Your Guide to Medical Imaging Equipment

Veterinarians have unique needs, and I don’t just mean an outdoor, fenced-in bathroom for patients. Vets care deeply for animals, and imaging equipment can be as critical to their work as it is to the work of doctors serving human patients. Unlike doctors for humans, however, vets can’t count on insurance or government reimbursement. They must think more economically about their equipment, especially “big metal” systems like MRI and CT. That's why we've compiled four CT scanners we recommend every vet consider as they shop in the CT market.

We often talk about the ease of finding engineering and third-party parts support for GE CT scanners like the Lightspeed, Brightspeed, and VCT. On the opposite end of the spectrum, we've also discussed the “premium”, late-model scanners that just haven’t hit the market with enough consistency (like the Siemens Definition Force or GE Revolution EVO) to make third-party service and parts viable for a few more years. On that latter end of the spectrum, there are also some systems that, unless something big changes soon, are unlikely to ever come out from under the yoke of OEM service. 

If you're hoping to purchase a CT and save on service and parts by working with an independent service organization (ISO) and third-party parts suppliers, the following are three systems you may want to avoid. Please note that none of these remarks are a commentary on the quality of a system, but rather the access owners have to parts and affordable support for it.

As you learn what to expect from your CT scanner in terms of parts and service costs, one of the most important things you can know is the average lifespan for your X-ray tube model. On any CT, the tube is a part that will need to be replaced periodically and is also one of the most expensive to replace. The sooner you plan for this expense, the better you'll be able to approach the replacement process.

If you're scanning with a Siemens Emotion CT from 1-16 slices, you're using one of two types of Dura CT tubes. Below, we'll share with you the average lifespan, average replacement cost, and part numbers of the Dura 202 and Dura 422 CT tubes.

Need a CT tube now? Click here to submit a request and get a quote.