Terviseportaal
East Tallinn Central Hospital (ITK) acquires most modern diagnostic equipment
On Wednesday, 9 November, a stationary positron emission tomography (PET) will be officially opened at ITK, which will be used to perform diagnostic examinations mainly for oncological patients. It is a hybrid molecular imaging device that, in addition to PET, has the capability for performing computed tomography (CT), offering two examination devices in one.
Until now, a mobile PET/CT unit travelling around the Nordic countries visited ITK twice a month. PET examinations have been performed at ITK for more than 15 years but have now been moved from the bus to the hospital premises with a new stationary device. This is a major step forwards, ensuring better imaging quality and better accessibility for patients with malignancies.
“Oncology is a priority and we are happy to contribute to its development at ITK,” said Dr Anne Poksi, Head of the Centre of Nuclear Medicine at East Tallinn Central Hospital. “It is optimal to examine five or six patients in one day. We must reserve up to three hours for the examination of one patient, most of which is waiting time for the tracer to accumulate in the diseased areas. It is a complex molecular imaging study, which is in great demand in Estonia.”
The PET/CT device was manufactured in the USA. It was flown from the United States to Germany, and the parts of the device arrived in Estonia in September. During October, the equipment was set up and the employees were trained to operate it.
The cost of the device was 2.7 million euros, which is one of the biggest investments for the hospital in recent years.