Press Releases

6/23/2003

For Immediate Release

Hitachi Enhances Pet Image Fusion And Review With Software Upgrades For Avia™ Workstation

CONTACT:
Raymond Wtulich
Hitachi Medical Systems America, Inc.
1959 Summit Commerce Park
Twinsburg, Ohio
44087800.800.3106 or 330.425.1313
Ext. 2616
330.425.1410 Fax
wtulichr@hitachimed.com

Robert Ripley
Insource, Inc.
1096 Sheerbrook Dr.
Chagrin Falls, Ohio 44022
440.338.4683440.338.4684 Faxrripley@insourceinc.com
wtulichr@hitachimed.com
www.hitachimed.com

Twinsburg, Ohio –June 23, 2003… In a move designed to keep its PET customer base at the cutting edge of image analysis technology, Hitachi Medical Systems America, Inc. has announced new software upgrades for the AVIA™ Advanced Visualization and Image Analysis Workstation.

These upgrades provide the foundation for future 3D oncologic software applications, and includes a host of new features for added flexibility and functionality. It assures Hitachi’s PET customers that the AVIA platform will continue to provide the most advanced clinical capabilities available, today and into the future. The upgrade includes:

• Non-Rigid/deformable fusion to quickly and accurately align multi-modal images to:
  - Compensate for general patient motion or position changes.
  - Correct for respiratory and digestive motion.
  - Enhance before/after comparisons of response to treatment.

• Enhanced display functionality for improved visualization and customized templates.

• Teleradiology sharing to deliver real-time LAN/WAN synchronization.

• Photo Composer which allows greater flexibility with print and review templates.

• Automatic archiving security to verify data status.

• On-the-fly DICOM tag mapping which allows on-site DICOM modification.

“The upgrade is provided at no charge for customers enrolled in Hitachi’s industry-leading Ultra Plus Customer Assurance Program as well as for new AVIA customers under warranty,” according to Raymond Wtulich, PET Marketing Manager for HMSA.

“It will deliver added value through outstanding performance enhancements today and, perhaps more importantly, provide the basis for new software functionality to satisfy the rapidly expanding demands of PET imaging in the future.”

It’s all in keeping with a commitment to customer solutions that has made Hitachi a world leader in medical imaging. Hitachi Medical Systems America, Inc. markets premium, high performance magnetic resonance imaging products of Hitachi Medical Corporation, Tokyo, Japan. These include the Altaire™ High-Field Performance Open MR system and the AIRIS® II Premium Performance Open MR system. HMSA also markets Hitachi Ultrasound, PET imaging systems and ddR direct digital radiography systems. Hitachi has established a leadership position in diagnostic imaging with more than 1,200 Open MR imaging systems installed throughout the United States and over 2,300 worldwide.