Hewlett-Packard scanner gains FDA okay

Ultrasound vendor Hewlett-Packard apparently has a new scannerwaiting in the wings. The Andover, MA, company gained Food andDrug Administration 510(k) clearance in August for a new diagnosticultrasound system. HP officials are not ready to make a publicintroduction of the scanner, however, and declined to providedetails about the system.

HP is the market leader in cardiac ultrasound and has operatedin the radiology market since 1993 through a joint R&D andmanufacturing agreement with Philips Medical Systems. The alliancedeveloped the Philips sonoDiagnost 800, a moderately priced colorflow system introduced in 1994 (SCAN 12/14/94).

HP's lead product in cardiology is Sonos 2500, which was introducedat the American Society of Echocardiography meeting in 1994 (SCAN6/29/94).