and paper. While paper and film printing is still available and in use
today, storing images and accessing in a digital format is most com-
mon. Be sure you coordinate your C-arm purchase with your IT
department. "All I wanted to do is plug it in the wall and push go,"
says Ms. Schultz. "But everything has to be compatible over your net-
work so that the C-arm saves images in the correct format."
Most newer C-arm models will have DICOM (Digital Imaging and
Communications in Medicine) built into them, says Chris Sharrock,
the C-arm product manager at Block Imaging, a C-arm refurbisher in
Holt, Mich. DICOM lets you interface your unit with remote viewing
stations. A C-arm with DICOM can send the pictures it takes to the
facility network for viewing at multiple terminals and often through
web access. Older C-arms can still convert their images to DICOM,
but will require an accessory known as a DICOM box to convert them
to the universal format that other workstations will recognize, says
Mr. Sharrock.
Which C-arm is right for you?
Today's fluoroscopy devices are safer, nimbler and more powerful.
The manufacturer of a new mobile C-arm touts its ability to deliver
the lowest radiation dose possible without sacrificing image quality.
The key? The C-arm asymmetrically crops images on all sides, thereby
putting the area of immediate importance into primary focus and
reducing exposure for staff and patient alike. Then there's a yet-to-be
released 3D C-arm with a 30-cm-by-30-cm flat-panel, "the world's only
3D C-arm with flat-panel technology that provides a 16 cm edge length
per scan volume." This C-arm will offer 180° image information of any
anatomical structure. "With up to 7 vertebrae in one scan volume, it
offers the largest 3D image volume in the market," says the company.
3D imaging offers unparalleled precision and accuracy, says Theresa
7 3
January 2015 | O U T PAT I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T
