GE ENTERING RADIOLOGY ULTRASOUND MARKET WITH LOGIQ 700

GE ENTERING RADIOLOGY ULTRASOUND MARKET WITH LOGIQ 700, the firm announced Nov. 29 at the Radiological Society of North America's annual conference in Chicago. A 510(k) for the device was submitted in February. General Electric Medical Systems will target the system to the general radiology market, including abdominal, obstetrical-gynecological, vascular and urological applications. General radiology comprises "about 40%" of the "$2 billion [worldwide] ultrasound market," John Kese, GE Medical Systems' general manager for global ultrasound, said at a press conference. The Logiq 700 will be GE Medical Systems' first attempt to compete in that segment. The firm estimates its share of the overall ultrasound market at 5-6%, with "significantly higher" market penetration in the clinical ultrasound market. GE Medical Systems currently produces ultrasound machines for the ob/gyn and urology clinical markets and for the cardiology private office market. Those systems list for roughly $30,000-$ 40,000, according to the firm, and are less versatile than hospital radiology systems, which must have the capacity to visualize major organs, vasculature, blood flow and velocities. The Logiq 700 will be priced in the $200,000 range, making it competitive to other ultrasound machines, GE says. Logiq 700's all-digital platform enables it "to deliver superior image quality and...flexibility" to accommodate future innovations, Kese stated. Kese attributed some of the system's image quality to its 128 independent digital channels. GE's Senior Vice President for Corporate Research and Development Lewis Edelheit explained that the positioning of the channels enables "multi-dimensional imaging," or "focusing in three directions" rather than the traditional two. A GE Medical Systems press release highlights other characteristics of the Logiq 700. The system will "feature parallel processing to power extremely fast color flow frame rates." In addition, the system will have "four active probe ports" that "operate in all scanning modes." The firm expects to have production quantities of the Logiq 700 three to four months following clearance. The Logiq 700 should be available during the second quarter of 1994 in Europe and Latin America. The firm is considering eventually marketing the ultrasound system for cardiology.