LightLab releases "world's highest resolution OCT system for intracoronary imaging"

LightLab Imaging Inc. (Westford, MA), developer of optical coherence tomography (OCT) systems for vascular and other applications, today announced the launch of its next-generation system at EuroPCR 2009 in Barcelona, Spain. LightLab, which has been involved in a legal struggle owing to competitor Volcano Corp.'s acquisition of LightLab partner Axsun, says the system is the world's first approved frequency-domain OCT product for intracoronary imaging. The system received the CE Mark in March but is not yet available in the US.

The system, called the C7XR FD-OCT and C7 Dragonfly Imaging Catheter, promises micron-level resolution imaging of the coronary artery with the capability to scan a 40 mm artery segment in less than three seconds with a single non-occlusive catheter. According to Dr. Francesco Prati of Ospedale San Giovanni (Rome, Italy), "The C7XR system and C7 Dragonfly imaging catheter represent a significant step forward for intracoronary imaging. I am very pleased with the speed and simplicity of the imaging procedure and the improvements in image quality are truly impressive. I would expect frequency domain OCT to replace IVUS in many cases or centers."

"The launch of the C7XR Imaging System and Dragonfly Catheter is an important milestone for LightLab Imaging, and represents years of successful collaboration with many of the world's leading interventionalists," said David Kolstad, President and CEO of LightLab Imaging. "The image quality is extraordinary, greatly enhancing ease of image interpretation. We are confident that it will quickly improve best practices for stent procedures and other intracoronary interventions."

OCT generates intravascular images with a resolution up to 10 to 15 times greater than other clinically available imaging devices, including Intravascular Ultrasound (IVUS). With its higher resolution, OCT may reduce observer variability in all standard cross-sectional measurements.

The C7XR system follows the M2x OCT Imaging System, LightLab's first-generation time-domain OCT (TD-OCT) device, which is available in more than 20 countries worldwide. More than 10,000 patient intracoronary images have been taken since the company launched the M2x which, until the launch of the C7XR FD-OCT Imaging System, was the only commercially available intracoronary OCT imaging device in the world.

The C7XR system further advances LightLab's product offering by providing a system that is 10 times faster, and of even higher resolution. These advances permit high speed, non-occlusive imaging of coronary vasculature at extremely high resolution. A single catheter design obtains images of the coronary anatomy with extraordinary image quality in mere seconds.

Learn more about LightLab's OCT systems at the company's website.