ACC: Toshiba touts CTA cost savings, US enhancements
Toshiba America Medical Systems emphasized the cost-effectiveness of CT Angiography (CTA) triage and new 3D enhancements to its ultrasound systems at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology held in New Orleans.
At the Toshiba booth, Michael Poon, MD, director of advanced cardiac imaging at The Heart Center at Stony Brook University Medical Center in Stony Brook, N.Y., shared data about cardiac CTA in the emergency department (ED).
According to Poon, Stony Brook University Medical Center saved $1.5 million by employing 320-slice CT in the evaluation of patients who presented to the ED with acute chest pain. That’s because the center slashed its admit rate for these patients from nearly 50 percent to under 15 percent. Plus, the model cut the number of repeat patients. That is, patients with a normal CTA are not returning to the ED time and time again, Poon stated.
Ultrasound enhancements
Toshiba has made available 3D Wall Motion Tracking and Tissue Enhancement technologies on Aplio Artida ultrasound. 3D Wall Motion Tracking offers dyssynchrony imaging and advanced regional wall motion assessment. It aids electrophysiologists in optimizing pacemaker placement and function, Toshiba said. It also shows 3D ejection fraction, volumes and regional and global strain function.
The new Auto IMT feature—available on Aplio MX, Aplio XG and Xario XG—calculates the intima-media thickness of the carotid artery, helping clinicians determine a patient’s risk for cardiovascular disease. Toshiba’s Auto IMT can determine the thickness of the near and far arterial walls from three segments of the carotid artery: at an optimal angle of incidence and two complementary planes. Auto IMT uses the collected images following the American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) consensus statement for diagnosis of cardiac risk in certain asymptomatic populations.
At the Toshiba booth, Michael Poon, MD, director of advanced cardiac imaging at The Heart Center at Stony Brook University Medical Center in Stony Brook, N.Y., shared data about cardiac CTA in the emergency department (ED).
According to Poon, Stony Brook University Medical Center saved $1.5 million by employing 320-slice CT in the evaluation of patients who presented to the ED with acute chest pain. That’s because the center slashed its admit rate for these patients from nearly 50 percent to under 15 percent. Plus, the model cut the number of repeat patients. That is, patients with a normal CTA are not returning to the ED time and time again, Poon stated.
Ultrasound enhancements
Toshiba has made available 3D Wall Motion Tracking and Tissue Enhancement technologies on Aplio Artida ultrasound. 3D Wall Motion Tracking offers dyssynchrony imaging and advanced regional wall motion assessment. It aids electrophysiologists in optimizing pacemaker placement and function, Toshiba said. It also shows 3D ejection fraction, volumes and regional and global strain function.
The new Auto IMT feature—available on Aplio MX, Aplio XG and Xario XG—calculates the intima-media thickness of the carotid artery, helping clinicians determine a patient’s risk for cardiovascular disease. Toshiba’s Auto IMT can determine the thickness of the near and far arterial walls from three segments of the carotid artery: at an optimal angle of incidence and two complementary planes. Auto IMT uses the collected images following the American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) consensus statement for diagnosis of cardiac risk in certain asymptomatic populations.