Hybrid Imaging in the Catheterization Room

Introduction

In the previously-completed ERC CoG, we have developed a patented c-arm scanner (called IXSI) which can accomplish real-time hybrid image guidance in dynamic environments such as the intervention and the catheterization room. Thus far, we have evaluated IXSI for oncological purposes.

New Application in Interventional Cardiology

More recently, we have identified a new potential application in the field of interventional cardiology, in which hybrid imaging may help for determining the culprit vessel during the interventional procedure or directly evaluating the outcome of a treatment.

Objectives of the ERC Proof of Concept

In this ERC Proof of Concept, we will explore whether the new proposed application of IXSI is worth pursuing further. We will perform four tasks:

1. We will investigate for which groups of cardiology patients or treatments IXSI may provide the greatest benefit and assess their market share.
2. We will evaluate the performance of IXSI for cardiology by developing custom-made testing devices.
3. We will investigate whether IXSI can be made more cost-effective for cardiology by making hardware modifications.
4. By combining the information from the previous activities, we will develop a business case of IXSI specifically for cardiac interventions.

Expected Impact

Should it be demonstrated that IXSI can aid cardiac interventions, then we expect that our developed technology will be much quicker implemented in the clinic. This is due to the proposed application field being massive and the incentive for commercialization being greater (close to 1 million PCI procedures are performed per year in the US alone).