While conventional ultrasound is performed by placing a transducer against the skin to produce images of internal organs, endoscopic ultrasound works by endoscopically inserting the scope into the body via the gastrointestinal tract. In this way the transducer is close to the area of interest and allows physicians to obtain higher resolution images and better visualize the tissues of the digestive tract and adjacent organs.
“The ProSound F75 delivers outstanding image quality that facilitates easy identification and more accurate staging of GI tumors in my practice,” said Dr. Shyam Varadarajulu, Medical Director of the Center for Interventional Endoscopy and Professor of Medicine at the University of Central Florida. “The images are crisp with excellent resolution and the technology is truly versatile in its functionality.”
The new platform, Olympus says, will improve workflow from pre- to post-examination for better data management as well as to provide improved visualization for more accurate flood flow information. And ergonomically, the keyboard and monitor can be height- and depth-adjusted for to maximize comfort for endoscopists.
The device is also forward and backward compatible, which allows it to work with most endoscopic ultrasound and endobronchial ultrasound scopes. “We pride ourselves in making sure of that,” says Gross. “So for example, if we launch any new scopes we make sure they are compatible with this processor. And the majority of our previous scopes our also compatible with this processor. We think it’s important to give our physician customer the ability to adapt other scopes into these processers because we understand that from a budgetary standpoint it’s not always feasible to do an entire upgrade.”
According Olympus, the device improves quality of care by further enabling endoscopic ultrasound to optimize patient outcomes by more easily identifying and more accurately staging diseases and cancers in the gastrointestinal tract. That also helps provide a less invasive approach than conventional surgical diagnosis, as it alllows physicians to view internal anatomy without making an incision. The result is increased patient comfort and reduced risk of the complications, such as infection, associated with invasive procedures.
