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AUSTRALIA';S CANBERRA HOSPITAL UNVEILS IMRISneuro SUITE

^{Published on 2010-09-17 06:41:03 - Market Wire}
 

WINNIPEG, Sept. 17 /CNW/ - (TSX: IM) Canberra Hospital (the "Hospital") today officially unveiled Australia's first IMRISneuro suite. The fully integrated multi-operating room system features on-demand intraoperative MR imaging capabilities, designed to assist the Hospital's surgeons in improving outcomes for patients who are undergoing neurosurgical procedures such as tumor resection.

Katy Gallagher, Minister of Health for the Australian Capital Territory said, "The new neurosurgical suite is amongst the most advanced in the country and in the hands of the staff and surgeons at Canberra Hospital will provide patients with the highest standard of treatment and care."

Dr John Fuller, Director of Neurosurgery at Canberra Hospital added, "This fantastic new facility will allow us to conduct medical imaging during surgery, meaning we can update images intraoperatively, increasing the extent and accuracy in certain tumour resections."

The Hospital's new IMRISneuro system features a 1.5 Tesla MR scanner operating in a fully integrated suite that allows the scanner to move between a diagnostic room and operating theatre, providing high resolution MR images on demand - before, during and after procedures. IMRISneuro is the only system of its kind that does not require the patient to be moved at all for scanning, so the optimum patient positioning is always maintained. Clinical workflow and access to the patient is not impacted as the MR scanner enters the operating suite and is then removed completely from the operating room when imaging is complete. This ensures a high degree of safety for the patient and preserves the ideal surgical environment.

"Using intraoperative MR imaging during a neurosurgical procedure allows surgeons to make adjustments while the procedure is in process which can lead to more complete tumor removal and a reduction in the need for repeat surgeries," said David Graves, IMRIS Chairman and CEO.   "We are pleased to have IMRISneuro in clinical operation at Canberra Hospital and see its benefits extended to patients in the Australian Capital Territory."

About Canberra Hospital

Canberra Hospital is an acute care teaching hospital of approximately 600 beds that supports a population of almost 540,000 and provides a broad range of specialist services to the people of the Australian Capital Territory. The Canberra Hospital is the principal teaching hospital of the Australian National University.

About IMRIS

IMRIS (TSX: IM) is a global leader in providing image guided therapy solutions. These solutions feature fully integrated surgical and interventional suites that incorporate magnetic resonance, fluoroscopy and computed tomography to deliver on demand imaging during procedures. The Company's systems serve the neurosurgical, cardiovascular and neurovascular markets and have been selected by leading medical institutions around the world.