Multiply Your Potential with Unique CT Innovations Generation Flash

C-level executives are faced with some challenges when it comes to purchasing new CT scanners: Uncooperative patients often require time-consuming preparation or expensive after-care. Patient selection is still often required since some can not undergo a CT at all. Reimbursement rates are going down, forcing new requirements for efficiency and throughput. Today’s devices offer more possibilities so that training and service become key to success, and exploiting the maximum potential.

The SOMATOM Definition Flash gives the C-level decision maker the answers he’s seeking on how to run a successful and prosperous business, while taking the best possible care of the patients.

Be FAST: Fully Assisting Scanner Technologies make time-consuming and complex procedures faster and accelerate your workflow to new levels. They make scanning more reproducible and less prone to errors. Complex procedures are guided and highly automated for uniform quality throughout the entire institution – independent of the operator.

The SOMATOM Definition Flash, with the new FAST platform, allows for shortest time from putting the patient on the CT table to reviewing the first images. Thus giving medical professionals more time to take better care of their patients.

Take CARE: Combined Applications to Reduce Exposure give you brilliant image quality at the lowest possible dose. It makes CT safer, especially for the most sensitive patients, e. g. children or women.

The SOMATOM Definition Flash, with the new CARE platform, lowers radiation exposure to previously unseen levels, thus leveraging untapped dose saving potential in any patient.

Although, radiation exposure is getting lower with conventional CTs, the use of sedation, anesthesia or controlled-ventilation is still very common. These come with risks and drawbacks. Children aren’t allowed to eat prior to the exam, and sedation and controlled ventilation pose serious risks and require time consuming preparation as well as after-care.

The SOMATOM Definition Flash, with the new FAST CARE platform, automatically ensures unparalleled levels of low dose in any examination, based on the body habitus and exam type. But even more important: Flash Spiral scanning makes sedation or controlled ventilation a thing of the past, for unrivalled patient friendliness and safety.

Oncology CT poses its own challenges to clinicians. Severely sick or unusually uncooperative patients who are not able to hold their breath for long, often have to undergo many CT examinations in a row. Patient preparation, the accumulated dose and the monitoring of chemotherapy or anti-angiogenesis treatments make oncology CT anything but an easy mission.

The SOMATOM Definition Flash, with its low dose capabilities, its ability to scan without breath hold, its Dual Energy applications and the possibility to cover whole organs for CT perfusion, make it the preferred device for radiation therapy planning and monitoring.

Immediate whole body CT scanning is of the essence during the "golden hour” of trauma. But often unwanted patient motion and limited scan ranges or time-consuming patient preparation, e.g., in cases of acute chest pain or pediatric imaging, cause unnecessary stress in the trauma bay.

Make the most out of the golden hour with the SOMATOM Definition Flash – in every patient. Its unmatched Flash Spiral scan speed of 458 mm/s, its immense power reserves and highest temporal resolution freeze motion while delivering industries highest spatial resolution.

Neuro CT ranges from plain non-contrast, over spine and inner-ear to whole brain CT perfusion imaging. Separating vessels safely from bone in complex anatomical regions poses limitations. Differentiating fresh from old bleeding is difficult. Reconstructing spine and discs is time consuming. Finally, static detector design limits you to a fixed coverage – leading either to over- or under-ranging. And, above all the patients' increasing dose awareness and concerns must be considered.

The new SOMATOM Definition Flash, including FAST CARE and Dual Energy always offers a second contrast, let’s you perform whole brain perfusion or dynamic angiographies up to 48 cm while iterative reconstruction redefines image quality and low dose neuro CT imaging.

The heart is the organ that has been challenging generations of CTs. Patient exclusion is high because of high and irregular heart rates. Fast moving calcified coronary lesions may lead to oversight or underestimation of the stenosis. Single source CTs retrospective gating with low pitch and overlap on the one hand, and inadequate temporal resolution with multi-segment reconstruction on the other, lead to dose penalty.

The SOMATOM Definition Flash allows scanning of any patient, independent of the heart rate, and provides Dual Energy info on top. Additionally, it quantifies the hemodynamic relevance of a stenosis for sound and sustainable treatment decisions.

Dual Energy CT (DECT) is one of the most exciting developments in radiology in recent history. CT approaches with two subsequent scans or two consecutive 270° rotations at different tube voltages fail to seamlessly align the imaged anatomy and to capture the same phase of contrast enhancement. They appear less suitable for organs that change position during scan or patients with limited compliance. On the other hand, single-source

CT with rapid voltage switching results in significantly higher radiation doses.

The SOMATOM Definition Flash Dual Source CT, which applies all renowned dose-saving techniques for DE, allows for dose-neutral imaging with unlimited applications for all possible clinical fields, including the heart.