A new 3-tesla MRI scanner called Ingenia Elition 3.0T by Philips Healthcare is among the new product introductions this week at ECR 2018 in Vienna. The system offers a 50% reduction in scanning time and also improvements to the patient experience -- all without sacrificing image quality, according to the company.
Philips is launching Elition at ECR 2018 after first showing the scanner behind the scenes to select customers at the RSNA 2017 and Arab Health 2018 meetings, according to Rob Cascella, chief business leader of the company's Diagnosis and Treatment businesses. Elition represents the company's effort to streamline the process of an MRI exam, while also taking advantage of Philips' Compressed SENSE MRI acceleration technique, a parallel imaging mode that increases the speed at which data can be transferred from scanners.
The Ingenia Elition 3.0T MRI system. Image courtesy of Philips Healthcare.Elition sports easier exam setup, faster scanning, and -- thanks to the company's Ambient Experience in-bore Connect technology -- a more comfortable environment for patients, with lighting, visual displays, and sound. The primary goal is to reduce rescans that can be costly and bog down workflow.
Philips accomplished these enhancements without any compromise in image quality, Cascella noted.
"The end result is that we don't want to do a rescan, we want to get the patient in and out of the magnet as quickly as possible, and we want the radiologist to diagnose as quickly as possible without having to do a bunch of rescans," Cascella told AuntMinnie.com in an interview.
Ingenia Elition is scheduled to begin shipping in limited release in the second quarter of 2018.
In addition to Elition, Philips is highlighting the MR Prodiva 1.5T, a 1.5-tesla scanner, first demonstrated at RSNA 2017. The value-priced scanner is intended for markets outside North America and has a 60-cm magnet bore to make system siting easier. Prodiva supports Philips' Breeze Workflow technology, which employs a flexible lightweight digital coil system to support fast patient setup.
In CT, Philips is promoting Access CT, a 16-slice scanner unveiled in 2017 that is designed for emerging markets and also IQon Elite, the company's platform for spectral CT scanning. IQon Elite is notable in that it offers "always on" dual-energy imaging, which makes it easier for users to perform these advanced scans, Cascella said.
Within ultrasound, Philips is launching the new Evolution 4.0 platform for its Epiq family of scanners. Philips has made a major effort to improve its elastography and artificial intelligence offerings on the Epiq line, with the goal of improving diagnostic accuracy and removing operator dependency, according to Cascella. The launch includes the eL18-4 PureWave linear transducer.
In the company's IntelliSpace portfolio, the company has made improvements to IntelliSpace Portal 10, the latest version of the software. New features are designed to improve radiologist workflow through enhancements to hanging protocols and review of prior images, as well as an improved emphasis on parts of anatomy that are of interest to the interpreting radiologist, with the software learning from what the radiologist's preferences, Cascella said. Portal 10 has begun shipping.
Performance Bridge is the company's offering to help customers improve their operational effectiveness. It includes features such as workload balancing and technologist utilization, but it also helps with patient scheduling, analyzing patient cancellation rates, and understanding which scanning protocols are set up on what machines to enhance workflow.
Philips is also emphasizing workflow of its Illumeo artificial intelligence platform, which will include new features and functionality such as preferences that enable radiologists to be more efficient, Cascella said. The company is also showing Anatomical Intelligence for Breast Ultrasound, which facilitates breast screening exams while preserving image quality for full diagnostic studies.
