In a Scottish first, heart specialists have used innovative imaging technology to see inside heart arteries – representing what they say is an important step toward securing better outcomes for those with heart disease.

Dr Stuart Watkins and Dr Margaret McEntegart, consultant cardiologists at NHS Golden Jubilee, are now using the new Dragonfly OpStar imaging catheter, and a live recording of one of their latest cases will be used to educate cardiologists across the world.

The technology is being hailed as the new generation of intravascular imaging, allowing cardiologists to more accurately see inside the arteries of patients to better target treatment and reduce the risk of heart attacks.

Dr Watkins said the team is pleased to have brought the new option to patients in Scotland:

 “It’s a real honour to be asked, along with my colleague Dr Margaret McEntegert, to be the first centre in Scotland to use this new catheter.

“OpStar has new design features which make it easier to insert into heart arteries. It also has a new lens which gives us brighter, clearer images of the arteries we treat.

“Using this together with artificial intelligence (AI) technology, we have a significantly improved imaging platform for looking inside arteries and treating patients.

“Before, our OCT assessment of arteries was very manual and you had to go in and do everything yourself, but now using this new software, we automatically get some of the information we need, speeding up the process.”

A live recorded case of the consultants using the technology will be broadcast for the internationally renowned PCR, an online educational platform that gives cardiologists the opportunity to share knowledge, experience and practice in interventional medicine, next month.

NHS Golden Jubilee Medical Director Dr Mark MacGregor said bringing the technology to Clydebank is part of a commitment to the centre being a leader in its field:

“This new technology simplifies the interpretation of images from OCT, gives a more accurate diagnosis and helps us continue to deliver a world class standard of care for our patients.

“It’s also fantastic that NHS Golden Jubilee was asked to do this case for PCR, educating cardiologists in other centres in how to treat heart arteries during this COVID-19 pandemic.

“Showcasing the latest technology that’s available to treat heart disease demonstrates NHS Golden Jubilee’s commitment as a centre of excellence as well as an institution committed to medical education.”

Read more: Rapid 4D heart scanner opens in north east; Scotland ‘underinvesting’ in heart disease

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