GE Healthcare has introduced a new interventional X-ray unit that is neither floor-mounted nor ceiling-mounted. Instead, the Discovery IGS 730 uses a mobile motorized gantry with laser-guided navigation, the ability to preset movement parameters and of course, steering and guidance by a user during a procedure.

"We created a totally different class of imaging system," says Hooman Hakami, president and CEO of GE's interventional systems unit. "If you're an interventional radiologist and you're trying to decide between ceiling-mount and floor-mount, you're deciding between, 'Do I want patient access or do I want room, air flow and sterility?' You don't have to make that choice here."

The Discovery IGS 730 features precise positioning, unlimited parking capabilities and nearly two dozen advanced applications. It has a cable management system that is fully expandable and retractable, allowing for full mobility.

The installation time, Hakami estimates, is the same as what it would be for one of GE's existing floor-mounted systems. "We tried to make it so that it wasn't more cumbersome from an install standpoint," he says.

In terms of safety features, the Discover IGS 730-which has gone through the equivalent of a decade's worth of clinical procedures testing-has a mechanism that will automatically stop the machine if it bumps into something - a foot for example.

Although this system is still pending 510(k) approval, it has been generating a lot of excitement among radiologists, according to Hakami. "Interest in it so far has been phenomenal," he says. "Even as a concept, the idea was getting a tremendous amount of feedback. Now that [customers at RSNA] can see it, touch it and see what the capabilities are, the reaction has been just amazing."

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