FUJIFILM enters advanced visualization market

CHICAGO, USA: This year at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting, FUJIFILM Medical Systems USA is announcing its entrance into the advanced visualization space with the introduction of Synapse(TM) 3D.

Fujifilm is building on its core strength in image processing by now offering its own advanced imaging capabilities for both general radiographic and cardiovascular applications. The company has also made other significant enhancements to its Synapse PACS including the introduction of Synapse communications and new features to further aid the interpretation of breast imaging studies.

Synapse 3D
Fujifilm is one of the first major PACS vendors to introduce its own 3D product which offers more than a dozen clinical applications delivering both radiology- and cardiovascular-specific applications such as 2D, 3D, 4D, virtual ultrasound, liver analysis, lung analysis, coronary CT/MR analysis and cardiac fusion.

Developed in conjunction with radiologists, cardiologists and surgeons who performed joint research with engineers, Synapse 3D is integrated right into Fujifilm's Synapse PACS application - eliminating the need for a 3rd party software.

The application is enterprise capable, and is available at any workstation where Synapse PACS is available. Powered by server-based rendering technology, Synapse 3D enables the radiologist or the technologist to perform the renderings.

"With Fujifilm's history of innovative image processing and analysis, it's a natural extension for us to draw on our strength and provide our own advanced visualization technology," explained Jim Morgan, Fujifilm's Executive Director of Marketing, Medical Informatics.

"While we have been providing MIP/MPR functionality as well as integrations to third party 3D applications, customers will have the option to select Synapse 3D which will be integrated directly into their Synapse PACS and Synapse Cardiovascular applications, providing the most efficient workflow for all clinicians," continued Morgan.

Already available in other parts of the world including Japan, Synapse 3D is currently installed in four evaluation sites in the US Physicians at Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, Penn., Yale University Medical Center, New Haven, Conn., Margaret Pardee Memorial Hospital, Hendersonville, N.C., and USC Medical Center, Los Angeles, Calif., have been using the product and providing feedback prior to its commercial release which is expected in the first quarter of 2010.

One of the evaluators is Meng Law, MD, Director of Neuroradiology, Los Angeles County Hospital and USC Medical Center, who presented findings on his use and review of the product at the International Cancer Imaging Society conference held in early October in Salzburg, Austria.

"In my evaluation, Synapse 3D has proven to be critical in terms of the diagnostic and outcomes value it provides," said Dr. Law. "The PET CT Fusion capabilities, in particular, have performed exceptionally well, and we look forward to using the systems in the future. We have also utilized the advanced MR capabilities for processing diffusion and perfusion data of the brain as well as using the calcium scoring tool for a research project investigating the utility of neurovascular calcium scoring for predicting stroke, "continued Law.

Enterprise Imaging
Synapse has undergone significant refinements to support not only the image and information managements needs of radiology and cardiology departments, as well as other critical care departments including oncology, pathology and ophthalmology.

The ability to provide both storage and distribution of images throughout the enterprise in both DICOM and web formats is critical to the integrated healthcare network. Additional features including smart forwarding and smart prefetching functionally have been added to allow images to flow seamless from and to Synapse PACS from third-party systems.

Synapse Communications
A comprehensive toolset enabling compliance with American College of Radiology (ACR) and Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) industry guidelines, Synapse communications is available as an option to Synapse PACS.

It includes a variety of features to enhance communication and help radiology departments and reading groups meet the ever changing business and regulatory requirements of radiology information management. Specific features include critical results reporting, peer review, instant messaging, QA discrepancy tracking and embedded task list management.

Synapse Communications is embedded into the Synapse PACS user interface to maximize performance and minimize user clicks.

Full Field Digital Mammography Enhancements
Fujifilm is demonstrating a new works in progress FFDM feature of Synapse PACS designed to work with any vendor to further aid the interpretation of breast imaging exams.

These specialized advanced visualization tools are tailored to meet the specific demands of breast imaging and reaffirm Fujifilm's ongoing commitment to assist in efficient and accurate detection of breast disease.

Breast bound detection and alignment Automatically left-right aligns images with optimum "zoom to breast borders", as is required for appropriate interpretation. This feature increases workflow efficiency by enabling the radiologist to immediately begin reading the images without having to manually prepare them.