The Hackensack Meridian Neuroscience Institute at Jersey Shore University Medical Center (JSUMC) has integrated the Siemens Healthineers ARTIS icono biplane system into its interventional imaging services, thanks to a donation from Mrs. Mary Ellen Harris and the Golden Dome Foundation. This addition enables a broad spectrum of minimally invasive procedures to be conducted within a single interventional suite.

“The ARTIS icono biplane system is optimal in the treatment of stroke, arteriovenous malformations, aneurysms, and in other neurointerventions,” says Shabbar Danish, MD, chair of neurosurgery, Hackensack Meridian Neuroscience Institute at JSUMC.

Danish adds, “The advanced technology reduces radiation usage, improving patient safety, while maintaining excellent contrast and sharp images even in challenging situations. Its high positioning flexibility provides excellent patient access and coverage, and it can be rapidly adapted for different users and procedures, significantly speeding up procedural outcomes. It’s an ideal system for emergency situations.”

The ARTIS icono is built around the OPTIQ image chain, which represents an advancement in 2D image processing. OPTIQ improves image quality across various C-arm angles and patient weights by automatically adjusting acquisition parameters to achieve the best image contrast while following the As Low as Reasonably Achievable (ALARA) principle for radiation safety. It also enhances the Siemens Healthineers roadmap function, making it easier to navigate the patient’s vascular system during fluoroscopy and reducing radiation exposure.

The ARTIS icono biplane system is specifically designed for use in neurointerventions and interventional radiology. It provides enhanced 2D and 3D imaging capabilities and improves the visualization of complex anatomical structures.

Recent studies have extended the time frame for endovascular stroke therapy from six to 24 hours, allowing more ischemic stroke patients to be treated. The ARTIS icono biplane system offers improved features for stroke treatment and other neuro procedures. This includes syngo DynaCT Sine Spin, which reduces cone-beam CT artifacts in the basal part of the brain and near the skull, and syngo DynaCT Multiphase, which provides time-resolved cone-beam CT volumes with 10 different time points in 60 seconds without the need to move the patient to a CT system.

“The new system provides our surgeons with clearer images of the entire brain and allows them to diagnose and treat patients with confidence,” says Vito Buccellato, MPA, LNHA, president and chief hospital executive of the academic medical center. “But high-quality outcomes for our patients are not possible without the nurses and surgeons using these advanced technologies with expertise and their commitment to providing the best care, as well as through transformative support from Mary Ellen Harris, whose gift made this life-changing technology possible.”

Furthermore, syngo DynaCT High Speed reduces low-contrast 3D imaging time from 20 seconds to eight, resulting in CT-like images with fewer motion artifacts. The Twin Spin feature allows for smooth transitions between 2D biplanar and 3D imaging, streamlining workflow and intraprocedural progress checks.

“The image quality and resolution on the new ARTIS icono biplane system is simply amazing,” says Pinakin Jethwa, MD, FAANS, director of stroke and cerebrovascular neurosurgery at JSUMC. “With the high resolution and ease of use, I have been able to treat patients I would not have been able to in the past. Our treatments are now safer, faster, and delivered with less radiation.”

What’s more, Jethwa says, “the DynaCT function has allowed us to perform diagnostic quality images during the procedures, so that we can be confident the patient’s problem is fully treated before we leave the operating room. The new technology has already improved patients’ lives and will have a tremendous impact on the care we deliver to our critical stroke and cerebrovascular patients for years to come.”