Siemens Healthcare has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its dual-source Somatom Force CT system.
The scanner, launched at RSNA 2013, is the third iteration of Siemens' dual-source CT design and the new flagship product in the Siemens product line. It features two sets of x-ray tubes and detectors for enhanced imaging of all patients, including young children, patients with renal insufficiency, and those who cannot hold their breath.
Due to its low-kV imaging technique, Force broadens CT’s application for patients with renal insufficiency and offers an acquisition speed of 737 mm/sec, so an entire adult chest, abdomen, and pelvis study can be done in one second with no breath-holds.
In cardiac imaging, Force can obtain an entire study within one-quarter of a heart beat at a temporal resolution of 66 msec, which is the speed required to freeze the fastest-moving anatomy, such as the right coronary artery.
