Friday, March 8, 2013

Toshiba Launches New Cardiac Ultrasound Syaytem at ACC

SAN FRANCISCO, March 8, 2013 – To help clinicians more accurately and efficiently diagnose cardiovascular disease, Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc. introduces the AplioTM 500 and Aplio 300 CV ultrasound systems. Compact and easy-to-use, Aplio 500 CV and Aplio 300 CV deliver exceptional image quality and advanced technologies to improve patient diagnoses and treatment.

Both the Aplio 500 and 300 CV are the systems of choice for all premium 2D cardiac exams and feature Toshiba’s 2D Wall Motion Tracking technology, which provides stunning visualization and quantitative analysis of myocardial wall motion with unrivaled accuracy and reproducibility. With on-board cardiac quantification measurements in all directions (radial, circumferential, 2D rotation and longitudinal), the Aplio CV systems are designed to get the most comprehensive information anytime and anywhere in the hospital, right at the patient’s bedside.

Additional cardiac-specific technologies include Tissue Enhancement, Advanced Dynamic Flow™, Lateral Gain Controls, Tissue Doppler, Stress Echo, Flex-M Mode and Auto IMT. Both systems are easy to use, with superior ergonomics and a smaller footprint, making them easier to maneuver for greater patient access and improved workflow.

source: Toshiba

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Texas A&M research contributes to improved ultrasound imaging

Ultrasound technology could soon experience a significant upgrade that would enable it to produce high-quality, high-resolution images, thanks to the development of a new key material by a team of researchers that includes a professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Texas A&M University.

The material, which converts ultrasound waves into optical signals that can be used to produce an image, is the result of a collaborative effort by Texas A&M Professor Vladislav Yakovlev and researchers from King's College London, The Queen's University of Belfast and the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Their findings appear in the current issue of "Advanced Materials."

The engineered material, known as a "metamaterial," offers significant advantages over conventional ultrasound technology, which generates images by converting ultrasound waves into electrical signals, Yakovlev explains. Although that technology has advanced throughout the years – think of the improvement in sonogram images – it is still largely constrained by bandwidth and sensitivity limitations, he says. These limitations, he adds, have been the chief obstacle when it comes to producing high-quality images that can serve as powerful diagnostic tools.

The metamaterial developed by Yakovlev and his colleagues is not subject to those limitations, primarily because it converts ultrasound waves into optical signals rather than electrical ones. The optical processing of the signal does not limit the bandwidth or sensitivity of the transducer (converter) – and that's important for producing highly detailed images, Yakovlev says.

source: Eurekalert