TUSTIN, CA - Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc. delivered the first AplioTM Artida ultrasound system to Iowa Heart Center in Des Moines, Iowa. Known for its cardiovascular services, Iowa Heart has purchased the Aplio Artida to continue to provide superior patient care and increase its cardiovascular diagnostic capability.

"Being the first to purchase the Aplio Artida is an exciting development for us and our patients," said Dr. Richard Marcus, director of cardiovascular ultrasound laboratory, Iowa Heart Center. "Having first-hand experience with the system, I am pleased with the images it produces. Its enhanced applications, particularly the 4D imaging, will allow our facility to continue to improve the care provided to our patients."

According to Dr. Marcus, Iowa Heart Center selected the Aplio Artida for the system's impressive 4D imaging capability and 3D wall motion tracking.
With its comprehensive applications, the Artida meets the demands of the growing cardiac 4D market. Artida's real-time, multi-planar reformatting capabilities enable physicians to quantify global and regional LV function, including volumetric LV ejection fraction. Arbitrary views of the heart not available in 2D imaging are also obtained that can help with surgical planning.

The Artida is the first ultrasound system in the world with the ability to track and display myocardial motion and 3D volumes in 3D images. 2D/3D wall motion tracking features allow the user to obtain angle-independent, quantitative and regional information about myocardial contraction. It is hoped that these features will enable acquisition of additional data that could be of value in echo-guided cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) and in stress echocardiography.

"Like Iowa Heart, Toshiba is committed to delivering the highest level of patient care," said Gordon Parhar, director, Ultrasound Business Unit, Toshiba. "We are proud that Iowa Heart feels that the Artida will allow its physicians to best care for its patients and we look forward to a continued partnership."

Artida includes additional features that enhance diagnostic capabilities, including multiple processors that run synchronously which allow for handling of large amounts of data.

The Artida's multiple processor design brings echocardiography to a new level of imaging performance and clarity. It employs the distributed processing power of more than 80 processor cores interconnected by a fast digital system interface. In fact, the engine is so powerful it can process an amount of data equal to a fully loaded DVD every single second.

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