GE Healthcare announced today the first four installations of its new cadmium zinc telluride (CZT) based Discovery NM 530c nuclear cardiology camera featuring Alcyone Technology.  This revolutionary imaging system has been installed at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in New York City, United States, Ottawa Heart Institute in Ottawa, Canada, University Hospital in Zurich, Switzerland and Gabriele Monasterio Foundation, CNR, in Pisa, Italy.

“The Discovery NM 530c camera will have a very positive impact on Nuclear Cardiology practice,” said Dr. Milena Henzlova, Director of Nuclear Cardiology at Mt. Sinai Hospital. “There is huge potential for improved efficiency, image quality and new applications. After 40 years of Anger camera technology, it is exciting to be part of a new chapter in Nuclear Cardiology.”

Alcyone Technology brings together a breakthrough design based on combining CZT detectors, focused pin-hole collimation, stationary data acquisition and 3D reconstruction, to improve workflow, dose management, and overall image quality.

CZT detectors directly convert gamma rays into digital signals, eliminating the need for photomultiplier tubes, but maintaining high stopping power to deliver improved energy, spatial and temporal resolution. 
 
"The impact of Alcyone Technology on cardiological management could be considered a "revolution" in many aspects,” said Dr. Alessia Gimelli, Cardiologist and Nuclear Medicine Specialist at Gabriele Monasterio Foundation, CNR. “ The Discovery NM 530c offers dose reduction, the potential for more accurate flow studies using dynamic imaging, and a cost-effective investigation tool for myocardial blood flow. With this camera, there is a huge possibility to determine a new appropriateness and clinical value for Nuclear Cardiology."

With conventional nuclear cardiac imaging, a patient must hold their arms above their head for two scans that take between 15-20 minutes each.  Alcyone’s focused multi-pinhole collimation has been strategically positioned to view cardiac anatomy and pathology with greater clarity and speed, resulting in scan times as short as 3 minutes.  Unlike conventional nuclear imaging, all views are acquired simultaneously during a fully stationary SPECT acquisition, eliminating equipment movement during the scan.

“Just weeks after launching our Discovery NM 530c system, we’ve seen the enthusiasm spread in the global nuclear cardiology community,” said Terri Bresenham, vice president of GE Healthcare’s molecular imaging business. “We are committed to developing technologies that excite the industry and advance the future of molecular imaging.”

About GE Healthcare

GE Healthcare provides transformational medical technologies and services that are shaping a new age of patient care. Our broad expertise in medical imaging and information technologies, medical diagnostics, patient monitoring systems, drug discovery, biopharmaceutical manufacturing technologies, performance improvement and performance solutions services help our customers to deliver better care to more people around the world at a lower cost. In addition, we partner with healthcare leaders, striving to leverage the global policy change necessary to implement a successful shift to sustainable healthcare systems.
 
Our "healthymagination" vision for the future invites the world to join us on our journey as we continuously develop innovations focused on reducing costs, increasing access and improving quality and efficiency around the world. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, GE Healthcare is a $17 billion unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE). Worldwide, GE Healthcare employs more than 46,000 people committed to serving healthcare professionals and their patients in more than 100 countries. For more information about GE Healthcare, visit our website at www.gehealthcare.com.