Volcano Corporation has launch its patented VH IVUS system, which the company claims is the first technology to enable real time (in the cardiac catheterization lab) compositional assessment of atherosclerotic plaques in coronary arteries. The VH IVUS technology is now available on new Volcano systems or as an upgrade to Volcano's installed base of Intravascular Ultrasound (IVUS) systems.
Previously, assessment of atherosclerotic disease was limited to 2D views of symptom-causing narrowing of the coronary arteries by way of contrast agent-enhanced X-Ray imaging. More recently, greyscale IVUS allowed for quantification of atherosclerotic plaque build-up, in addition to providing precise measurements of vessel anatomy to guide optimal angioplasty or stent-based treatment. Volcano's new VH IVUS technology uses advanced spectral analysis techniques to allow simplified interpretation of ultrasound images and provide detailed information on the composition of each patient's atherosclerotic plaques. The colorized VH images show four plaque component types: fibrous, fibro-fatty, dense calcium, and necrotic core. VH IVUS images are created using Volcano's imaging console along with the Eagle Eye Gold IVUS imaging catheter. Images are displayed live, in the cath lab for easy review by the interventional cardiologist and staff while the patient remains on the table. No changes to standard clinical practice are required to employ VHIVUS. This technology provides automated measurement tools to simplify image interpretation and employs a pre-determined color key to display plaque composition at a specific point in the artery or across a region of interest.
According to Dr Martin B Leon, Chairman of the Cardiovascular Research Foundation and the Associate Director of the Center for Interventional Vascular Therapy (CIVT) at Columbia University Medical Center, New York City, the VH IVUS is the first IVUS system capable of providing information in the cardiac catheterization laboratory about the plaque composition and will assist in the interpretation of ultrasound results. He said it was expected to provide important new information to guide the management of patients.
Professor Patrick W Serruys, Thoraxcentre, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, said the use of IVUS is generally focused on providing geometric measurements of the vessel and lumen. Due to IVUS' inability to display plaques other than as greyscale renderings, interventionalists have had difficulty drawing conclusions about the plaque type or disease type seen in individual patients.
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