GE Healthcare has introduced the Alcyone Technology, a revolutionary nuclear cardiology platform in India. The nuclear cardiology technology comes after an interval of 50 years. The first system in India with Alcyone technology, which is known as the Discovery NM 530C is installed and operational at Jaslok Hospital, Mumbai.

“The Molecular Imaging has shortened traditional exam times and reduced dose without compromising a clinician or researcher’s ability to understand disease from the beginning,” said Terri Bresenham, vice president, GE Healthcare Molecular Imaging business.

"Alcyone technology reduces injected dose by up to 50 per cent and patient scanning time to as low as three minutes - which is shortened by 10 times or a four fold decrease in complete patient screening time compared to conventional systems,” she added.

The technology brings together a breakthrough design based on combining solid state based CZT detectors, focused pin-hole collimation, stationary data acquisition and 3D reconstruction, to improve workflow, dose management, and overall image quality. It is highly sensitive and the zero equipment motion improves both image quality and energy resolution, enabling the potential for new clinical applications including 3D dynamic acquisitions and simultaneous dual isotope imaging.

With GE Healthcare’s next-generation Alycone technology available on GE Healthcare’s revolutionary cardiac imaging scanners, Discovery NM 530c and Discovery NM 570c, clinicians are able togather image data much more quickly. Unlike conventional nuclear imaging, all views are acquired simultaneously during a fully stationary SPECT acquisition, eliminating equipment movement during the scan. Focused multi-pinhole collimation has been strategically positioned to view cardiac anatomy and pathology with greater clarity and speed, resulting in scan times as short as three minutes.

With conventional nuclear cardiac imaging, a patient must hold their arms above their head for two scanning procedures that take between 25 to 30 minutes each with an interval of three hours. With the Discovery NM530c, the scanning time is reduced to three to five minutes for each scanning procedure reducing the time taken for patient procedure drastically. Alcyone technology also allows a reduction of up to 50 per cent in the radio-isotope being administered to the patient for cardiac scanning. This reduction in time can be less painful, and possibly reduce any patient movement due to the pain or uncomfortable positioning, causing artifacts in the scan. A shorter, more comfortable scan has the opportunity to improve image quality, allowing clinicians to be more confident in their diagnosis.

"The impact of Alcyone Technology on cardiological management could be considered a revolution in many aspects. It offers dose reduction, the potential for more accurate identification of triple-vessel cardiac disease, and a cost-effective investigation tool for myocardial blood flow. Nuclear Cardiology is the most efficient way of detecting cardiac diseases early. It will not have to spend four to five hours to get a diagnostic cardiac test done and for the hospital, the saved time can be used for diagnosing more patients,” said Dr Vikram Lele, head of the Department, Nuclear Medicine & PET/ CT, Jaslok Hospital, Mumbai.

The Discovery NM/CT 570c has the ability to perform a complete cardiac scan in less than five minutes including myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI), Computed Tomographic Angiography (CTA), and calcium scoring (CaSC). The Discovery NM/CT 570c also shortens acquisition times, improves dose management, and enables more convenient patient scheduling in comparison to separate, conventional SPECT and CT exams.