FDA clears Toshiba's Asteion CT scanner

A new CT scanner from Toshiba America Medical Systems has received 510(k) clearance from the Food and Drug Administration. The system, called Asteion, is a subsecond scanner, and Toshiba has positioned it just below the Tustin, CA, vendor's new Aquilion half-second CT unit (SCAN 9/16/98). Toshiba will introduce Asteion at the upcoming Radiological Society of North America meeting.

Asteion features a 0.75-second rotation speed and solid-state detectors, according to Charles Corogenes, director of the CT business unit at TAMS. The system will carry a 4-million-heat-unit HeliCool x-ray tube and a 48-kW generator. It has a similar graphical user interface to the Aquilion scanner. It will also come standard with Aspire CI, Toshiba's CT fluoroscopy package. Asteion shipments will begin in January, Corogenes said.