New CT Scanner for Clearer, Faster Images at a Lower Dose

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., January 6, 2017 A breakthrough in computed tomography (CT) technology is enabling physicians at Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center to obtain clearer images of the body and make timelier diagnoses.

Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center is the first to bring the SOMATOM Definition AS+ CT scanner to patients in Volusia County.

A CT, commonly referred to as a CAT scan, uses special x-ray equipment that produces multiple images of the inside of the body to detect a variety of diseases and conditions. Fast, painless, noninvasive and accurate, a CT scan creates detailed pictures of internal organs, bones, soft tissue and blood vessels that typically provide greater detail than traditional x-rays, particularly of soft tissues and blood vessels.

Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Centers new SOMATOM Definition AS+ CT scanner helps maximize clinical outcomes and provides outstanding images at a lower dose through its innovative Combined Applications to Reduce Exposure (CARE) features.

Additionally, the system provides automation tools to enhance the patient experience and its FAST CARE technology has been recognized by market research company Frost & Sullivan as the industry's most effective solution for optimizing exam speed, image quality and radiation dose exposure in CT imaging.

What sets this technology apart from all the other CT scanners in the area is that it is a 128-slice CT Scanner and with 3D Interventional Suite. It combines multiple components in a dynamic manner to provide greater exam consistency at a low radiation dose, said Nick Creech, Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center imaging services executive director. Additionally, the automation offered on this scanner helps our technologists spend even more time focusing on our patients.

Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Centers new scanner helps staff overcome daily challenges in medical imaging. For example, many patients may have implanted metal devices such as hip implants, dental fillings, etc. These devices can oftentimes distort CT images or even render them unreadable. The machines Iterative Metal Artifact Reduction (iMAR) technology provides additional diagnostic information by reducing metal artifacts even in the most challenging cases. The result is an outstanding image quality with metal artifacts reduced, while valuable information remains.

In addition, the Daytona Beach hospitals new CT scanner delivers a comprehensive range of CARE applications for dose reduction. These include a software that enables the scanner to suggest the correct tube voltage depending on the patient's anatomy and the organ to be examined.

Physicians at the 277-bed hospital can use the new CT scanner to make faster and more confident diagnoses in emergency and acute care settings, particularly when examining patients with acute chest pain, abdominal pain, and suspicion of stroke.

Physicians can now review results before the patient has left the CTs table, allowing them to provide immediate feedback and quickly determine treatment options. With such a robust scanner, high image quality can be obtained even for those patients who are obese, short of breath or with elevated heart rates.

Finally, Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Centers new scanner is equipped with Fully Assisting Scanner Technologies (FAST), which offer efficiencies to help simplify and automate time-consuming and complex procedures. This improves not only the workflow, but may make it easier to operate the equipment and reproduce results.

About Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center

Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center is a member of Adventist Health System, a faith-based health care organization with 46 hospital campuses and nearly 8,200 licensed beds in 10 states. Our locations include Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center in Daytona Beach and Florida Hospital Oceanside in Ormond Beach, as well as outpatient facilities in Port Orange, Daytona Beach Shores and New Smyrna Beach. With 277-beds, Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center is one of the six Florida Hospitals in Volusia and Flagler counties that composes the Florida Hospital East Florida Region. As the largest hospital system in the area, the Florida Hospital East Florida Region has 899 beds and nearly 5,900 employees. With a mission to extend the healing ministry of Christ, the Florida Hospital East Florida Region collectively contributed nearly $120 million in benefits in 2015 to the underprivileged, the community's overall health and wellness and spiritual needs, and capital improvements. For more information about Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center, visit www.floridahospitalmemorial.org