doctors are replacing the X-ray technology of the past with new, high-definition flat-panel detectors.
Used in hospitals' catheterization labs to treat cardiovascular diseases, these new flat-panel detectors are found in advanced vascular X-ray systems, such as the Infinix-i Series from Toshiba America Medical Systems. Not only are they more accurate, they are safer, reducing the radiation dose to both the patient and physician.
Heart disease and stroke - the principal components of cardiovascular disease - are the first and third leading causes of overall deaths in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 61 million Americans, almost one-fourth of the population, have some form of cardiovascular disease. Although heart disease and stroke often are thought to affect primarily men and older people, it is a major killer of women and people in the prime of life.
Treatment of cardiovascular diseases often involve invasive surgical procedures, such as coronary bypass or open-heart surgery. With the use of vascular X-ray systems, however, surgeons are able to perform less-invasive procedures like coronary angioplasty (in which a balloon is used to widen the opening of a narrow or blocked artery to increase blood flow); stenting (when a wire mesh tube is placed in the artery to hold it open); and the placement of pacemakers (electronic devices that help the heart beat regularly).
The primary advantage of these less-invasive procedures is shortened recovery time, which puts less stress on the patient. But they have the inherent risk of extended radiation exposure. However, Toshiba's cardiac flat-panel detector creates images using a more efficient process to convert X-ray directly to electrical signals, which reduces radiation exposure to patients
For more information, visit www.medical.toshiba.com. -NU |
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