VSCAN: SMALL TOY BIG ADVANTAGE

TIMES OF INDIA
23.03.2010

NEW DELHI: It looks like a phone or an Ipod but this 3 inches wide and 5.3 inches long machine is actually the world's smallest ultrasound machine. In what is being termed as a medical technology wonder, Vscan — that weighs less than half a kg — is all set to replace the presently used laptop-sized ultrasound machine that weighs not less than 5 kg.

Launched recently in India, with the idea that doctors can carry them in their pockets, 50 Vscans have already been sold. Costing slightly over Rs 5 lakh, it is capable of scanning upto 30 patients a day.

Physicians can store patient images with its 4GB memory card expandable up to 32 GB. Physicians can zoom images in and out, pan left and right for analysis. Clinicians can store images, add voice annotations and the docking station plus cable link helps the transfer of data to a PC for organising or sharing with experts through e-mail or internet. Vscan also has organ specific protocols.

Dr Pervez Ahmed, CEO, Max Healthcare, said, "In critical or life threatening situations, it is imperative to have a quick, thorough look inside the body. In such situations, seconds save lives. Vscan can come really handy for the physician in such situations, helping in early detection of disease and injury and in the decision for safe performance of procedures." Dr Devi Shetty, chairman, Narayana Hrudalaya (Bangalore), said Vscan was well suited for India where there was a serious dearth of both infrastructure and manpower.

"Vscan provides high-quality black and white image technology for anatomy and colour-coded blood flow. With Vscan, early detection of cardiac disease is possible, during primary check ups itself. In accident and trauma cases, quick visualisation is critical.

The first 15 minutes to one hour can decide whether the victim will survive. Ultrasound, being the only visualisation technology that provides real-time imaging, is therefore a crucial tool for quick diagnosis," Dr Shetty said. "The most common practice we physicians follow to assess health is to monitor pulse and listen through a stethoscope. To make rapid diagnosis we need to take a look inside body," said Dr P C Reddy, executive chairman, Apollo hospitals.