(Des Plaines, IL – November 6, 2006) – According to IMV Medical Information Division's recent census of CT sites in the U.S., an estimated 62.0 million procedures were performed in 7,650 hospital and non-hospital sites in 2006. This represents a 24% increased from 50.1 million procedures in 2003, for an average annualized rate of 8% per year over the period.

"With the rapid technological innovations in volumetric scanning, increased scan speed, thinner CT slices, and 3D visualization, CT scanners are continuing to transform the clinical landscape," observed Lorna Young, Senior Director, Market Research. "As a result, radiology departments and imaging centers are stepping up the pace of replacing their installed base and adding capacity. Going forward, the replacement market will range from 1,200 to 1,600 units per year over the next five years, and the total annual market will exceed 2,000 units."

IMV's 2006 CT Market Summary Report describes trends in procedure utilization, the CT installed base and purchase plans, workstations, power injectors, contrast media utilization and budgets, and site operations characteristics. The report also covers adoption trends of new procedures such as CT Angiography and advanced technologies including 64-slice CTs. Highlights include:

• CT Angiography procedures are performed by 58% of the CT sites.
• Over 80% of the CTs installed in 2006 were multi-slice CTs with 16+ slices.
• Two-thirds of the CT installed base will be replaced within seven years of installation, with an average replacement cycle of 6.7 years.
• The large amount of data from volumetric scanning places increased demand on processing the data. Over 60% of the sites use workstations for processing and displaying CT images, with 3D software as an essential capability.

The data source for this report is IMV's 2006/07 CT Census Database, which provides comprehensive profiles of hospital and non-hospital CT sites in the United States. The database can be licensed by qualified subscribers and includes contact and site-specific information. Applications of the database include market analysis, market development, target marketing, lead generation, installed base marketing programs, sales territory deployment and competitive analysis. IMV also performs customized analysis of the statistics to address specific provider or vendor analytical requirements.

For more information about IMV's CT Census Database and Market Summary Report, visit the corporate website at www.imvinfo.com or call 847-297-1404 to speak with a representative.

IMV Medical Information Division, Inc. is a market research consulting firm founded in 1977 specializing in medical imaging and other advanced healthcare technology markets. IMV's proprietary marketing consulting services, in combination with our census databases of U.S. imaging sites with selected modalities, provide vendors and healthcare providers valuable assistance in strategic planning, customer satisfaction, product development and sales initiatives. Current census databases include interventional angiography, radiographic fluoroscopy, cardiac catheterization, CT, MRI, nuclear medicine, echocardiography, diagnostic ultrasound, PET, radiation oncology, X-ray/DR/CR and RIS/PACS.

Contact: Gail Prochaska
gprochaska@imvinfo.com
847-297-1404