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Magic Valley Regional Installs New LightSpeed CT Imaging System to Improve Patient Diagnosis
Magic
Valley Regional Medical Center has acquired a new breakthrough
computed tomography (CT) scanner that provides faster, more accurate
exams and detailed images of the human body. According to Jake
Rice, Director of Diagnostic Imaging at Magic Valley Regional,
this advanced technology not only means more diagnostic information
for doctors in routine situations, but its speed can also save
precious exam time in the emergency room.
The new LightSpeed CT scanner from GE Medical Systems allows doctors to simultaneously capture multiple images of a patient's anatomy in a matter of minutes. "In many cases, emergency room physicians rely on images from CT scanners to assess the extent of internal injury during the first and most critical hour for trauma patients," said Dr. Kevin Kraal, Emergency Department Physician. "Reducing the scan time by a few minutes or more can allow ER physicians to begin treating patients more quickly."
CT exams are used when people are ill or injured, or when a doctor suspects a medical problem that is not easily detectable from a normal physical examination. The LightSpeed CT scanner assists physicians in the diagnosis of a variety of anatomic areas, including the spine, head, abdomen, and chest.
"With LightSpeed, a CT exam that used to take us three minutes can now be completed in approximately 20 seconds," said Rice. "This allows us the speed and accuracy we need to quickly diagnose a variety of conditions for emergency and non-emergency patients of all ages."
The addition of LightSpeed complements and extends the high range of quality diagnostic services that Magic Valley Regional offers the residents of South Central Idaho and Northern Nevada. In addition, Magic Valley Regional provides traditional X rays, nuclear medicine, imaging, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
Originally developed in the 1970s, CT or "CAT," scans combine the power of X-ray technology and computers, allowing physicians the ability to view wafer-thin cross-sections of internal anatomy, without the need for surgery.