GE, Biosense to develop interventional ultrasound imaging for electrophysiology

GE Healthcare is expanding its strategic alliance with Biosense Webster to develop real-time ultrasound imaging for use in electrophysiology procedures. The announcement came in conjunction with the 2008 Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) meeting last week in San Francisco.

“This new step in our alliance is a natural extension of our long-standing technology partnership with Biosense Webster,” said Mark Langer, general manager of GE’s interventional cardiovascular ultrasound business. The companies previously integrated GE’s CardioLab IT recording system and Biosense’s Carto Mapping System.

“In this new development, we are integrating GE’s capabilities in high performance ultrasound imaging with the leading EP catheter technologies from Biosense Webster. Together, we will create new imaging solutions for intracardiac therapies, augmenting current technologies with new real-time visualization of the cardiac anatomy and therapy catheters,” Langer said.

GE said its Vivid series of cardiac ultrasound systems covers a range of clinical needs and applications from console to laptop portable systems, including a selection of transducer probes that facilitates multiple applications in both cardiac and vascular imaging.

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