June 8, 2009 - At the 20th Annual Scientific Sessions of the American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) June 6-10 in Washington, D.C., Siemens Healthcare (booth 411) is demonstrating a new standard in echocardiography – nonstitched, real-time, full-volume 3D images of the heart acquired in one single heart cycle with the ACUSON SC2000 volume imaging ultrasound system.
The latest release of the system features unique technologies and applications that improve diagnostic confidence and workflow in echocardiography, Siemens said. The company will also showcase the world’s first volume 3D intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) catheter, the ACUSON AcuNav V ultrasound catheter, which delivers real-time volumetric information from inside the heart.
The system has information rate processing power that allows the acquisition of a full volume of the entire heart at 90 x 90 degrees, up to 40 volumes per second at 16 cm depth. With 16 times the processing power of a conventional 2D system, more than 540 volumes per second at maximum information rate is possible – a performance that dramatically reduces acquisition time, improving the overall workflow in the echocardiography suite, the company said.
New to the ACUSON SC2000 volume imaging system is the INFocus coherent imaging technology. Without the need to continuously set and select a given location of best focus, INFocus technology sharpens the full-field image at all times without sacrificing frame rate, Siemens said. The technology delivers continuous full-field transmit focusing and uses the power of 64 receive beams, maximizing imaging information rate to better resolve cardiac structure and motion for superior diagnostic imaging.
The company said the system allows caregivers to provide the benefits of echocardiography for difficult-to-image persons or patients who have difficulty holding their breath.
The ACUSON SC2000 volume imaging system offers a number of new workflow enhancements, including individually customizable workflow protocols and knowledge-based workflow applications. eSieScan Workflow Protocols streamline exam workflows, both on the user level and in the entire lab, bringing both highest reproducibility and quality standards to the volume imaging workflow. In addition, the system features pharmacologic Rapid Stress volume stress echo capabilities, which automatically capture all walls of the left ventricle in one single heartbeat, without the need of ECG gating or multiple window acquisition at peak stress. This results in faster acquisition time and comprehensive review of all wall segments in one single capture, leading to potentially improved accuracy and time savings.
The ACUSON SC2000 system also features knowledge-based workflow software that uses learned pattern recognition technology and an expert database of real clinical cases to support advanced echocardiography applications. The system recognizes anatomical patterns and landmarks performing automatic measurements to streamline clinical workflow. This includes automatic reference plane extraction from the full-volume cardiac capture dataset, automated full-volume contouring of ejection fraction, and automated measurement of imaging modes.
To further enhance efficiency, the offline workstation enables reporting, as well as complete review and processing of the acquired volumes.
Siemens will also feature the world’s first volume intra-cardiac echocardiography catheter, the ACUSON AcuNav V ultrasound catheter. With real-time volumetric information from inside the heart, the new volume catheter will improve therapeutic ablation procedures and other electrophysiology (EP) applications facilitating workflow and improving performance in the EP lab.
For more information: www.siemens.com/healthcare
April 05, 2024 
