Philips launches image guided therapy system for advanced patient care

Healthcare technology company Philips launches its next generation image-guided therapy (IGT) platform Azurion.

Azurion marks one of Philips’ largest global product launches in recent years.

The platform integrates advanced interventional tools into one clinical platform. Philips states that Azurion provides procedure cards that allow clinicians to pre-programme routine tasks and user preferences. A user interface also lets clinicians perform a wide range of routine and complex procedures in the interventional lab. The systems can be applied to vascular surgery, interventional cardiology, oncology and neuroradiology.

Philips states that Azurion is the result of a multi-year development program. The programme was conducted in collaboration with clinicians, who acknowledge that the rapid growth of image-guided therapy procedures can provide hospitals with a way to control costs whilst also improving their standards of care. Azurion has been designed to help assist in these issues. The platform is equipped with new workflow options and performance dashboards, as well as an upcoming range of productivity improvement services.

Andy Rogers, head of Radiation Physics Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust said: “We are proud to partner with Philips UKI and to be one of the first centres in the world to receive this new advanced concept in IGT. We have found the pairing of excellent image quality with low radiation dose a great advantage when undertaking complex and lengthy cardiac procedures, while Azurion’s ease of use has let us quickly train staff on the system and integrate it into the cardiac catch lab environment. We are very excited with the future possibilities of integrating more of our equipment into a single touch-screen user interface, which will drive improvements in lab efficiency and superior patient care.”

Azurion also integrates Philips’ newly developed ConnectOS operating system to provide real-time information from all relevant technologies in the interventional lab. This, along with over 1,000 new components work together to deliver high image quality at ultra-low radiation exposure and real-time image processing on multiple work spots. Parallel working enables teams of clinicians to complete different tasks simultaneously, saving valuable time without compromising quality of care.

Bert van Meurs, business leader Image Guided Therapy at Philips said: “As a leader in image-guided therapy, we have been driving continuous innovation to address rising patient volumes and increased procedure complexity. Hundreds of Philips developers, engineers and designers and dozens of our clinical partners across the world have collaborated to completely redesign the heart of our portfolio. With the launch of our new Azurion platform, which was designed to optimize system integration and lab performance, we can deliver new turnkey solutions that support our customers in maintaining high standards of quality and patient care at predictable costs.”