How CT Scanners Work & How We Save You Time & Money
There are many scanner types and configurations. However, we can provide a leasing solution for all makes and models your end-user might require. Get in touch or request an estimate and learn more about how leasing your next CT scanner can save you time and money, regardless of slice count.
All equipment brands/models are available
The Advantages of Excedr’s CAT Scanner Leasing Program:
- Eliminates the upfront cost of purchasing equipment by spreading its cost over time
- Minimizes equipment downtime with included complete repair coverage and preventive maintenance
- Takes advantage of potentially 100% tax deductible* payments, providing you significant cash-savings
- Expedites the administrative work needed for instrument procurement and logistics
- Conserves working capital, enabling you to reinvest in your core business and operations (staffing, inventory, marketing/sales, etc.)
- Accommodates all manufacturer and model preferences
*Please consult your tax advisor to determine the full tax implications of leasing equipment.
The act of developing an image of an object section-by-section with the use of penetrative waves is called tomography.
By stitching together thousands of small 2D image “slices”, scientists are able to reconstruct a 3D rendering of an image. The image’s final assembly is usually done using very complex mathematical procedures like tomographic reconstruction and other reconstruction algorithms. These algorithms can be organized into two categories; filtered back projection and iterative reconstruction.
There are many different types of tomographic devices and most vary based upon what they are imaging, how it is imaged, and what type of penetrative waves they are using. Computed axial tomography scans, more commonly known as CAT or CT scans, are devices that allow for cross-sectional imaging of materials without the need to cut them open.
CT scans are most often used in the medical field, to generate a 3D rendering of a person’s internal anatomy. These images can then be used to help better diagnose patients or inform doctors about what types of therapeutic measures they need to take.
It is able to achieve this by having the patient take a contrast agent before using a series of narrow X-ray beams which are rotated around them, creating the cross-sectional image slices.
Though similar to conventional X-ray machines, CT scans are able to create more detailed images by differentiating between tissue, bone, and soft tissue while detecting many abnormalities and medical conditions. A CT exam can even be used by a radiologist to perform guided biopsies, significantly decreasing the time it takes and improving its accuracy.
In addition, industrial CT scanners are available and although they generate similar results to medical CT scanners, they are fundamentally different. For this reason, they are not as prevalent to the needs of medical laboratories and environments. Instead, they are widely used in industry settings for internal inspection of components, including flaw detection, failure analysis, assembly analysis, reverse engineering applications, and metrology in general.
CAT Scan Types, Techniques, & Price
The main components that make up a medical CT scanner are a bench that the patient can lay down on, a gantry, a data acquisition system, and an operating console.
The gantry refers to the cylinder that the patient is placed into and houses all the equipment to produce and detect the X-rays. Beyond these components, CT scanners use a variety of techniques and slice counts to produce images.
Learn more about the techniques below.
Multislice CT (MSCT)
Also known as multi-detector computerized tomography, is a type of CT scanner has multiple detectors. This allows for higher numbers of sections or multiple tomographic slices, which results in higher-resolution diagnostic imaging than conventional CT scans.
Combining multiple detectors at different angles with the use of helical scanning technology has also resulted in significant improvements in imaging range and time of examination.
Electron Beam Tomography (EBT)
Getting detailed images of the heart at specific points in its movement cycle can tell us a lot about the health of that heart. Traditional CT images have difficulty producing precise photos of a heart due to its constant motion.
EBT was originally developed to overcome these issues and produce detailed images of a live heart. It still uses X-ray tubes; however, they are stationary, and instead, an electron-beam focal point traces a large circular arc around the patient. EBT allows radiologists to assist cardiologists in the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease.
CT Myelography
Myelography is a radiographic technique that uses fluoroscopy and contrast material to observe patients’ spinal cords, nerve roots, and spinal linings. When paired with CT scans, CT myelograms can provide very detailed information about nerve and back anatomy.
A radiographic IV contrast dye is administered to the patient in a sac around a nerve root and a CT scan is then performed. These contrast media allow CT technologists and radiologists to more effectively distinguish normal from abnormal conditions.
These contrast materials can be taken orally, be administered through the rectum via an enema, or injected via a blood vessel. All forms of contrast media are safe, and rarely cause any adverse side effects or allergic reactions in patients.
CT Angiography (CTA)
Also known as arteriography, angiography is a medical imaging technique used to observe the inside of blood vessels, arteries, veins, and heart chambers. CT angiograms inject contrasting materials into the area of interest and CT imaging is used in conjunction with an angiogram to produce even more detailed images.
The use of X-ray images and contrast agents, such as barium sulfate, produces high contrast images while being much less invasive than conventional angiograms.
Development of the CT Scan
Though the first computed tomography scanner would not be invented until the late 1960s, the mathematical principle dates back to 1917.
Austrian mathematician Johann Radon, born in the late 1880s, would introduce his function, the Radon transform, in 1917. In conjunction with his Radon transform formula, he would also pen an inverse formula that is still used today for medical CT scans.
Forty years later UCLA neurologist William Oldendorf theorized that one could use a medical sensor to scan the heads of patients using X-rays.
In 1961, he created the prototype which employed an X-ray source and X-ray detectors that rotated around the object that he wanted to be imaged. The resulting paper in which Oldendorf would detail both his theory and his prototype would later be pivotal in Allan Cormack’s development of the math behind modern computed tomography.
