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FAIRFAX, VA – Inova has become the first health system in the world to implement GE HealthCare’s SIGNA™ Sprint Elite1, a next-generation MRI system developed to advance cardiac, oncologic and pediatric imaging, as well as imaging for patients with implanted devices. The system is designed to enable more efficient, high-resolution imaging while keeping patient comfort at the forefront, according to the company.
GE HealthCare’s SIGNA Sprint Elite is a 1.5T MRI designed to provide power previously unattainable at 1.5T, allowing clinicians to visualize and evaluate structures with exceptional clarity. The platform leverages built-in AI technologies like AIR™ Recon DL, Sonic DL™ and AIR x™, which can help to enable high-quality imaging even in the most demanding anatomies. The combination is a significant advancement in cardiac imaging and in supporting personalized care pathways in oncologic and pediatric imaging.
The system also offers free-breathing imaging options, reducing or eliminating the need for patients to hold their breath during scans. This is especially beneficial for pediatric patients, older adults, and patients who are very ill or may feel claustrophobic, improving image quality while making exams more tolerable and accessible.
Located at Inova Fairfax Hospital, the new SIGNA Sprint Elite MRI will be closely integrated with Inova Schar Heart and Vascular, creating a highly specialized hub for advanced cardiac imaging. This will allow for seamless collaboration among Inova’s nationally top-ranked heart and vascular teams while also expanding access for outpatients referred by community cardiologists and subspecialists.
The system will support clinicians in advanced evaluation of complex and often underdiagnosed conditions such as cardiac amyloidosis, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, heart failure, and microvascular dysfunction – conditions that can be challenging to detect.
SIGNA Sprint Elite was also designed to optimize patient comfort, providing a 70cm-wide bore and blanket-like AIR™ Coils to improve the patient experience. Because of the wide-bore design and quiet scanning with flexible, blanket-like coils, patients may experience less anxiety and claustrophobia than during traditional MRI exams.
Because it operates at 1.5T, one of the most widely used MRI strengths in clinical care, the system is also well suited for imaging patients with many types of implanted medical devices, who may not be eligible for higher-field MRI scans.
1: SIGNA Sprint Elite is a premium configuration of SIGNA Sprint.
