ER OF THE FUTURE: Nethercutt Emergency Center
09/01/2007
The opening of the new Emergency Department (ED) at Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center and Orthopedic Hospital heralds a new era of medical imaging for the emergency patients in the westside community. The new ED is equipped with state-of-the-art direct digital (fig. 1) and computed radiography equipments to facilitate excellence in routine radiographic examinations. The ED has a new multidetector CT scanner (fig. 2) that supports a broad range of advanced imaging protocols that previously were in the exclusive domain of outpatient imaging centers.
The Seimens' Sensation 64-slice CT scanner in the Santa Monica ED has the capacity to perform angiographic examinations that are favorably compared to conventional catheter angiographic studies. The CT angiogram, or CTA can be performed to assess complex vascular disease related to the aorta, renal arteries, and lower extremities. The high speed of the scanner enables noninvasive examination of the coronary arteries and cardiac wall motion abnormalities.
Stroke patients who cannot have MRI due to pacemaker placement or aneurysm surgery may benefit from CTA of the carotid arteries and intracranial vessels. More conventional emergency examinations such as pulmonary CTA to assess for pulmonary emboli and abdominal pelvic CT examinations can be performed on the same scanner. The rapid scan time typically allows for a single breath hold study of the entire area of interest. The scanner is supported by the subspecialty faculty expertise of the Santa Monica Multi-Specialty section and our Westwood faculty.
Santa Monica UCLA Orthopedic Hospital is proud of bringing the latest generation of high speed CT scanners and subspecialty interpretation into our community practice.
