SIEMENS BIOGRAPH DUO PET/CT

As you investigate the PET/CT market, you’re going to hear a good deal of name-dropping: manufacturers, models, variants and revisions of those models, and so on. Amidst all of that, the name “Siemens Biograph Duo” is likely to slip from a colleague’s lips or appear in pleasant blue letters somewhere on your Google results page.

A workhorse of the PET/CT modality, the Siemens Biograph Duo enjoys international popularity for a number of reasons. Chiefly, the unit offers relatively low operating costs due to the abundance of after-market replacement parts and qualified service engineers.

For those for whom facility space is a concern, the Duo, like its 6-slice brother, offers a smaller footprint than the 16-slice by virtue of its air-cooled gantry. The elimination of chiller space as a concern makes the system ideal for smaller imaging centers as well as mobile PET/CT installations.

In terms of hardware, almost all Biograph Duos feature Siemens’ well-regarded Lutetium Oxyorthosilicate (LSO) detectors. During the years of the Duo’s manufacture, this detector type was among the best available for PET/CT. Some early Duos feature the more common BGO detectors found in other makes of PET/CT. These are still quality detectors, but the superiority of the LSO caused Siemens to transition away from BGO as the Biograph line continued.

For sites interested in performing cardiac studies it should be noted that Duos manufactured from 2002 to mid-2004 could not be cardiac gated. This is one of the few drawbacks of the product, though the point is moot for non-cardiac specialties. Additionally, in the second half of 2004, the Duo’s LSO detectors were upgraded to hi-resolution. Systems made from then through 2005 had the option of cardiac gating, though few systems actually came off the line with the option installed. As far as this reviewer knows, there are no instances of cardiac gating being installed on a Biograph Duo as an after-market upgrade.

Emotion 2 Slice CT Scanner, MOD DICOM Navigator Emotion, Navigator Cabinet, Patient Positioning Accessories Kit, Head-Arm Support, Leonardo e.soft PET/CT Platinum. Workstation: 18” Eizo Flat Screen Color, 5.25” Desktop MOD, Optistat CT Injector, Codonics Laser Printer.

SIEMENS BIOGRAPH DUO PET/CT

As you investigate the PET/CT market, you’re going to hear a good deal of name-dropping: manufacturers, models, variants and revisions of those models, and so on. Amidst all of that, the name “Siemens Biograph Duo” is likely to slip from a colleague’s lips or appear in pleasant blue letters somewhere on your Google results page.

A workhorse of the PET/CT modality, the Siemens Biograph Duo enjoys international popularity for a number of reasons. Chiefly, the unit offers relatively low operating costs due to the abundance of after-market replacement parts and qualified service engineers.

For those for whom facility space is a concern, the Duo, like its 6-slice brother, offers a smaller footprint than the 16-slice by virtue of its air-cooled gantry. The elimination of chiller space as a concern makes the system ideal for smaller imaging centers as well as mobile PET/CT installations.

In terms of hardware, almost all Biograph Duos feature Siemens’ well-regarded Lutetium Oxyorthosilicate (LSO) detectors. During the years of the Duo’s manufacture, this detector type was among the best available for PET/CT. Some early Duos feature the more common BGO detectors found in other makes of PET/CT. These are still quality detectors, but the superiority of the LSO caused Siemens to transition away from BGO as the Biograph line continued.

For sites interested in performing cardiac studies it should be noted that Duos manufactured from 2002 to mid-2004 could not be cardiac gated. This is one of the few drawbacks of the product, though the point is moot for non-cardiac specialties. Additionally, in the second half of 2004, the Duo’s LSO detectors were upgraded to hi-resolution. Systems made from then through 2005 had the option of cardiac gating, though few systems actually came off the line with the option installed. As far as this reviewer knows, there are no instances of cardiac gating being installed on a Biograph Duo as an after-market upgrade.

Emotion 2 Slice CT Scanner, MOD DICOM Navigator Emotion, Navigator Cabinet, Patient Positioning Accessories Kit, Head-Arm Support, Leonardo e.soft PET/CT Platinum. Workstation: 18” Eizo Flat Screen Color, 5.25” Desktop MOD, Optistat CT Injector, Codonics Laser Printer.