"With a quantitative way of measuring liver fat, it is a lot easier for us to let the referring physician know where the patient is quantitatively on the NAFLD spectrum,” said Richard G. Barr, MD, PhD, President, Radiology Consultant, Inc., Youngstown, Ohio, U.S.A., and Medical Director at Southwoods Imaging. “With traditional gray scale imaging, we could only tell if the liver had a high degree of fatty infiltration or if it was normal, but it was very hard to assess whether fatty liver disease was mild, moderate or severe. Attenuation imaging now gives us a numerical value that will enable us to follow the patient over time. With the combination of quantitative fat assessment and liver stiffness the probability of NASH can be assessed.”
With the extended remote functionality of Collaboration Live on both the EPIQ and Affiniti platforms, technicians can also securely access on-demand, real-time guidance and decision support to enhance diagnostic confidence and workflow efficiency during exams.
“Today’s announcement demonstrates the continued advancement of our ultrasound portfolio to increase diagnostic confidence and workflow efficiency,” said Jeff Cohen, General Manager of Ultrasound at Philips. “Accessible ultrasound-based Liver Fat Quantification is a screening and early diagnostic tool that will allow many more patients to take their health into their own hands by making simple lifestyle changes.”