Summary: Siemens Healthineers introduced the Naeotom Alpha class of photon-counting CT scanners, expanding access to detailed, high-speed imaging for diverse clinical applications. The series includes dual-source, single-source, and high-end models, leveraging AI and precision imaging to improve workflows, enhance diagnostic accuracy, and address complex medical cases with lower radiation doses.

Key Takeaways:

  • Enhanced Imaging Capabilities: The Naeotom Alpha class provides high-resolution imaging with reduced radiation doses, improving accuracy and speed for complex clinical cases.
  • Expanded Access: With multiple models, Siemens Healthineers is making photon-counting CT more accessible, integrating AI to streamline workflows and achieve consistent diagnostic results.

Three years after the launch of the first photon-counting computed tomography (CT) scanner, the Naeotom Alpha, Siemens Healthineers introduced the Naeotom Alpha class, including a second dual source scanner, Naeotom Alpha.Pro, as well as a single source scanner with photon-counting technology, Naeotom Alpha.Prime. The Naeotom Alpha will remain part of a new class of photon-counting CT scanners as the Naeotom Alpha.Peak.

Advancing Clinical Access to Photon-Counting Technology

“With the launch of the Naeotom Alpha class, we deliver on our promise to make the powerful photon-counting technology accessible to more clinicians and patients,” said Philipp Fischer, head of computed tomography at Siemens Healthineers. “We experience how photon-counting CT impacts clinical decision-making and we are convinced that this technology determines the future of CT imaging. Now, we are taking a major step into the future with the introduction of the Naeotom Alpha class, extending photon-counting technology further across our portfolio.”

Photon-counting CT enables the acquisition of more detailed images with anatomical and functional information by “counting” each individual X-ray photon that passes through patients. At lower radiation doses, clinicians can detect and evaluate small structures precisely and with fewer artifacts, maximizing the diagnostic information and accuracy for fast decision-making and optimized imaging workflows according to the company. Siemens Healthineers is currently investing $86 million to expand photon-counting detector production in Forchheim, Germany.

RELATED: Siemens Healthineers Launches CT Scanner with Photon-Counting Technology

High-End Features of the Naeotom Alpha.Peak

The Naeotom Alpha.Peak will be the high-end model of the new product series with a scan time of 737 mm/sec (millimeters per second), to make it the preferred system for radiologists who continue to demand high clinical performance. All Naeotom Alpha class systems will use the Quantum HD resolution feature to display anatomical details in high resolution at a slice thickness of 0.2 mm. Without increasing the radiation dose, small abnormalities become visible.

Enhanced Speed and Functionality of the Naeotom Alpha.Pro

The Naeotom Alpha.Pro combines the precision of photon-counting with the speed of dual source CT, resulting in scan times as fast as 491 mm/sec. Demanding examinations can be performed in, for example, pulmonology, with patients needing to hold their breath for less time; in cardiology, with scans at high heart rates without beta-blockers; and in pediatrics, where children can be scanned without sedation.

The speed is designed to improve clinical workflows and the patient experience. Spectral performance is important for complex tasks such as the automatic analysis and evaluation of highly calcified coronary arteries and time-critical treatments, such as trauma or stroke. The Naeotom Alpha.Pro is therefore suitable for institutions catering to patients with these needs and as a centrally located high-performance scanner for complex cases at the core of hub-and-spoke networks, which can use other scanners in the periphery for routine exams.

Applications of the Naeotom Alpha.Prime

According to Siemens, the Naeotom Alpha.Prime is the first single source photon-counting CT for use as a high-performance scanner for in-patient, ambulatory, and emergency room examinations in stand-alone institutions and big IDNs (Integrated Delivery Networks), or also in the periphery of hub-and-spoke networks.

Like all Naeotom Alpha class models, the Naeotom Alpha.Prime accelerates diagnostic and interventional processes with the support of artificial intelligence and automation: myExam Companion guides users through various steps of the examination – from system and patient preparation to image acquisition and reconstruction, as well as evaluation and post-processing. This enables departments to achieve consistent results, regardless of patient group, procedure, or experience.

Expanding Photon-Counting CT in Clinical Practice

“With our Naeotom Alpha, we can confidently rule out obstructive coronary artery disease in a greater number of heart patients, particularly those with highly calcified coronaries, eliminating the need for invasive diagnostic procedures in the cath lab. This creates more efficient patient pathways and significantly reduces the time from diagnosis to the initiation of treatment,” said Pál Maurovich-Horvat, MD, chair of Radiology at Semmelweis University Hospital in Budapest. “Photon-counting computed tomography will replace conventional CT examinations in the medium term. We have now expanded our fleet with a single source photon-counting scanner in the emergency department to offer its benefits to our acute care patients, as well.”