Stanford Medical Center Implements The First Virtual Cardiac Ultrasound

Stanford Hospital in US is one of the first to implement a 3D cardiac ultrasound machine to see the workings of the heart without having to operate. The machine is a computer designed to show all angles of the patient’s heart. The technology uses an “intelligent” echocardiography system. The artificial intelligence of the system can be used to quantify cardiac functions that can lead to more precise preferences to cardiac surgeons even before they decide on the course of treatment.

The technology, made available in the market by Philips, is called iE33. It can reproduce visually the exact condition of the patient’s heart, which can be seen from multiple angles, also charts out the abnormalities of the heart, measures the volume of blood from each heart beat and uses structure movements to find out the exact faults of cardiac functions.

With such a technology available to cardiologists, it will become easier for them to assess and diagnose cardiac conditions with much precision and assurance. Cardiologists in Stanford hospital is of the opinion that such a computer will reduce the requirement for surgical procedures like tranesophageal echocardiograms. The physicians will be able to try out options on screen before they’d want to implement them on patients.

Link:
http://www.stanfordhospital.com/cgi-bin/print/printable.pl?url=newsEvents/newsReleases/2005/01053DcardiacUltrasound.html

courtesy By: www.stanfordhospital.com