GE Healthcare and Volcano Corporation Enable the World's Only Fully Integrated IVUS System
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Additionally, GE Healthcare and Volcano Announce the Successful Implementation of Pre-Cabling Program, Enabling All New Innova Labs to Be Now IVUS-ready
WAUKESHA, Wis. and RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif., April 2 - GE Healthcare (NYSE:GE) and Volcano Corporation (NASDAQ:VOLC) have successfully implemented, at multiple sites, Innova IVUS, the world's only fully Integrated IVUS and Cath Lab system. An exclusive collaboration between Volcano Corporation and GE Healthcare made implementation of the fully integrated intravascular ultrasound system for the cath lab and interventional suite possible. GE Healthcare's full integration of IVUS was highlighted in GE's booth at the 2007 American College of Cardiology meeting in New Orleans.
Innova IVUS combines GE's best-in-class Innova all-digital X-ray cath lab imaging system with Volcano's revolutionary s5i IVUS imaging system. Innova IVUS further optimizes clinical workflow beyond the benefits of the s5i by offering IVUS controls positioned on the Innova Central tableside touchscreen. IVUS is always on and always ready for a physician to use when appropriate at any point in a case. In addition, Innova IVUS allows for the seamless and automatic data exchange between the IVUS system and Innova allowing for simplified patient data transfer and advanced archiving, integrating the IVUS case into the patient's cath case. This is an exclusive feature offered from Innova IVUS.
Additionally, GE Healthcare and Volcano Corporation have also announced the successful implementation of an exclusive initiative to include Volcano's IVUS cabling in all new Innova labs. GE Healthcare's decision to include IVUS cabling as a component of every standard Innova installation in the U.S. was announced in late 2006, and was a direct result of the collaboration agreement between GE and Volcano announced earlier in the year.
By including IVUS cables in every Innova installation, the infrastructure is installed during the lab's build-out to allow full integration of IVUS into the interventional lab, should a customer choose to purchase the Innova IVUS system from GE Healthcare.
Innova IVUS is based on Volcano's new s5i PC-based platform that reduces the size, weight and noise of the older-generation IVUS consoles. This allows the unit's placement in the control room, outside of the daily traffic pattern of the cath lab. With the integration that Innova IVUS offers, clinicians have the ability to further control the IVUS system through a variety of control devices located near the patient, from the control room, or both. Clinicians also enjoy the flexibility to view IVUS images on the monitor bank and/or on a monitor in the control room.
"We have older generation IVUS consoles as well as an Innova IVUS system in our lab, so we understand first-hand the significant improvement in workflow," commented Michael Foster, MD, of Providence Heart Institute in Columbia, S.C. Dr. Foster continued, "Before, we had to locate the IVUS system, roll it into the lab, and wait for the system to boot-up before I could begin imaging. Since the Innova IVUS system is integrated into the lab and is always there and always on, I simply call for an IVUS catheter and begin imaging immediately. Integrated IVUS has reduced my imaging time by at least 50%."
"We have been very pleased with both customer feedback on Innova IVUS, as well as the overall sales success of the program," said Joel McComb, President of GE Healthcare's Interventional Cardiology business. Innova IVUS provides clinicians with an advanced, real-time imaging tool that is more completely integrated into their Innova system, resulting in improved workflow and reduced procedure time."
Scott Huennekens, President and CEO of Volcano Corporation, added, "GE's commitment to IVUS, as demonstrated in their pre-cabling decision, will continue the trend of IVUS becoming an essential tool for diagnostic and interventional planning-including the placement optimization of drug-eluting stents and bare metal stents. I'm very proud of what the Volcano and GE teams have been able to accomplish since announcing our collaboration last year."
Innova IVUS is currently available for sale to new and existing GE Healthcare customers in the United States, Europe, certain markets in Asia and other world markets. GE continues to collaborate with Volcano to provide unparalleled cath lab design, installation and field repair/service of this system. Customers contract with one vendor, GE, for their purchasing, installation and field service needs.
ABOUT GE HEALTHCARE:
GE Healthcare provides transformational medical technologies and services that are shaping a new age of patient care. Our expertise in medical imaging and information technologies, medical diagnostics, patient monitoring systems, performance improvement, drug discovery, and biopharmaceutical manufacturing technologies is helping clinicians around the world re-imagine new ways to predict, diagnose, inform, treat and monitor disease, so patients can live their lives to the fullest.
GE Healthcare's broad range of products and services enable healthcare providers to better diagnose and treat cancer, heart disease, neurological diseases and other conditions earlier. Our vision for the future is to enable a new "early health" model of care focused on earlier diagnosis, pre- symptomatic disease detection and disease prevention. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, GE Healthcare is a $17 billion unit of General Electric Company. Worldwide, GE Healthcare employs more than 46,000 people committed to serving healthcare professionals and their patients in more than 100 countries. For more information about GE Healthcare, visit our website at www.gehealthcare.com.
ABOUT VOLCANO CORPORATION:
Volcano Corporation, which completed its IPO in June 2006, offers a broad suite of devices designed to facilitate endovascular procedures, enhance the diagnosis of vascular and structural heart diseases and guide optimal therapies. The company's intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) product line includes ultrasound consoles that can be integrated directly into virtually any modern cath lab and single-use phased array and rotational IVUS imaging catheters. Volcano also has unique advanced functionality options, such as VH(TM) IVUS tissue characterization. Volcano also provides functional measurement (FM) consoles and single-use pressure and flow guide wires. Currently, more than 2,500 Volcano IVUS and FM systems are installed worldwide, with approximately half of its revenues coming from outside the United States. For more information, visit the company's website at www.volcanocorp.com.
Source: Volcano Corporation
CONTACT: Corey Miller, Public Relations of GE Healthcare,
+1-414-469-5499, Corey.Miller@ge.com; Shalon Roth of Ricochet
Public Relations, +1-212-679-3300, ext. 127, sroth@ricochetpr.com, for Volcano Corporation
Web site: www.volcanocorp.com/
