BLOG: Patient-centric Injector Solutions Help CT Departments Take Control, Improve Safety

Patient safety is a fundamental requirement to all applications of radiology techniques and procedures. As the healthcare industry transforms to become more patient-centric, the role of radiologists is continuously evolving, making them active participants in patient care. This is driving the need for smart injection technology.

Bracco Diagnosticsis committed to advancing patient care by providing integratedcontrast injector solutions that facilitate high-qualitydiagnostic imaging.The company showcased its SmartInject Technology suite atthe2021Radiological Society of North America(RSNA) conference, which helps radiologists take greater control at the point of care to improve patient safety.

Empower CTA+ Injector System

Bracco’s SmartInject technology suite includes theEmpowerCTA+ Injector Systemfor CT imaging,which is specifically designed to help optimize imaging capabilities, streamline workflow and enhance patient care.

“At Bracco, we believe thateverything centers around the patient. And that's really the focus of our solutions,” said Chad Durling,senior manager, device marketing for Bracco Diagnostics. “With the smartEmpowerCTA+ Injector Systemour core focus is on safety, efficiency and connectivity—all centered around the patient, which then works its way into the workflow environment with the technologist.”

Safety Enhancements

灌顶cta +具有独特的安全增强功能，结合患者身边的数字触摸屏和语音提示，为用户提供更多的过程控制。Some of the key safety features of the injector system include saline advance, which determines patency and vein integrity prior to procedures, and saline jump, which allows for the immediate advancement to saline (once opacification has been reached), minimizing the contrast a patientreceives.This also eliminates the need to manually flush the patient IV to clear out the contrast.

“在注射造影剂之前，重要的是要确保患者有良好的静脉通路。注射器可以控制血管通畅，使用者可以待在患者身边，这一点非常重要，因为他们不必离开患者，回到控制室，而不知道发生了什么。”

Another safety feature of the injector is the built-in tilt sensor and position lock to minimize the likelihood of an air embolism. Finally, theeGFR calculatorassists in the critical evaluation of kidney function before contrast is delivered.

Streamlined Workflow

The EmpowerCTA+supports a more streamlined workflow throughautomated injector documentation, which captures the programed injection protocol and any deviations, including the amount of contrast loaded and delivered, pressure injection graphs and extravasation information.

Further enhancements streamlining workflow and patient care include increased system user control and efficiencies such as simultaneously operating dual syringes during loading and unloading procedures; auto initialization, which efficiently prepares the syringes for filling; and protocol fill, which automatically fills syringes to volumes based on the selected protocol.

Other integrated efficiencies include a convenient remote control pause function, fixed fill rate and purge function to automatically remove air from the systemso the injector is ready for use. All these featuresenable immediate control at the patient’s side and in the control room.

NEXO Contrast Management System

Radiologists and technicians can take greater control at the point of care and improve safety with Bracco’s server-based data-management and visualization system—NEXOContrast Management System. The system can read, store, share, compare/relate, as well as graphically display data and injection programs coming from RIS, PACS and multiple enabled EmpowerCTA+ and provides the users with record-lists, graphics and reports about data and performances, including simplified reporting that helps track patient history and IV contrast delivery.

NEXO注入器为技术人员提供了直观的工作流程，并将自动化的工作列表集成到技术人员的工作流程中。为匹配的检查提供正确的静脉造影方案。“该软件是在整个企业范围内部署和管理的，这使得维护整个健康系统的一致性非常容易。”德林说。

According to Durling, once the injector injection is complete, NEXO is instrumental in automating the documentation of the completed exam and patient data by sending to the hospital PACS, EMR or Voice Dictation.

“NEXO captures key patient and injection data into the PACs report. So now there is a documented record for the clinicians to review. If the technologist leaves, or there is a shift change, or the radiologist has a question, they have both the DICOM image and they also have all the injections history report in NEXO, as well as the technologist notes right next to the image,” Durling explained.

编者注:本博客是关于智能注入技术的四部分系列文章的第二部分。The first blog can be foundhere.