YNHH becomes first Connecticut facility to install a weight-bearing CT scanner

In January 2020, Yale New Haven Hospital became the first facility in Connecticut to install a weight-bearing CT scanner for limb imaging in orthopedic patients. Unlike a traditional CT scanner, which requires a patient to lie on a bed, patients are imaged by a weight-bearing scanner while standing to better see and understand how the injured bones and soft tissue appear in a natural position.

The scanner, located on the 2nd floor of Smilow Cancer Hospital, provides high-resolution, three-dimensional CT imaging of a patient’s legs in a natural state, offering the ability to reveal subtle fractures that two-dimensional images cannot. An additional benefit is lower dose imaging than traditional CT scanners.

“To see how fractured bones are oriented under a normal load with high-resolution CT and three-dimensional reconstructions is a tool we have not had until now,” said Andrew Haims, MD, professor of Radiology & Biomedical Imaging and of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation at Yale School of Medicine and radiologist at Yale New Haven Hospital.

“The scanner not only is able to scan in ultra-thin sections, but it also has software that allows for improved imaging of patients with metal from orthopedic hardware and joint prostheses. Evaluating orthopedic patients with metallic implants is an integral part of musculoskeletal imaging,” said Dr. Haims, who is also the division chief for musculoskeletal imaging.

For more information or to make an appointment, call 833-772-0003.

Read the full article at Yale School of Medicine.