Veterinary referral centre looks forward to higher throughput following MRI upgrade

Northwest Referrals in Wigan has upgraded its veterinary MRI scanner to an Esaote Vet Grande. Managing director James Weston said: “Our current Esaote scanner was the single most reliable piece of kit in the practice, with very few faults or breakdowns in the 16 years it has been used. We wanted to increase the throughput on the MRI and this enables us to not raise the cost to our customers, even with the expenditure of the new scanner. Our aim was to improve image quality and scan times significantly with the new scanner, which it has proved to do.”

The open field system is designed for continuous visualisation of the animal, which can be rapidly positioned for the scan. The open design allows easy access and it has pre-programmed veterinary protocols for optimal images. Common cases that are referred to the veterinary centre for MRI include syringomyelia screenings, spinal disc protrusions and animals with history of seizures. “We use the MRI for diagnostic investigations and are fortunate enough to have surgeons in-house who can perform complex corrective surgeries,” adds Weston. “As this is a low field scanner our ongoing costs are significantly less.

“I have been working with Esaote for 16 years already and plan to continue this into the future.”

Picture: Inpatient veterinary surgeon Lisa Watts, veterinary nurse Emma Garner, managing director James Weston, assistant manager Amanda Workman and anaesthetist Danielle Gardner.

Published on the front page of the February 2021 issue of RAD Magazine.