Olympic Short Track Speedskaters Examined by Ultraportable Ultrasounds

GE Healthcare reports that Olympic athletes from the U.S., Italy and China are involved in a new first-of-its-kind clinical study to examine athletes’ hearts using portable ultrasounds “in a backpack”, systems called Vivid i and LOGIQ Book XP. From the press release:

“This study is the first-of-its-kind to investigate the cardiovascular effects of rest and activity of both short- and long-distance athletes who follow fundamentally different training regimes,” explained research leader Malissa Wood, MD at Massachusetts General Hospital and researcher at Harvard Medical School. “Past research has shown that abnormalities can develop in endurance athletes’ hearts after exercise. Such changes like stiffening of the heart are similar to changes found in the earliest phases of coronary heart disease. We hope that the findings of this study will allow physicians to use new methods to more precisely diagnose and follow the treatment of heart disease and heart failure in everyone from Olympic athletes to the patients we see every day.”

We have covered Vivid i before. Here is a quick look at LOGIQ Book XP:

LOGIQ Book XP is built on GE’s software-based TruScan architecture and patented miniaturization technologies to provide the capacity to store more than 30,000 clinical images. The system provides fast acquisition speeds and new digital beam-former transducer technologies to deliver high quality images for a full range of applications. Specifically, the system’s new 3S-RS phased array transducer delivers unprecedented image quality for cardiac screening and emergency applications, and the new i739-RS and t739-RS transducers offer dedicated capabilities for surgery.
The system’s user-friendly interface, personalized preset functionality and common LOGIQ family keyboard make it a practical solution for virtually any clinical environment. Designed with the all-digital future of healthcare in mind, LOGIQ Book XP offers the latest integrated networking, image storage, and wireless connectivity. These features allow clinicians to share information for consultation, archive or become part of an electronic medical record.

The ultrasound system offers a full range of imaging modalities, from B-mode to so-called “triplex imaging,” a simultaneous B-mode, color and spectral doppler. Check out the system at the product’s homepage…
The press release…