LINKOPING, Sweden, Feb. 1, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Sectra has received the first order for the company's new digital mammography system - Sectra MicroDose Mammography - from the Swedish hospital Helsingborgs Lasarett AB.
Sectra's MicroDose Mammography system is based on a completely new technology that allows radiation levels to be reduced to one fifth, with maintained or improved image quality, compared with today's mammography systems.
"With Sectra's system, we avoid exposing women to higher radiation levels than necessary, while at the same time maintaining the very high image quality required for mammography examinations," says Stefan Sallerfors, radiologist and CEO of Helsingborgs Lasarett AB.
With this order, the women of Helsingborg will receive the world's lowest levels of radiation in conjunction with mammography examinations. Delivery is expected to take place during the autumn.
"We are proud to be helping in this way to reduce radiation exposure levels for the women of Helsingborg," says Torbjorn Kronander, President of Sectra Imtec AB. "Helsingborgs Lasarett is recognized as a very competent hospital and a pioneer in advancing technology, which has the implication that this will be an important reference installation."
Sectra's unique system is based on particle-physics research at CERN in Geneva, which was refined by a research group at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. This technology allows detection and signal processing of each individual X-ray photon directly in silicon. In this way, the information from the X-ray photons is maximally exploited, and the signal-to-noise ratio is reduced, compared with competing detector systems. With this technology, the efficiency of the radiation usage is about 95%, resulting in significantly lower radiation exposure for the same high image quality as with conventional film.
Sectra is one of today's major PACS providers with more than 200 PACS installations worldwide. The Swedish based company operates through partners in most of the world, but delivers directly to end customers in Northern Europe. The core business is to deliver top-of-the-line high- availability, robust enterprise PACS for 24/7 operation. In Sweden, which is currently the country with the largest penetration of PACS in the world, Sectra holds a dominant market leadership with more than 60% of all film free installations. The company has its largest number of installed systems in Sweden and the US (through partners), but has also an installed base in Germany, Norway, Finland, UK, Italy, Spain, The Netherlands and the Far East.
Helsingborg Hospital
Helsingborg Hospital, in North-West Skane, is one of Sweden's largest privatized emergency hospitals and has 2400 employees. The hospital is the most advanced healthcare provider in its geographic area and offers healthcare to the inhabitants within most specialities.
Helsingborg Hospital is owned by Region Skane. The hospital is organised into eight business areas that each consist of closely related specialities. For the patients this means that examinations and treatments are efficiently co-ordinated.
The ownership structure has made it possible for the hospital to commit to specialities and equipment within fields that normally demand a larger catchment area. Thereby the inhabitants of North-West Skane have access to advanced medical equipment locally.
Sectra's Operations
Sectra has its roots in Linkoping Technical University and is one of Sweden's fastest growing high-tech companies in the IT area. Since the mid-1980s, Sectra has successfully conducted development and sales of high-technology medical IT and telecommunications products. Today, the business includes products in medical systems, secure communication systems and wireless information systems.
Sectra's medical business is conducted in Sectra Imtec AB, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sectra AB. Internationally, Sectra PACS is marketed and sold through different partners.
The technology that the new mammography system is based on is developed and produced by Mamea Imaging AB, Stockholm, Sweden, a company that is co-owned by Sectra Imtec AB, Skandia and a number of researchers from the Royal Institute of Technology. All sales of Mamea Imaging AB are exclusively done through Sectra.
Business is conducted in six countries with a total of 218 employees. Sales for the fiscal year May 2000-April 2001 reached SEK 292 million. Since March 1999, Sectra's shares have been quoted on the O list of the Stockholm Exchange.
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