1/2005

CEILING-MOUNTED INTERVENTIONAL IMAGING SOLUTION WITH FLAT DETECTOR TECHNOLOGY

AXIOM Artis® dTC is a versatile new solution designed to optimize the workflow in the cardiology department – from preparation to diagnosis and therapy planning – for both diagnostic and interventional procedures. Equipped with flat detector technology, AXIOM Artis dTC offers exceptional performance at reduced dose levels. The ceilingmounted system offers flexibility in C-arm positioning and patient access that are unique in the industry. From the point of acquisition to follow-up data review, reporting, and archiving, AXIOM Artis dTC is a perfect fit in most clinics’ operational and communicative workflow environments. Its networking features include full DICOM compliance for outstanding interactive informational exchange capabilities as well as IT networking within the cath lab and across virtually all modalities.

SIEMENS ACQUIRES CTI MOLECULAR IMAGING

Siemens and CTI Molecular Imaging, Inc. (Nasdaq: CTMI) announced on March 18, 2005, that they have entered into a merger agreement under which Siemens will acquire CTI. The acquisition will include all the businesses of CTI Molecular Imaging, Inc. Under the terms of the agreement, Siemens Medical Solutions U.S.A., Inc., will commence a cash tender offer to acquire all of the outstanding shares of CTI stock at a price of $20.50 per share. Following the completion of the tender offer, any remaining shares of CTI stock will be acquired in a merger at the same price per share. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, and is expected to close in the second quarter of 2005. With this acquisition, Siemens strengthens its commitment to molecular imaging development, technological innovation, and the creation of dynamic new technologies that will revolutionize the diagnosis and treatment of disease. “This step is a natural progression in our longtime association with CTI, and reflects Siemens’ overall strategy to transform the delivery of healthcare by developing trendsetting innovations that improve patient care while reducing costs,” said Erich Reinhardt, Ph.D., CEO and president of Siemens Medical Solutions. CTI Molecular Imaging was established in 1983, focusing on positron emission tomography (PET) and molecular imaging and later extended its business into research, development, and the distribution of PET tracers and probes. CTI PET Systems (CPS) was formed in 1987 as a joint venture between CTI and Siemens to combine CTI’s expertise in PET technology with Siemens’ global distribution network.

NEW MAGNETIC-ASSISTED INTERVENTION SYSTEM FOR CENTRAL BAPTIST HOSPITAL

Following initial success as the first hospital in the world to install and utilize the AXIOM Artis® dFC Magnetic Navigation system, a technology developed by Siemens Medical Solutions in conjunction with Stereotaxis, Inc., the Baptist Heart and Vascular Institute at Central Baptist Hospital of Lexington, KY, has purchased a second system for interventional cardiovascular purposes. The new system will be devoted to procedures in the interventional cardiology department while the first system, purchased in early 2003, will be dedicated to the hospital’s electrophysiology department. The AXIOM Artis dFC Magnetic Navigation system uses computer-controlled permanent magnets external to the patient’s body for orienting the magnetic tip of specially designed catheters and guidewires. This interventional technique allows clinicians at the Baptist Heart and Vascular Institute to more accurately navigate catheters and guidewires to designated target sites within the heart and coronary vasculature, making interventional procedures easier and more comfortable for both the clinician and the patient.

CT IMAGES INVESTIGATE PHARAOH’S CAUSE OF DEATH

Using images generated by a portable SOMATOM® Emotion 6 computed tomography system, experts in Egypt have examined the cause of King Tutankhamen’s death some 3 000 years ago. The CT scan of the pharaoh’s mummy did not find evidence that Tutankhamen was murdered. The mummy of Tutankhamen was discovered in Egypt’s Valley of Kings in 1922. An initial X-ray analysis in 1968 revealed a bone splinter embedded in the pharaoh’s skull. This fact – coupled with the body’s obviously hasty mummification and burial – led to speculation that Tutankhamen had died from head injuries, and possibly had been murdered. A CT examination, based on images generated from a total of 1700 slices, found no evidence for this theory. The pharaoh may have suffered from a broken thigh shortly before his death at the age of 19. Some members of the examination team say that he may have died from an infection of this wound. They refer to the fact that the CT images revealed embalming resin inside the wound and that there was no sign of a healing process. Other scientists on the team doubt that the injury was the cause of the king’s death. They believe the wound could have been inflicted later by archaeologists examining the mummy, arguing that there was no evidence for haematoma, which should be there if the injury was inflicted during the pharaoh’s lifetime.

