In medical terms, it’s called dual source computed tomography. In terms of your health, it means that an illness or injury can be diagnosed more quickly and accurately than ever before, with half the radiation exposure. 

It’s the world’s fastest, most advanced computed tomography (CT) scanner. And Meritus Medical Center is the only hospital in the region to have one. In fact, the technology is so advanced that there are fewer than 100 dual source scanners in the United States.

Our dual source CT is so fast it can scan a beating heart—something previously impossible without using medications to slow the heart. Best of all, it produces very clear, detailed images rapidly, so we can pinpoint problems with great precision. It is especially critical during an emergency or trauma, when patients must be treated quickly. 

At Meritus Medical Center, we’re proud to provide our patients with the world’s most advanced medical technology, experience, and compassion to care for the health of our region…all in a heartbeat.

One-Stop Diagnosis for Trauma Patients
In the emergency room, seconds are critical as physicians make potentially life-saving decisions. The faster trauma physicians are able to assess a patient’s condition and make an accurate diagnosis, the faster that appropriate, cost-effective care can be administered, reducing the need for unnecessary tests and enabling better outcomes for the patient and the hospital.

Physicians at Meritus Medical Center are now able to assess trauma patients in seconds—without surgery—using the recently installed SOMATOM Definition, the first system to incorporate two x-ray sources and two detectors. At twice the speed and resolution of the most advanced single-source CT systems, the Definition enables physicians to review results before the patient has left the table, so physicians can provide immediate feedback to the patient and quickly determine treatment options.

Faster Than a Beating Heart
While computed tomography imaging has given physicians a clearer picture inside the human body, even the most advanced CT systems have encountered a challenge when it comes to capturing detailed images of the heart. The motion of the beating heart can cause blurred images, making it necessary for some patients to take beta blockers to slow the heart before a traditional CT exam. This can delay diagnosis in acute care situations, when seconds count.

The speed of the Definition enables physicians at Meritus Medical Center to freeze-frame nearly any beating heart. This means our doctors can examine almost any patient—regardless of condition or heart rate—without the need for the patient to take beta blockers. For example, a patient with chest pain can be accurately assessed with a single scanning procedure that takes just seconds. As a result, this advanced CT system can be used to pinpoint disease earlier and non-invasively, even in patients with irregular heart rates or arrhythmia.

Every year, approximately five million Americans visit the emergency room with acute chest pain, resulting in two million hospital admissions. However, only a fraction of these patients are found to have ischemic coronary artery disease. The ability to accurately diagnosis patients in the emergency room enables physicians to avoid unnecessary admissions for further testing.

Some patients who have conditions that rule out the use of beta blockers would not have been eligible for CT exams before the arrival of the Definition. These include patients who have asthma, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, and other conditions that affect breathing, since beta blockers can make these conditions worse by narrowing the air passages in the lungs.

Twice the Power with Less Radiation
Computed tomography (CT) is a diagnostic imaging procedure that uses a combination of x-rays and computer technology to produce cross-sectional images of the body. Using dual-source computed tomography, Meritus Medical Center physicians are now able to obtain finely detailed images that enable them to make more knowledgeable diagnostic decisions without surgery.

The dual-source CT uses two x-ray sources and offers twice the imaging power, yet it also benefits patients by delivering as much as 50% less radiation exposure than the most advanced single-source systems. Physicians can minimize radiation exposure to patients because the dual-source CT system automatically selects the fastest possible scan speed and adjusts x-ray exposure based on the patient’s heart rate.

The ability to conduct CT scans at the lowest possible dose is particularly beneficial to physicians examining children, since children are more sensitive to radiation than adults.

More Elbow Room
More than 55 million computed tomography (CT) exams are performed in the U.S. each year, enabling physicians to obtain detailed three-dimensional images of a patient’s anatomy. But not all patients have been able to take advantage of the full diagnostic capabilities of CT, such as individuals who are obese, have shortness of breath, or have elevated heart rates.

Physicians at Meritus Medical Center are able to bring the benefits of advanced CT to nearly any patient, regardless of size, medical condition, or heart rate, using the new CT system.
 
The Definition is large enough to examine obese patients, who may not fit comfortably in traditional CT scanners. And it has the imaging power to penetrate thicker layers of tissue, providing detailed images of the body regardless of size.

Men and women who may be uncomfortable in close spaces will also appreciate the larger scanning bed of the Definition dual source CT system.

The Expanded Capabilities of Dual Source CT
Advances in computed tomography in recent years have enabled physicians to obtain three-dimensional images of the anatomy with increasing clarity and precision, allowing them to pinpoint disease earlier and without surgery.

Until now, this clarity has been measured in “slices”—that is, cross-sectional horizontal and vertical images of a patient’s body—with CT scanners producing sixty-four slices. With the new dual source CT, physicians at Meritus Medical Center are able to go beyond slices. For example, they can perform simultaneous exams at different x-ray energies, which allows them to obtain diverse information about the anatomy in a single scan.

Because x-ray energies are absorbed differently by different areas of the body (such as bone, soft tissue, and fluid), our physicians can use the Definition to better differentiate and isolate these areas, which may have previously been difficult to interpret. Using these different energies, bone tissue may be “subtracted” from the CT image with a click of the mouse so that soft tissue and organs can be seen clearly. In addition, the dual-source capabilities enable physicians to further characterize and distinguish plaque, an early indicator of heart disease, and tumors in diagnostic oncology treatments.