Radiation and radiation dose reduction are arguably the most controversial topics in medical imaging today, subjecting patients to a great deal of uncertainty and putting medical professionals under increased pressure to justify imaging procedures. As an innovation leader in dose reduction, Siemens has long applied a comprehensive approach to all areas of diagnostic and interventional imaging, called CARE (Combined Applications to Reduce Exposure). The Siemens CARE standard brings together a wide variety of advanced technologies and applications to meet the needs of patients and physicians. Siemens is providing a comprehensive communication and education program to support clinical staff in protecting themselves and patients better against avoidable radiation exposure. In this context, Siemens is the first manufacturer to issue a "Guide to Low Dose", describing the basics of radiation and dose reducing features offered by Siemens.

With its innovative diagnostic methods, Siemens is a pioneer of medical technology. Many of its inventions are groundbreaking to this day. One of the roots of medical technology dates back to the 19th-century in Erlangen, Germany. In 1877, Erwin Moritz Reininger founded a workshop that later became a cornerstone of Siemens medical technology. In 1901, the first Nobel prize was awarded to Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen for the discovery of X-rays: a sensation at the time. As Röntgen received the Nobel prize, Wilhelmine was born. When the businessman's daughter was 16 years old, she developed a terrible toothache and was waiting nervously in a dentist's office. The doctor comforted her: "We have an X-ray machine and a modern dental drill. We'll use the X-ray machine to examine you and determine exactly where the problem is. We can then drill in a manner that is as pain-free as possible." A dental X-ray machine was placed on the market at the beginning of 1913, and the Triumph dental drill, which greatly reduced pain with 1,200 revolutions per minute, had already been available since the beginning of 1903. In the meantime, dental drills with 400,000 revolutions per minute have become the standard. This was not the last time that Wilhelmine and her family were confronted with a Siemens invention.

You can't anticipate breast cancer. But you can raise awareness.

Our Healthcare Sector provides software solutions that support the workflow processes associated with radiological imaging, helping improve the efficiency and accuracy of image evaluation. Our new imaging software for the advanced visualization and multimodality evaluation of clinical cases – syngo.via – demonstrates once again that we're leading the way in addressing market demands for clinical imaging. syngo.via and syngo.via-based independent clinical applications help to improve evaluations of clinical images and support efficient, task-oriented clinical workflows – from patient exams to the distribution of exam results. For example, by automating certain pre-defined process steps, syngo.via makes it possible to cut the number of manual subtasks needed to set up image evaluations, which helps reduce errors and achieve precise and efficient diagnoses – even across different image acquisition modalities. Our innovative technologies enable us, uniquely, to combine imaging systems and evaluation software and bundle them into a complete client-server solution – to the advantage and benefit of our customers, who can access images more quickly, focus on evaluations and make prompt diagnoses – all factors that support high-quality patient care.

Our Biograph Molecular CT (mCT) scanner is the first system to combine the capabilities of an advanced CT scanner with those of a high-resolution positron emission tomography (PET) system. With conventional PET-CT devices, the CT component can perform only a limited range of CT scans. In launching the Biograph mCT, we've rung in the era of "molecular computed tomography." On the one hand, the unit is a CT system that offers molecular imaging; on the other, it's a PET system into which the extensive options provided by computed tomography have been integrated. Particularly at a time when healthcare budgets are shrinking, the new system is ideally suited to performing not only high-quality CT scans, but also PET-CT scans – and to doing so economically. The device also promotes close cooperation between the diagnostic disciplines of traditional radiology and molecular imaging.

Siemens has developed a pediatric hearing instrument whose special design and technical features enable it to be worn throughout several childhood development stages. Known as Siemens Explorer, the device meets infant fitting requirements as well as the needs of preschoolers. Because a child's ear is still growing, the acoustician must be able to easily replace the optoplastic – the part of the hearing instrument that sits in the opening of the ear. The Siemens model meets this requirement. The Siemens Explorer is also sturdy enough to withstand the demands of the school day. For example, it has a nanocoating that resists water, dirt and grease. The model's appearance can be changed to suit the ever-changing tastes of children and teenagers, for its housing comes in 16 different colors and can be replaced by the acoustician. Thanks to Bluetooth, the hearing instrument even meets the technological standards of teenagers, since it can connect wirelessly to landline and mobile phones.