Keeping with the theme of dose reduction in imaging, GE Healthcare showcased Veo, a model-based iterative reconstruction technology, the company's latest low-dose solution for CT. The new technology promises to "change the rules" of CT imaging, delivering low dose levels while producing high quality images. Veo is currently available in Europe and is pending FDA approval in the United States.


GE also shared additions to its MR product line, emphasizing patient comfort, productivity and performance. The trade show floor display included the Gem Suite, a set of receive-only RF surface coils that are designed to be used with the company's Discovery MR750w 3T and Optima MR4502 1.5T systems. The Gem Suite consists of several coils, which can be used individually or combined -- the range covers 98 percent of all exam types. The Gem Suite has a total 205-centimeter scanning range and 160 coil mode configurations. The Gem Suite and its compatible MR systems are pending FDA approval.


GE also showcased its Optima MR430s extremities scanner, the result of its acquisition of ONI Medical Systems in 2009. The 1.5T system is also designed with patient comfort in mind and is pending 510(k) clearance.







The company's other major announcement was the FDA clearance of Discovery NM750b, a molecular breast imaging system for early breast cancer detection. The device uses a small FOV gamma camera for breast imaging based on the accumulation of a radioactive tracer in hypermetabolic cancer cells.

The newly approved system uses Cadmium Zinc Telluride imaging detectors, which replace the Nal detectors that are traditionally used for gamma cameras. The technology is meant to improve early detection for women who would not benefit from conventional mammography, such as women with dense breasts. GE said the breast imaging system would supplement mammography, not replace it as a primary screening tool.

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