Please activate JavaScript!
Please install Adobe Flash Player, click here for download
ePaper created 2015-01-06, 15:49:55 | version 1.34.00
COMPUTEDTOMOGRAPHY RadBook 2014 11 © Institut für Klinische Radiologie und Nuklearmedizin, Universitätsmedizin Mannheim Medizinische Fakultät Mannheim der Universität Heidelberg In its first few weeks of clinical use at Mannheim’s Institute for Clinical Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Germany, SOMATOM Force enabled considerably quicker and more precise diagnoses at reduced doses. This high-end CT offers individualized diagnoses now especially also for challenging patients, e.g. for very young patients or people suffering fromrenalinsufficiency,theseriouslyill,andobesepatients. Less contrast medium reduces burden on the kidneys Up to 20 percent of patients suffer from renal insuffi- ciency. Contrast medium containing iodine can place extra burden on the kidneys of older patients and those with chronic illnesses in particular. Initial examina- tions in Mannheim show that the average quantity of contrast medium administered in thoracic examinations can be lowered from between 90 and 110 milliliters (ml) to between 25 and 35 ml. This is made possible by the two Vectron X-ray tubes in SOMATOM Force, which enable routine examinations at particularly low tube voltages of 70 to 100 kilovolts. As the contrast-to-noise ratio rises, the amount of contrast medium can be lowered accordingly. Precise diagnoses for individual treatment SOMATOM Force can also deliver considerable added value in treatment control. 4D imaging, which shows the function of organs and vessels next to their morphology, is particularly important here because it allows additional information to be gleaned about primary tumors and metastases. A disadvantage of this dynamic perfusion is that – up to now – high dose values of more than 50 millisievert (mSv) in certain cases are required e.g. for liver imaging. This dose can now be more than halved with SOMATOM Force. This fact enables the procedure to be used routinely, thus enabling quicker and more well-founded decisions to be made about which treatment is most suitable for an individual patient. Early cancer detection at up to 50 percent lower dose The NLST lung cancer screening study conducted in the U.S. has prompted a realignment of priorities in cancer prevention: The study showed that mortality rates can be reduced by 20 percent if early lung cancer detection is performed with low- dose CT rather than conventional chest X-rays. SOMATOM Force is particularly suitable for such early detection exami- nations. Up to 50 percent lower than that of previous high- end CTs, the radiation dose can be attributed to the “Turbo Flash Mode” of SOMATOM Force and the use of two special spectral filters – Selective Photon Shields – which optimize the X-ray spectrum and thus significantly improve the air/soft-tis- sue contrast. Thorax diagnostics without breath-hold Another advantage in pulmonary diagnostics is the enlarged field of view (50 centimeters) of the “Turbo Flash Mode”, which covers the entire organ. This extremely quick scan mode with an acquisition rate of almost 400 millime- ters per second allows the entire thorax to be depicted in around one second. If a larger area of the body is to be scanned, thanks to the fastest acquisition rate on the market (737 mm/s) entire thoracic-abdominal examinations can even be performed in just one second. This means that patients may not need to hold their breath. With SOMATOM Force, even high heart rates do not lead to disruptive motion artifacts in clinical images. The products/features (here mentioned) are not commercially availa- ble in all countries. Due to regulatory reasons their future availability cannot be guaranteed. Further details are available from the local Sie- mens organizations. The statements by Siemens’ customers described herein are based on results that were achieved in the customer's unique setting. Since there is no “typical” hospital and many variables exist (e.g., hospital size, case mix, level of IT adoption) there can be no guarantee that other customers will achieve the same results. © Institut für Klinische Radiologie und Nuklearmedizin, Universitätsmedizin Mannheim Medizinische Fakultät Mannheim der Universität Heidelberg