Rady Children's Hospital San Diego

CT Scan

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CT Scan

64-Slice LightSpeed CT Scanner

If you’ve ever tried to keep a child completely still — especially if he's sick or scared — you can imagine the challenges faced by the Radiology Division. Now, some of those challenges are gone forever, replaced by equipment that is not only fast, but amazing in its diagnostic capabilities.

Rady Children’s newest piece of equipment — the General Electric 64-Slice LightSpeed CT Scanner — is the first such scanner to be installed in San Diego County and the first in a children’s hospital worldwide.

It’s unbelievably fast, taking 64 “slices,” or pictures, every 1/3 of a second — and can complete an entire body scan in less than five seconds, a process that used to take five minutes. This reduces, and sometimes eliminates, the need for sedation for most patients and dramatically reduces radiation exposure.

In the case of heart exams, the new machine can often eliminate the need for invasive catheterizations through the arteries and into the heart chambers. Instead, physicians get a comprehensive tour, literally in a heartbeat.

And speed is only the beginning. The images can be reformatted almost instantly into 3-D pictures. Imagine: Now a neurosurgeon can travel around the vessels of a baby’s tiny brain without surgery. Orthopedists can examine bones to see if limbs are healing. Trauma physicians can get a complete look to check for injuries.

Please see Radiology for more information.

 

As incredible as the equipment is, so is the generosity of the Auxilians who helped fund its purchase. One-third of its $1.6 million purchase price was raised by these hard-working and dedicated volunteers.
 

Image - CT Scanner