Following a rise in liver disease, St George’s Hospital has been increasing its capacity to accommodate innovative liver disease techniques with the help of Siemens Healthcare Artis Q and Artis zee angiography systems.
A complex procedure, Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS), is being used for cirrhosis of the liver which can lead to a life-threatening haemorrhage. The technique de-pressurises the liver to prevent the condition.
St George's Hospital is a leading teaching hospital that serves a population of 1.3 million across south west London. It has recently recorded a rise in cirrhosis of the liver, due to suspected excessive alcohol consumption and poor diets of its patient population.
The hospital implemented a wide range of interventions to accommodate the rise and has been working to increase capacity to effectively tackle the extra load. A number of interventional radiologists are now performing TIPS for those with severe liver problems. The procedure requires excellent image quality, which is boosted through the use of syngo DynaCT on the two Siemens Healthcare Artis angiography systems.
“Due to a rise in liver disease, we looked to increase the number of liver-related procedures we could perform,” said Graham Munneke, a radiologist at St George’s Hospital.
“Siemens Healthcare’s Artis systems have been integral in aiding us with TIPS due to the excellent image quality and large monitors. The DynaCT function enables CT-like cross-sectional imaging and can be performed directly in the angiography suite. Staff are very familiar with DynaCT and can rapidly gain the information they need.”
The hospital is also using the Artis systems to perform transcatheter arterial chemoembolisation (TACE) for liver cancers. The procedure involves the injection of a chemotherapy drug directly into the tumour. DynaCT is being used to provide fine details as the previously used 2D angiography technique proved to be difficult and time-consuming.
“Deaths from liver disease are still increasing year-on-year and Siemens is proud to work alongside St George’s to tackle this nationwide problem,” said Malcolm Pickering, regional sales manager at Siemens Healthcare.
“The interventional radiology department at St George’s is renowned for its expertise and TIPS is a very complicated procedure. The syngo DynaCT application uses 3D imaging, which is allowing clinicians to gain a clear view of the liver and visualise soft tissue information which was not previously possible with the use of 2D angiography.”