It would be Sir Godfrey Hounsfield of the United Kingdom who would develop the first commercial CT scanner. He would conceive of the idea in 1967 at EMI Center Research Laboratories but it wouldn’t be until 1971 that the first patient would be scanned.
MSCT Scanner Leases to Fit Every Need
While CT scanner costs can vary – the range starts as low as $35,000 and can get as high as $2,500,000 – our lease program significantly reduces the upfront costs required to access this type of equipment.
Whether you want to lease a CT scanner or bone densitometer, we can help you. Our lease program provides a wide range of imaging solutions for research and clinical laboratories, as well as medical facilities and hospitals.
Get in touch with us or request a lease estimate today and we can discuss equipment leasing in further detail and create a custom lease estimate tailored to your needs.
Operating Lease
This off-balance sheet financing structure provides three options at the end of the term. The lessee has the option to return the equipment to the lessor, renew at a discounted rate, or purchase the instrument for the fair market value. Monthly payments are also 100% tax deductible which yields additional monetary savings.
Sale-Leaseback
If you recently bought equipment, Excedr can offer you cash for your device and convert your purchase into a long-term rental. This is called a sale leaseback. If you’ve paid for equipment within the last ninety days, we can help you recoup your investment and allow you to make low monthly payments. This also frees up money in your budget rather than tying it down to a fixed asset.
CTA Scanner Manufacturers & Models
Learn More
Thermo Fisher Scientific FEI:
Heliscan microCT
Zeiss:
METROTOM, VoluMax
X-ray Tomography:
Xradia Versa, Xradia 610 and 620 Versa, Xradia 510 Versa, Xradia 410 Versa, Xradia Context microCT, Xradia Ultra, Xradia 810 Ultra, Xradia 800 Ultra, Xradia Syncrotron Family
Bosello High Technology:
SRE MAX
Perkin Elmer:
IVIS SpectrumCT In Vivo Imaging System, Quantum GX2 microCT Imaging System
Fluorescence Tomography:
FMT 4000 In Vivo Imaging System, FMT 1000 In Vivo Imaging System, FMT 2000 In Vivo Imaging System, IVIS SpectrumBL High-Throughput
Rigaku:
nano3DX, CT Lab GX, CT Lab HX
Nikon:
XT H 225, XT H 225 ST, XT H 320, XT H 450, C2 extra large-envelope X-ray, M1 configurable X-ray, M2 high-precision X-ray CT inspection system, MCT225
GE Healthcare:
Revolution Family, Revolution CT, Revolution Frontier, Revolution HD, Revolution EVo, Revolution EVO Gen 2, Revolution ACTs, Revolution ACTs ES, Revolution ACTs EX,Optima CT660, Optima CT660 FREEdom Edition, Optima CT580 W, Optima CT580 RT, Optima CT540, Discovery RT, Discovery CT750 HD FREEDom Edition, Discovery CT590 RT, CardioGraphe, Brivo CT315, Brivo CT325, Brivo CT385, GoldSeal Certified LightSpeed RT Series, GoldSeal Certified VCT Series, GoldSeal Certified BrightSpeed Series
Baker Hughes: speedscan CT64, phoenix vtomex m, phoenix vtomex s, phoenix vtomex L 300, phoenix vtomex L 450, phoenix nanotom m,
Philips Healthcare:
IQon Spectral CT, IQon Elite Spectral CT, Incisive CT, iCT Family, CT 6000 iCT, Ingenuity, CT 5000 Ingenuity, CT Big Bore, Big Bore RT
Siemens Healthineers:
SOMATOM Force, SOMATOM Drive, SOMATOM X.Cite, SOMATOM Edge Plus, SOMATOM Definition Edge, SOMATOM go.Top, SOMATOM go.Top Cardiovascular Edition, SOMATOM go.All, SOMATOM go.Up, SOMATOM go.Now, Biograph Vision, Biograph mCT Flow, Biograph mCT, Biograph Horizon Flow edition, Biograph Horizon, Biograph RT Pro edition, Biograph RT edition, nexaris Angio-MR-CT, nexaris Angio-CT, Symbia Intevo Bold, Symbia Intevo, Symbia Intevo Excel
Canon Medical Systems:
Aquilion ONE/GENESIS, Aquilion Precision, Aquilion Prime SP, Aquilion ONE/PRISM, Aquilion Lighting 80, Aquilion Lighting 16, Aquilion LB
Carestream:
OnSight 3D Extremity System
Computed Radiography System:
DIRECTVIEW CR Systems, Vita Flex CR Systems, Vita XE CR System, INDUSTREX HPX-PRO Portable, INDUSTREX HPX-1 Plus System
YXLON:
X-ray and CT Inspection System:
FF710 CL, Cheetah EVO, Cougar EVO, MU2000-D, MU2000-D Wheel, MU2000-D Tire, MU60AE, MU80 AE, FF20 CT, FF35 CT, CT Compact,CT Tire, WI26 G, FF85 CT, MTIS, MU231, MU56 TB
North Star Imaging (NSI):
X25, X50, X3000, X3500, X5000, X5500, X7000, X7500, robotiX
NovaCam Technologies Inc.:
OCT
Adani: ventum
