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According to a new study from The Freedonia Group, a Cleveland, Ohio-based industry research firm, the demand for medical imaging products is expected to increase 6 percent annually to $21.4 billion by 2010.

The study entitled "Medical Imaging: Equipment, Agents and Consumables" attributed the increase to technological advances, changing healthcare protocol and an aging population.

Imaging equipment will increase by 6.8 percent in 2010 at the cost of $16 billion annually. CT scans are developing rapidly with newer multi-slice models. High field machines will make up most of the MRI installations with PET installations growing rapidly. Also, the development of the new hybrid PET/CT dual anatomical and metabolic scanning capabilities will expand at lightning speed.

Radiological consumables are expected to expand by 3.6 percent annually to $5.3 billion in 2010. The study shows that radiopharmaceuticals will provide the best growth opportunities based on the increase in nuclear medicine, PET procedures, and the increasing preference for biotechnology-derived substances to enhance resolution. The need for contrast methods will expand as the number of X-ray CT and MRI scans grows and where targeted organ or tissue needs visual enhancement.

Digital radiography systems are quickly replacing outdated analog machines. Nuclear medicine and ultrasound equipment will take over the X-ray and fluoroscopy systems. And, to continue to make care more portable, new four-dimensional imaging systems, laptops and handheld devices will expand the ultrasound equipment markets.

It's no surprise that medical imaging is constantly changing and the need will be growing. On any given day, the news is flying through the radiological and imaging community about new and improved methods to do the job.

Worth Saunders, chief administrative officer for Mid-South Imaging and Therapeutics, PA, said Memphis is no different when it comes to the rapid advancement of healthcare technology and the need for supportive imagining equipment and products. In fact, Memphis is a leader in new technologies.

"Radiology (imaging) is continually advancing as a diagnostic and treatment tool for many types of healthcare problems," Saunders said. "For example, several hospitals in Memphis, including Baptist Memorial Health Care where we practice radiology, have recently installed the latest imaging equipment in MRI, PET/CT and 64-slice CT scanners. We're also seeing rapid technological and clinical advances in the field of interventional radiology, which provide minimally invasive surgical alternatives for many types of traditional surgeries."

Across the nation, radiologists are faced with daily decisions not about needing new equipment, but about which system to purchase. Clinics sometimes spend sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars on the "latest and greatest" tool, only to learn that there is something just out that does the job more effectively.

For example, in May, Advanced Research Technologies (ART) launched a new version of its in vivo optical molecular imaging device for drug development.

Sebastian Gignac, president and CEO of ART, said, "As customers in the drug discovery and development process continue to demand tools for a deeper level of analysis, we're providing them with an optical imaging system, which sets new benchmarks for sensitivity while ensuring reliability and performance for applications requiring longitudinal studies. Today, we're more capable than ever of reducing cost and time to market for scientists by combining leading edge technology with flexible software solutions. We can help advance discovery faster through the adoption of ART's time-domain technology among industrial and academic researchers in the preclinical phases of drug development."

Also in May, AION Diagnostics Inc., a non-diagnostics company tht develops medical imaging agents, announced positive results of its pilot study showing the high intravascular contrast enhancement of modified porous silicon in reduced dose amounts. Mercury Computer Systems' new generation Visage™ 3-D technology has transformed medical workflow from acquisition, reconstruction, and visualization, to distribution and management.

Siemens Medical Solutions launched the first digital X-ray room on wheels in February. The Mobilett XP CR is the newest member of the XP product family, known for its superb image quality and convenience. It is the first mobile X-ray workstation and it allows for bedside imaging with an integrated monitor that shows the results of the exam in less than 50 seconds for the first image review in the hospital room. The images can be archived directly at the bedside and basic image processing steps such as brightness and contract and edge enhancement can be performed directly at the mobile system. It includes an integrated CR reading technology.

NEC Electronics America Inc., a leading supplier of innovative liquid crystal display solutions for medical applications, unveiled two new 54 centimeter amorphous silicon thin-film transistor modules. The 6 million pixel monochrome LCD module has a resolution of 2800 x 2100 pixels, which can display an estimated 12 percent more screen information than the 5 million pixel modules, and a 2 million pixel monochrome LCD module with ultra-extended graphics array resolution with a luminance level of 1700 candelas per square meter.

Dr. Shigehiko Satoh, associate vice president and general manager of the displays strategic business unit, NEC, said the new 6 million-pixel LCD module fills an important gap in the medical display market by not only offering very high resolution and one of the best display environments in which to analyze digital mammography images, but it also offers benefits to monitor manufacturers in terms of reduced development costs and shortened product development cycles.

Saunders said as a consequence of the significant growth in radiology procedures due to these technological advances and the aging population, imaging costs have grown significantly.

"The cost of radiology to Medicare grew by 22 percent from 2004 to 2005,"

Saunders noted. "Imaging is now on the top of the radar screen for private and government health insurers who are implementing strategies to manage the growth in the cost of imaging diagnosis and treatment. This conflict between the continued growth in imaging procedures and the significant growth in the cost of imaging will change the market dynamics in the future both nationally and here in Memphis."



June 2007

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