Naval Medical Center San Diego Announces Addition of Discovery IGS 730 Hybrid Operating Room system for less-invasive heart and blood vessel treatments

SAN DIEGO, June 11, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Naval Medical Center San Diego (NMCSD) has added the Discovery IGS 730*, a powerful imaging system that helps doctors use minimally invasive techniques to treat heart and blood vessel problems. A ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the first installation of the Discovery 730 Hybrid OR in California at the Naval Medical Center San Diego takes place today, Wednesday, June 11 at 9 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time.

The new room will provide a single suite where doctors can perform both traditional open surgeries and minimally invasive procedures. The suite will utilize the Discovery IGS 730 image guidance system from GE Healthcare. The Discovery IGS 730 has its high-quality digital imaging system mounted on mobile gantry that moves along predefined pathways, guided by laser. By touching a few buttons, a doctor can move it to the table to take pictures of the patient's anatomy, and then move it out of the way so allowing room to position physicians, nurses, technologists, anesthesiologists and other personnel optimally for surgery, with unobstructed access to the patient.

"Minimally invasive heart and vascular procedures are growing with the benefits of reducing patient risk and shortening hospital stays," said Dr. Keshav R. Nayak, Director, Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory, Naval Medical Center San Diego. "These procedures require powerful imaging to help the doctor guide the treatment device to exactly the right location."

This is important because some complex treatments require both minimally invasive methods and open surgery. With the Discovery IGS 730, both can be performed in the same room – there is no need to transfer the patient between procedures.

The Discovery IGS 730 has its high-quality digital imaging system mounted on mobile gantry that moves along predefined pathways, guided by lasers. By touching a button, a doctor can move it to the table to take pictures of the patient's anatomy, and then move it out of the way so that doctors can perform surgery without obstruction. Specific procedures for which this technology is well suited include:

• Treating defective valves that keep the heart from pumping blood efficiently
• Treating aneurysms – weakened areas in major arteries that if not treated can burst and in some cases can cause death.

For more information about the Discovery IGS 730 system and heart and blood vessel care at Naval Medical Center San Diego, visit our website (http://www.med.navy.mil/sites/nmcsd/pages/default.aspx) or call 619-532-6418.

About Naval Medical Center San Diego
From the original tent dispensary established in 1914 to the modern facility of today, Naval Medical Center San Diego's (NMCSD) mission has remained constant: provide the finest medical care in a family-centered environment to military service members, their families and those who served in the past.

NMCSD is accredited by the Joint Commission.  More than 250,000 San Diego residents are eligible for care at NMCSD, with nearly 100,000 beneficiaries enrolled. NMCSD staff is comprised of more than 6,500 military, civilian, contractor and volunteer personnel. In addition, NMCSD has the only Navy Medicine amputee center in the Western Pacific, has been recognized for many of its clinical and research programs, including refractive surgery, post-traumatic stress, and hearing and balance disorders.  NMCSD personnel proudly deploy to support US Military Hospital Kuwait, the I and III Marine Expeditionary Forces, numerous humanitarian missions afloat and ashore and as individual augmentees. Recently, the NMCSD staff has been recognized for excellence by such organizations as the American College of Surgeons, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Athena International and the San Diego Business Journal.

*Trademark of General Electric Company

ABOUT GE HEALTHCARE
GE Healthcare provides transformational medical technologies and services to meet the demand for increased access, enhanced quality and more affordable healthcare around the world. GE (NYSE: GE) works on things that matter - great people and technologies taking on tough challenges. From medical imaging, software & IT, patient monitoring and diagnostics to drug discovery, biopharmaceutical manufacturing technologies and performance improvement solutions, GE Healthcare helps medical professionals deliver great healthcare to their patients.

For our latest news, please visit http://newsroom.gehealthcare.com

SOURCE GE Healthcare; Naval Medical Center San Diego