NEW APPLICATIONS FOR COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY

Siemens Medical Solutions has introduced new computed tomography (CT) applications including Advanced Bone Removal for syngo InSpace4DTM, syngo Body Perfusion CT, and CT Respiratory Gating for radiation treatment planning. Advanced Bone Removal is a feature of syngo InSpace4D designed to improve diagnostic outcomes and optimize preoperative planning for surgical procedures. Fast and easy, the fully automated workflow facilitates fast segmentation and removal of bony structures. It provides enhanced visualization of vascular structures, stenoses, aneurysms, and stents, plus complex fractures. syngo Body Perfusion CT enables the functional diagnosis of organs and tumors, interventional therapy planning, and therapy monitoring. CT Respiratory Gating provides information about tumor motion during the patient’s respiratory cycle. “By using Siemens’ CT Respiratory Gating on our SOMATOM Sensation OpenTM we can create a more accurate radiation treatment plan based on a precise understanding of tumor motion,“ says Christoph Schneider, M.D., Het Nederlands Kanker Institute, Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Ziekenhuis, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. These applications will be available in mid-2005.

CANCER RESEARCH CENTER AND SIEMENS INCREASE COOPERATION

Radiation therapy research is one of the most important focal points at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ). The work of the medical physicists is coming to fruition: the Center and Siemens Medical Solutions recently signed a cooperation as well as licensing agreement for software to be used for the planning of particle therapy with protons. While Siemens receives the exclusive right of use for software and calculation methods for accurately planning particle therapy sessions with protons, the company reciprocates by supporting research positions for a period of three years. Additionally, the Institute benefits from revenues through the sale of software for therapy planning. DKFZ provides the required knowledge, works closely with Siemens on product development, and then takes over clinical testing and further development of the planning programs. Important components of the licensing agreement concluded between the DKFZ Office of Technology Transfer and Siemens include the planning program for tumors in the brain and the body (“KonRad2“) and for eye tumors (“OCTOPUS“), which were developed to a large extent in the center’s Department of Medical Physics for Radiation Therapy under the direction of Professor Wolfgang Schlegel. “The cooperation with Siemens will be another great milestone in the development of particle therapy,” stated Schlegel. Siemens will implement the technologies developed within the framework of the cooperative agreement in standard solutions for particle therapy, making them available to cancer patients worldwide. RIGHT: SYNGO BODY Perfusion CT enables the functional diagnosis of organs and tumors. Particle Therapy, KonRad 2, and OCTOPUS are works-in-progress, require FDA premarket clearance, and are not presently available for commercial distribution in the U.S.

PROVEN SOMATOM EMOTION TECHNOLOGY NOW WITH 16 SLICES

The new SOMATOM Emotion® 16 will enable hospitals and private practices with limited budgets or space allocations to install a 16-slice CT suitable for comprehensive clinical applications. The SOMATOM Emotion product line has been proven in almost 3 500 installations worldwide, and is thus among the most successful product lines in CT history. SOMATOM Emotion 16 and all its components require only 18.5 square meters of installation space because, as an air cooled system, it does not need an external cooling device outside the gantry. In addition to the economical purchase price, this minimal space requirement – compared to other corresponding systems – and the overall low life cycle costs also contribute to the system’s cost efficiency. From a clinical perspective, the new scanner offers every advantage of a modern 16-slice system: image acquisition without movement artifacts, high diagnostic image quality, a maximum gantry rotation speed of 0.5 seconds, and a comprehensive set of clinical applications. After completing a comprehensive testing phase at clinical institutions in Europe, the United States, and Asia, the SOMATOM Emotion 16 will be commercially available in fall 2005.

IMPROVED ACCESS TO ENTIRE HEART IN ALL PATIENTS

The new ACUSON AcuNav™ 8F ultrasound catheter from Siemens Ultrasound Division offers the medical community an even smaller tool to visualize the entire heart during diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Sized at eight French, the new catheter is 33 percent smaller in the cross-sectional area than the existing AcuNav 10F catheter, yet provides the same powerful, high resolution and depth of imaging. “The size and flexibility of the new catheter were very impressive and provided us with improved visualization of defects with less trauma to the patients,” says Ziyad M. Hijazi, M.D., MPH, section chief of pediatric cardiology and professor of pediatrics and medicine, University of Chicago. “During evaluation, I performed two atrial septal defect (ASD) closure procedures and one patent foramen ovale (PFO) procedure on a total of three patients, two being quite small, and the third weighing just over 260 pounds. With the 8F, I was able to get spectacular images of clinical significance with no problem at all.” Dr. Hijazi and other clinical evaluators say the new catheter will change the way ASD closure procedures are performed in smaller patients. Frank E. Silvestry, M.D., director of University of Pennsylvania Cardiac Care at Radnor, and an assistant professor of medicine in the Cardiovascular Division, was equally impressed with the AcuNav 8F catheter during ASD and PFO closure procedures, specifically noting that it is capable of performing at the same advanced level as the existing AcuNav 10F catheter, but in a smaller and safer package. “I think the new 8F catheter represents a significant step forward in the field of intracardiac echocardiography imaging. The twodimensional images were spectacular over a range of imaging frequencies, and it had great near-field imaging resolution at 8.5 to 10 MHz, and excellent far-field penetration at 5.5 to 7.5 MHz. Additionally, the color Doppler was excellent in both the near and the far field,” says Dr. Silvestry.