PACS: Products – Nov/Dec 2018

Nov. 20, 2018

Agfa HealthCare embraces intelligence in its healthcare IT and imaging solutions to enable Care You Can See

At RSNA 2018, professionals can discover how AI enabled workflow optimization in Enterprise Imaging, and intelligent radiography powered by MUSICA, will help improve the delivery of patient care and enhance productivity.

  • With a single and secure imaging platform, Agfa HealthCare enhances multispecialty visualization aligned with leading value realization models.
  • Modular Enterprise Imaging platform simplifies access to a unified patient imaging record, empowering informed decision-making for radiologists and other physicians.
  • Agfa HealthCare is developing bringing AI to the modality level to enable “first time right” imaging in optimal conditions.

(RSNA, South Hall, Booth #3300) Visitors to RSNA 2018 will discover how Agfa HealthCare is bringing intelligence to healthcare IT and imaging, to improve the delivery of patient care and enhance productivity. Agfa HealthCare solutions deliver visual intelligence that supports informed decision-making, enabling “Care You Can See.”

A scalable solution supporting personalized care

Enterprise Imaging is an integrated yet modular solution that allows healthcare facilities to enable an imaging ecosystem at their own pace. Enterprise Imaging leverages Agfa Healthcare’s purpose-built task-based rules engine, multispecialty visualization, advanced clinical applications, and optimized triage workflow. Native and third-party AI applications will help enable fast access to relevant clinical information, to advance the delivery of cost effective quality patient care and improved productivity. The platform supports multi-specialty collaboration to help radiologists and other clinicians meet enterprise wide strategic initiatives.

Agfa HealthCare’ work to bring artificial intelligence to the imaging modality level

Agfa’s direct radiography portfolio and technologies deliver high-quality imaging, while improving workflow and user satisfaction. Each comes with MUSICA image processing and a choice of fixed, tethered and wireless detectors with Cesium Iodide (CsI) or Gadolinium Oxy-Sulphide (GOS) technology. CsI also offers the potential for dose reduction.
Agfa is developing products that bring Artificial Intelligence to the modality level—before, during and after exposure—to enable “first time right” images in optimal conditions. This is powered by the MUSICA self-adaptive image processing technology. The functions embedding Artificial Intelligence will focus on quality, and productivity, to improve the imaging experience of patients and staff. Data analytics tools use the information in the DR record to create meaningful reports for optimizing radiology efficiency. Artificial Intelligence at the acquisition is a works in progress. Afga

Solution for Microsoft HoloLens 510(k) cleared by the FDA for medical use

Courtesy of Novarad

The OpenSight Augmented Reality System is an AR medical solution for Microsoft HoloLens cleared by the FDA receiving 510(k) clearance for use in pre-operative surgical planning. Building upon Novarad’s experience in image processing, OpenSight renders 2D, 3D, and 4D images of patients interactively, while accurately overlaying them directly onto the patient’s body. The solution, along with patented virtual tool technology and an integrated targeting system, allows doctors to see the patient and into the patient simultaneously to more accurately plan surgery.

Unlike virtual reality (VR) used in previous preoperative planning systems, OpenSight utilizes the Microsoft HoloLens headset that not only allows one to see the 3D patient images in augmented reality (AR), but also to see the patient (reality) at the same time. Augmented reality also lets you see your complete real-world surroundings, avoiding the disorientation of virtual reality.

OpenSight augmented reality allows a much better understanding of anatomic relationships because the images are co-localized to the patient. Pre-operative planning with OpenSight makes it possible to highlight relevant anatomy and critical structures to avoid, as well as positioning virtual tools and guidance systems to more accurately plan a surgical approach. Multiple headsets can be shared among users improving the training of less experienced residents. A teaching version of the software is also available that allows medical students to perform virtual dissections on cadavers. Novarad

Ambra Health launches mobile app for instant access to medical images

Courtesy of Ambra Health

Ambra Health, makers of a cloud-based medical image management suite, announced the launch of its first iOS mobile app for healthcare providers and patient access. Designed with accessibility and ease of viewing in mind, the new Ambra Health app offers healthcare providers an image viewing that’s fully optimized for mobile viewing. Once securely logged in to the app, users benefit from instantaneous access to current and prior images in study lists with zero loading time. Users can effortlessly view imaging from anywhere, scroll through a series, and utilize radiology tooling like zooming, pinching, and rotating all from the palm of their hand. The Ambra app supports all imaging types from any connected PACS, including MR, CT, PET, CR, US, and MG. While not intended for diagnostic use, imaging can be securely shared directly from within the app to other physicians, administrators, and patients for enhanced communication and collaboration.
The Ambra app, which was developed in close collaboration with providers, allows physicians to access imaging on the go and communicate securely with other physicians and even patients. The company was recently recognized by KLAS Research as the top medical image exchange vendor for the fourth year in a row and named Startup-of-the-year in the SIIA Company CODiE Awards.

Today, more than 1,500 healthcare organizations use Ambra Health for image exchange and cloud VNA. Ambra’s network is growing at a rapid pace of two new provider gateways per day, resulting in more than four billion images now managed through the platform. Ambra Health

Life Image relaunches with new Interoperability Suite

Life Image, a global network for sharing clinical and imaging data that is powered by interoperability standards, announced its official relaunch. Specifically, the company unveiled its new unified Interoperability Suite, as well as expanded capabilities to better manage a range of medical data and solutions designed to meet the unique needs of all constituents in the healthcare ecosystem.

Life Image’s new Interoperability Suite brings all of the company’s applications together into one platform. The solution supports interoperability through standards-based connectivity to a wide range of data assets, such as medical claims, EHR, and imaging data, using HL7, FHIR, XDS, and DICOM. With this new suite, healthcare organizations can have increased flexibility for utilizing Life Image’s extensive global network in a wide range of use cases.

Life Image is also expanding its focus beyond provider entities to include life science, payer, and AI organizations. The company is applying its technical expertise in managing imaging data, which traditionally have been among the most difficult files to manage, to enrich other data types in order to support research and development for life science entities; population health and member engagement initiatives for payer organizations with its Mammosphere solution; and more.

Life Image will showcase its new Interoperability Suite at the 2018 Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Annual Meeting, scheduled for Nov. 25-30 in Chicago, IL. Visit Life Image at booth #1553 to learn more about its expanded offerings, and how the company’s interoperable network connects patients, providers, payers, life sciences, AI, and other organizations across the healthcare ecosystem. Life Image

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