CHARLOTTE, N.C., June 4 — Carestream Health, Inc., reports broad-based interest in the industry’s first wireless, cassette-size detector—the CARESTREAM DRX-1 System. It is scheduled to be available this summer.
“The affordable price point of this new technology and its ability to utilize existing X-ray systems is driving unprecedented demand from a diverse list of providers—from imaging centers and orthopedic centers to hospitals and other healthcare providers of all sizes,” said Todd R. Minnigh, Carestream Health’s Worldwide Director of Marketing, Digital X-ray. “Many facilities want to upgrade from CR to achieve the increased productivity delivered by direct digital capture.”
Guelph General Hospital in Guelph, Canada, tested the system in one of the hospital’s busy general radiology x-ray rooms. Mike Sharma, B.Sc., MRT (R), the hospital’s director of Diagnostic Imaging, was extremely pleased with the results.
“The DRX-1 system offers exceptional image quality and is very easy to use. It’s also very easy to implement. We installed the system in the morning and our technologists were using it to image patients in the afternoon,” Sharma said. “The system integrated smoothly with our PACS, so the patient worklist is available to expedite workflow.”
He added that this system’s positioning flexibility earns high marks. “Because the DRX-1 System can be easily taken out of the Bucky tray, it facilitates exams where it is difficult or painful to move the patient. It is an excellent choice to replace existing film or CR systems.”
With the DRX-1 System, imaging studies are captured by the detector and transmitted to the system’s console using secure wireless communications. Preview images appear on the monitor in about five seconds so technologists can verify patient positioning.
“My overall impression of the system is absolutely outstanding. Of course, from a clinician’s point of view one of the most important aspects of any system is the quality of the images it produces. In this respect, we have no problems—the image quality is very good,” said Prof. Thomas Vogl, M.D., Director of the Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology at the University Hospital of Frankfurt, Germany.
Since this new detector can be employed in nearly all applications where a 14 x 17 inch (35 x 43 cm) x-ray cassette would be used, it offers an affordable, smooth transition to DR technology for many imaging environments.
###
About Carestream Health, Inc.
Carestream Health, Inc., is a leading provider of dental and medical imaging systems and healthcare IT solutions; molecular imaging systems for the life science research and drug discovery/development market segments; and x-ray film and digital x-ray products for the non-destructive testing market. Headquartered in Rochester, N.Y., and serving customers in more than 150 countries, Carestream Health is an independent company operating within the family of companies owned by Onex Corporation (TSX: OCX.TO) of Toronto, Canada. For more information about Carestream Health, contact your Carestream Health representative or visit www.carestreamhealth.com.
CARESTREAM is a trademark of Carestream Health, Inc.
2009