Spyglass Technology

BAYLOR REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER AT PLANO NOW OFFERS ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY FOR DIAGNOSES OF GALLSTONES, SUSPECTED CANCERS AND OTHER GI DISORDERS

(PLANO, TX – March 10, 2010) – Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano now offers new advanced technology for the diagnosis of gastrointestinal conditions like gallstones, suspected cancers, obstructions and cystic lesions.           

The Spyglass® Direct Visualization System provides clear, precise images of bile ducts for a more accurate diagnosis of gastrointestinal disorders. This new technology uses a tiny fiber optic camera that gives physicians a more accurate view of bile ducts, and provides the ability to take clear, precise color images. This facilitates faster, more accurate diagnosis, and it reduces the need for repeat tests, making it more convenient for patients and their families.  

The System uses a precise fiber optic camera, not much bigger than a pencil point that is inserted through a catheter. It is placed in the upper digestive tract and threaded through the stomach and into the bile ducts. Physicians can then steer the camera in four directions, which makes it easier to pinpoint the exact spot to be examined.  

"We are so pleased to have new technology that offers our physicians better visualization and mobility that will assist them in providing quicker and more precise diagnoses of gastrointestinal disorders to patients," says Jerri Garison, president, Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano."           

Potential benefits of the SpyGlass® Direct Visualization System include:

• Quicker, more precise diagnosis
• Better visualization and mobility for physicians
• Fewer repeat procedures
• The ability to perform immediate biopsies in full view  

For a referral to a gastroenterologist on the Baylor Plano medical staff, call 1.800.4BAYLOR or visit www.BaylorHealth.com/Plano.  

Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano is a 112-bed acute care hospital committed to serving North Texas residents with personalized care and advanced technology on a beautiful campus with hotel-like amenities and all private rooms. Services at the not-for-profit, fully-accredited facility include treatment for advanced spine deformities at the Baylor Scoliosis Center, neurosciences, orthopaedics, medical and radiation oncology, surgical weight loss, women’s services, gynecology, urology, gastroenterology, pulmonary medicine, sleep disorders, pain management, diabetes management and more. Patients have access to digital imaging onsite at Baylor Plano and at the Baylor Diagnostic Imaging Center at Craig Ranch, an outpatient department of Baylor Plano. The hospital is the first in North Dallas and Collin County to offer minimally invasive robotic surgery for gynecology and prostate procedures through the FDA-approved da Vinci® S Surgical System.  The hospital has won several quality awards including the Texas Health Care Quality Improvement Award of Excellence and is designated a Pathway to Excellence™ hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center.  Jerri Garison is president of Baylor Plano. For fiscal year 2008, Baylor Health Care System reported $429.5 million* in community benefit, which includes providing care for charity patients and patients enrolled in government programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, as well as the unreimbursed costs of medical education, research and community programs. For more information, visit www.baylorhealth.com/Plano. 

*Represents preliminary information that will be reported to the Texas Department of State Health Services.  

Physicians are members of the medical staff at one of Baylor Health Care System¹s subsidiary, community or affiliated medical centers and are neither employees nor agents of those medical centers, Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano or Baylor Health Care System.