MiniCAT ™ CT Scans Purr with Mini-Radiation Dose

Business Wire, July 30, 2008

Mayo Clinic researchers find MiniCAT to be 10-12x less radiation Printer-friendly version

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Americans can't agree on politics -- but the one thing they do agree on is: Americans do not want unnecessary or excessive radiation.

And while medical imaging in the form of CAT scans can be viewed as a technology right out of Star Wars - allowing doctors to look into the human body without making a single cut - that ability comes with a price: radiation exposure to the patient.

So is CT imaging worth the radiation exposure?

The answer may come down to the scanner you are being tested onObecause not all medical CAT scans are created equally -- in terms of radiation dose to the patient. And according to a recent study at the Mayo Clinic, a CT scanner called MiniCAT captures images at a dose nearly 10 - 12 times lower than conventional CT scanners.

MiniCAT, a specialty CT scanner designed to capture detailed images of the sinuses and ears, is quickly becoming a household name in the world of E.N.T. and Allergy, and is the brainchild of Michigan based Xoran Technologies.

This uniquely compact, ultra-low dose CT scanner is generally found in the offices of Ear, Nose and Throat physicians and Allergists. And patients have noticed the difference. The upright design of MiniCAT allows patients to sit in a normal position, without sedation, and the scan is complete in 40 seconds or less. It's so simple that Dr. Madan Kandula of Advanced Ear Nose and Throat Specialists in Milwaukee, WI, found many of his patients don't realize the test has even been performed.

The low radiation and the quickness of the test have attracted parents. Children are not afraid and do not need to be sedated. "Parents have gone to great lengths to track down a MiniCAT for their child" says Susie Vestevich, PR Manager of Xoran. "One family recently drove 8 hours to be sure their child was scanned on MiniCAT."

You can learn more about the low-dose technology of MiniCAT, or ask where to find a MiniCAT, by going to XoranTech.com (Xoran is spelled with an x, like x-ray. X-o-r-a-n T-e-c-h dot com).