Siemens demonstrated industry leadership once again with molecular imaging's most recent innovation in single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) - IQ·SPECT™.¹ This new feature in SPECT enables a comprehensive cardiac evaluation including perfusion, attenuation correction, and calcium scoring in as little as five minutes² when traditional cardiac SPECT perfusion studies can average 15 to 20 minutes. Available for the Symbia® product line, IQ·SPECT allows organspecific cardiac evaluations with enhanced image quality. For medical facilities, this innovation means being able to accommodate more patients in less time and also to meet a variety of patient needs.

IQ•SPECT's 'intelligence' is achieved through a combination of three technologies beginning with SMARTZOOM™, a specially designed smart collimator that magnifies the heart while imaging the rest of the torso under traditional conditions. Second, the SMARTZOOM collimator works in a cardio-centric orbit to maximize the amount of cardiac information collected from the patient. Finally, unique IQ•SPECT reconstruction makes the innovation complete and is seamlessly integrated into the current Symbia workflows and automation features, giving physicians access to the most flexible and versatile system available today.

Calcium scoring with SPECT•CT, extracted from a quick lowdose spiral CT, has also become a critical element in the cardiac work-up to evaluate the extend of cardiac disease in patients. Adding the 30-second CT to the SPECT study can not only illustrate any ischemia present in the patient, but also can assess the buildup of calcium in the coronary arteries. The addition of IQ•SPECT to these important SPECT•CT studies may lead to new risk stratification algorithms and work-ups for patients with suspected coronary artery disease.