Boston Scientific, the Natick-based medical device manufacturer, announced it has teamed with Philips Healthcare and Siemens Medical Solutions to provide doctors with a tool that can give a 360-degree view of the heart.
Boston Scientific’s iLab ultrasound imaging system will work with the Philips Allura Xper and the Siemens AXIOM x-ray systems to create an imaging device for the heart and coronary vessels. The product will help doctors diagnose diseased vessels better than the traditional angiography model.
The technology uses sound waves and catheters to map the interior of the heart.
The partnership follows a similar pact BSX has with GE Healthcare.
“Boston Scientific is proud to work with Philips and Siemens to offer integrated imaging systems that support improvements in performance, workflow and ease of use,” said Joe Fitzgerald, Senior Vice President and President of Boston Scientific’s Endovascular Unit. “Cath labs worldwide can now integrate the iLab Ultrasound Imaging System with the vast majority of interventional X-ray systems.”
IVUS technology incorporates a tiny catheter inserted into the heart or coronary vessels where high-frequency sound waves reflect off tissue or vessel walls. The reflected sound waves create a cross-sectional image from within the heart or vessel, which can help determine treatment options. Unlike fractional flow reserve (FFR) technology, IVUS may be used to help select balloon and stent sizes and to view stent apposition and expansion after stent placement. The iLab System features exceptional image quality and the option for physicians to use a variety of catheters to accommodate coronary, peripheral and intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) applications.