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St. Joseph's-Elmire Deploys Nuclear-Diagnostic Imaging

Posted on: Monday, 19 December 2005, 03:02 CST

By Anonymous

St. Joseph's Hospital in Elmira has acquired the SKYLight nuclearimaging system (also called a gamma camera) from Philips Medical Systems. With the SKYLight system, St. Joseph's says it can perform non-invasive, highly advanced diagnostic tests that can lead to potentially life-saving treatment options or rule out serious medical conditions.

Nuclear-imaging allows clinicians to see how a part of the body is functioning at the metabolic level, providing more ,definitive screening and treatment staging for diseases like cancer. The hospital contends that this improved diagnostic confidence may alter die. course of action, allowing patients to be able to avoid a biopsy or an invasive surgical procedure, for example.

Nuclear imaging can be used to diagnose lung, breast, liver, and other types of cancer. "It is also extremely effective for other common applications such as cardiac, bone, pulmonary, brain, thyroid, and renal imaging," St. Joseph's says.

The SKYLight system enables clinicians to perform a type of nuclear imaging called Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT), which allows visualization of activity within structures deep inside the body. SPECT is particularly effective for cardiology, brain, and some orthopedic and oncology applications. It generates 3D images whereas nonSPECT, or planar imaging, consists of 2D snapshots, or moving images of physiology.

The SKYLight system at St. Joseph's is particularly effective for cardiology applications, the Elmira hospital says. For example, this system can show the viability of the heart muscle and assist doctors in evaluating the cause of acute pain to better determine if a patient is experiencing a heart attack.

"The SKYLight system has the potential to broaden our applications for nuclear-medicine imaging, including the ability to use the latest procedures, such as concurrent imaging," said William Wallace, administrative director of St. Joseph's Medical Imaging Department. "This means we can provide a higher level of diagnostic confidence and more effective, efficient care for our patients."

Concurrent imaging allows clinicians to obtain multiple images, with each having different acquisition parameters. This technique provides significant, additional diagnostic information without extending imaging time, according to St. Joseph's.

Additionally, the SKYLight system features the latest Philips EPIC-AZ detector technology that provides higher resolution. SKYLight is the industry's first and only gantry-free nuclearimaging system, the hospital says. This design allows the imaging detectors to be mounted from above in the exam room, creating an "open floor" design. By removing the limitations associated with conventional floor-mounted systems, the SKYLight system can image virtually any size patient, on any bed, in any position. The system also allows St. Joseph's to image two different patients simultaneously, offering efficiency gains for its busy imaging department.

Depending on what type of exam is scheduled, the patient can spend anywhere from 30 minutes up to about three hours in the nuclear-imaging department. Actual imaging time can range from 15 minutes to approximately one hour. During the exam, a radioactive tracer is administered to the patient. The radioactive isotope decays, resulting in the emission of gamma rays. The SKYLight system acts as a gamma camera, showing the distribution of the tracer in the area to be studied. These gamma rays are processed by the system and displayed as images on screen that give the clinician details about what's happening inside that part of the body. After careful evaluation of the resulting images, a physician can then recommend treatment options or regimens, in some cases reducing or eliminating the need for more invasive tests or procedures, according to St. Joseph's. There are no known side effects caused by the imaging system and patients are able to resume normal activity afterward, it says.

Copyright Central New York Business Journal Nov 11, 2005

Source: Business Journal - Central New York, The

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