News | Press Releases

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March 31, 2009

ARKANSAS CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL IS FIRST PEDIATRIC HOSPITAL TO INSTALL TOSHIBA’S Aquilion ONE DYNAMIC VOLUME CT SYSTEM

System’s Ability to Reduce Radiation Dose Ideal for Pediatrics

TUSTIN, California — March 31, 2009 — Helping to provide safer imaging for children in a hospital setting, Arkansas Children’s Hospital has installed Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc.’s Aquilion® ONE 320-detector row CT system. As the world’s first dynamic volume CT scanner, the Aquilion ONE can lower radiation dose, which is particularly important when imaging pediatric patients.

As the first pediatric facility to install the Aquilion ONE, Arkansas Children’s Hospital selected dynamic volume CT for its ability to significantly lower patient radiation dose exposure and decrease the sedation needed for exams. Traditionally, when children are imaged using multi-detector CT, sedation is frequently required to keep the patient still long enough to obtain a clear diagnostic image. The Aquilion ONE’s fast exam time, which captures up to 16 cm of an anatomical region in one rotation, means that less patient sedation is required.

The Aquilion ONE will be used to serve the facility’s primarily pediatric patients in multiple settings, including cardiology, orthopedics and neurology. The facility also plans to use the Aquilion ONE in new dynamic studies focused on joint and respiratory issues and to develop new pediatric protocols to continue to increase pediatric safety in CT imaging.

“The ability to image pediatric patients with reduced radiation and no sedation will greatly benefit our patient community,” said Dr. Bruce Greenberg, professor of radiology, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. “Technology like the Aquilion ONE continues to help us deliver the best possible care to patients while keeping patient safety at the forefront.”

The Aquilion ONE features Toshiba’s ^SUREExposure Pediatric software, which automatically measures the size and age of each patient and tailors radiation dose to achieve the best and safest image quality for each exam. The software uses protocols selected based upon the patient’s age, size and type of exam to ensure patients receive only the radiation required to obtain a clear diagnostic image. ^SUREExposure Pediatric software comes standard on all Aquilion products.

“The Aquilion ONE’s ability to reduce radiation and capture images with significantly less pediatric sedation makes it an ideal addition to this facility,” said Doug Ryan, senior director, CT Business Unit, Toshiba. “Arkansas Children’s Hospital is the first U.S. pediatric hospital to use the Aquilion ONE with advanced dynamic volume CT protocols that will continue to make imaging safer for all patients — especially children.”

Introduced in November 2007, this advanced system scans an entire organ in a single pass and produces 4D videos that show an organ’s structure, its movement and blood flow. In comparison, a 64-slice, 128-slice or 256-slice CT scan can only capture a portion of an organ in a single pass, forcing physicians to “stitch together” multiple scans of an organ to get a full image. The new technology helps reduce multiple exposures to radiation and exam time.

About Toshiba’s Aquilion CT Product Line Recognition

The Aquilion® CT product line has received numerous accolades including earning the number one ranking in CT from MD Buyline since 2002 (six consecutive years). The Aquilion CT line has also been named Best in KLAS in 2006 and 2007; Best in KLAS in 2008 for 64-detector row and above; and Frost & Sullivan’s “Healthcare Innovation Award in Cardiovascular Imaging” in 2008. (For more information about KLAS, visitwww.KLASresearch.com.) Most recently, Toshiba’s service for the Aquilion line was ranked number one in 21 out of 34 ServiceTrak Imaging’s 2008 report on CT system service.

The Aquilion® ONE, the world’s first dynamic volume CT, utilizes 320 ultra-high resolution detector rows to image an entire organ in a single gantry rotation and shows dynamic function like blood flow. Since its introduction in November 2007, the Aquilion ONE has been named Popular Science magazine’s “Best of What’s New 2008 — Personal Health Category,” rt Image‘s 2008 Most Valuable Product (MVP), Frost & Sullivan’s Global CT Systems Product Differentiation Innovation Award 2007 and AuntMinnie.com’s “Minnies 2008 — Best New Radiology Device.”

About Arkansas Children’s Hospital

Arkansas Children’s Hospital is the only pediatric medical center in Arkansas and one of the largest in the United States serving children from birth to age 21. The campus spans 29 city blocks and houses 316 beds, a staff of approximately 500 physicians, 80 residents in pediatrics and pediatric specialties and more than 4,200 employees. The private, nonprofit healthcare facility boasts an internationally renowned reputation for medical breakthroughs and intensive treatments, unique surgical procedures and forward-thinking medical research — all dedicated to fulfilling our mission of enhancing, sustaining and restoring children’s health and development. ACH, recently named for the third time as one of U.S. News & World Report’s best pediatric hospitals, also has ranked twice on FORTUNE 100 Best Companies to Work For®, most recently at No. 85. For more information, visitwww.archildrens.org.

About Toshiba

With headquarters in Tustin, Calif., Toshiba America Medical Systems markets, sells, distributes and services diagnostic imaging systems, and coordinates clinical diagnostic imaging research for all modalities in the United States. Toshiba Medical Systems Corp., an independent group company of Toshiba Corp., is a global leading provider of diagnostic medical imaging systems and comprehensive medical solutions, such as CT, Cath & EP Labs, X-ray, Ultrasound, MRI and information systems. Toshiba Corp. is a leader in information and communications systems, electronic components, consumer products, and power systems. Toshiba has approximately 198,000 employees worldwide and annual sales of $77 billion. For more information, visit www.medical.toshiba.com.