In a rare press release, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) addressed the world’s first photon counting computed tomography (CT) scanner. Coined as the Siemens Naeotom Alpha, experts believe this is the start of a new revolution in CT scanner technology. The new machine uses photon-counting detectors which measure each X-ray photon that passes through a patient’s body. This reduces image noise by a considerable margin. With this technology, the images returned have much greater detail and are able to show much more than a traditionals CT scan. While Siemens is the first healthcare technology provider to introduce these particular machines to the market, all other major vendors are testing prototypes of photon counting CT scans as well. In the future, we can expect much greater resolution from our CT scans, and more data available for our health care providers.
