At this year's RSNA, Siemens Ultrasound also will highlight enhancements to its Sequoia system, the top-selling ultrasound system in the United States for eight years running. With a constant flow of new capabilities being added to this flagship technology, the Sequoia system continues to deliver ultrasound solutions that meet the demands of busy diagnostic and research practices. The new feature enhancements being showcased for the Sequoia system build on the success of the platform to enable improved diagnostic image quality, workflow and ergonomics.
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The Encompass II release features high resolution color flow (HRCF), an innovative technology that applies Chirp-coded excitation to color Doppler to dramatically address spatial resolution and sensitivity.
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Beverly Hashimoto, M.D., section head of ultrasound, Department of Radiology, Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle, Wash., found the HRCF technology valuable in her daily work. "In all cases, the HRCF exhibited better penetration and sensitivity compared to regular color Doppler," she said.
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HRCF technology addresses spatial resolution, color bleeding, slow flow sensitivity, color penetration, vascular hemodynamics and deep flow identification. It is expected to be most powerful when used for imaging in the abdomen and obstetrics, renal studies, peripheral vascular studies, and imaging of small parts such as breast, thyroid, testicle and tumor studies. Also featured in the release is a high-resolution, flat panel display monitor and integrated CD/DVD-R for easy viewing and cost-effective export of exam data.\t
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"The Sequoia platform positions our customers for the challenges they face today, and leaves them well-poised to address the issues of tomorrow," said Klaus Hambuechen, president, Ultrasound Division, Siemens Medical Solutions. "Our strategy is to improve our customers' workflow by delivering integrated platform technologies and new clinically proven applications. The Encompass releases leverage the power and efficacy of the Sequoia platform and protect our customers' investment with continuous upgradeability and focus on leading-edge image quality."

Additional ultrasound products and technology highlighted at RSNA include:

* The Encompass III release -- Providing new means to extract and display myocardial mechanics from ultrasound information called Axius Velocity Vector Imaging (VVI) for the shared-service Sequoia ultrasound platform. The quantitative motion analysis tool is intended for use with any transducer for all cardiovascular imaging including adult, pediatrics, transesophageal (TEE), intracardiac echocardiography, fetal and vascular applications.

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