Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh plans to adapt booking system following CT update

The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, part of NHS Lothian, has installed two AI-assisted CT scanners from Canon Medical Systems. Designed using Deep Learning Reconstruction, they are powered by an Advanced intelligent Clear-IQ Engine (AiCE) to deliver high quality medical imaging at speed.

“As radiographers we can become blasé about the imaging equipment we use on a daily basis, but the arrival of the Aquilion One Prism Edition CT and Aquilion Prime SP CT have reminded us of the amazing innovation going into medical imaging today,” said CT/MRI superintendent Lynne Thomson. “Our cardiologists have been blown away with how quick a cardiac CT is acquired using the wide detector, as well as the image quality achieved at such low doses.

“It’s not just the speed, low dose and image quality that have impressed us, but also the versatility of the new CT scanners. Area Finder functionality is useful for 4D joints and extremity imaging, which means we can seat patients at the end of the scanner. We have plans to adapt the way we book appointments for patients since the arrival of the new CTs, which will lead to better workflow across a number of departments at the hospital.”

A range of software applications expands procedures for clinical practice and research. In CT pulmonary angiography, iodine mapping is used as standard, which provides radiologists with extra information to aid diagnosis. “A greater level of information delivered more quickly is better for clinical decision making and is now achieved at lower dose,” states Canon. “Similarly, interventional radiologists have found the subtraction package for CT peripheral angiograms valuable. This provides excellent visualisation of the vessels, replacing the need to see vascular calcification via an MRI scan, which is not suitable for many patients, but still with reassurance of the dose being low.”

Picture: Canon Medical account manager Iain Gray with radiographer Lorna Chalmers, CT/MRI superintendent Lynne Thomson, radiographer Matthew Reilly and clinical assistant Colin Fraser.

Published on page 3 of the June 2021 issue of RAD Magazine.