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Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center celebrates completion of new interventional radiology suite

by jmaloni
Sat, Jun 16th 2012 02:45 am

Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center officials this week celebrated the completion of a new $1.4 million interventional radiology suite with a ceremonial ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The spacious new facility, located in the hospital's diagnostic imaging department, utilizes the Allura Xper FD20 interventional lab from Philips - a fully digital system featuring the most modern medical technology available today. The FD20 enables the medical center to conduct minimally invasive procedures to treat a wide range of clinical problems including stroke, carotid artery disease, and other vascular disorders.

These catheter-based procedures are designed to reduce some of the risks and recovery time found in traditional surgical approaches.

"Nationwide, one in six Americans suffer from one or more forms of cardiovascular disease. The statistics are even worse here in Niagara County," said Mark D. Perry, M.D., a Memorial board member and chief of the medical center's department of radiology.

"Our new, state-of-the-art, vascular and interventional radiology laboratory will enable our physicians to diagnose and treat these conditions locally and in a more timely fashion without the need for transfer to another facility."

Among the many benefits of catheter-based interventions are shorter hospital stays, reduced recovery time without the pain of a large incision, and less visible surgical scarring.

The new system enables physicians to capture and view detailed 3D images of a patient's vascular structure, thereby facilitating faster and more accurate diagnosis and treatment of vascular disease.

Equally important, the Allura exposes patients to less radiation during the actual procedures than other systems, said interventional radiologist Sadashiv Shenoy, M.D., who along with Nikhil Patel, M.D., and Jeannine Stowell, N.P., provides interventional radiology services at Memorial Medical Center.

"Both our patients and clinicians will benefit from the speed and excellent image accuracy of this new X-ray system," Shenoy said. "It will allow us to complete a variety of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures more quickly, which means patients are off the table and on their way to recovery and discharge much sooner. It also means less radiation exposure for the patient."

The multi-functional system can aid in the diagnosis and treatment of a range of patient conditions and can be used for procedures such as diagnostic catheterizations, stenting, balloon angioplasty, and embolizations.

"Interventional X-ray technology is a vital component in the future of medicine," said Greg Neukirch, vice president, cardiac and vascular x-ray, Philips Healthcare North America. "The Philips Allura brings a new level of quality and detail to Niagara Falls Memorial's images, allowing physicians to offer patients safe and effective alternatives to surgery."

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