New diagnostic suite’s advanced technologies offer patients

greater convenience and improved comfort while minimizing anxiety

Mason City, Iowa –March ___, 2004 – Some of the latest advancements in medical imaging are now available to north Iowans. Mason City Clinic officials today unveiled a new diagnostic imaging suite that includes the area’s first open magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system – an advancement doctors say will improve comfort and reduce stress for patients undergoing diagnostic imaging procedures.

“This is a significant day for health care throughout north Iowa and southern Minnesota,” says Dr. Kevin Rier, president of Mason City Clinic. “Those who are unable to utilize the more conventional closed magnetic resonance systems will no longer have to travel several hours for the comfort of an open MRI.”

Dr. Rier says many patients find closed MRI systems restrictive and intimidating – often requiring medication to endure the procedure – however, there are extreme cases where even medication is not an option. Because of claustrophobia or other factors, approximately ten percent of patients are unable to undergo the closed MRI process at all.

“For our patients the benefits of the new open MRI will be significant and immediate,” adds Rier.

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Magnetic resonance imaging is one of the most sophisticated tools a doctor has to diagnose an illness or injury. The procedure creates images of the body using magnetic fields and radio waves rather than radiation. This non-invasive procedure is painless and produces no known side or after effects. MRI is used for all parts of the body and is effective in the clinical evaluation of many areas including brain disorders, traumatic injuries, eye abnormalities, tumor detection, liver and other abdominal diseases, knee and shoulder injuries, musculoskeletal disorders, and facial and neck abnormalities.

The Mason City Clinic’s AIRIS II Open MRI system was acquired from the Ohio-based Hitachi Medical Systems America, Inc. Hitachi is the global leader in open MRI technology with more than 700 systems installed in the United States and 1,800 worldwide.

The Mason City Clinic’s open MRI is part of a new diagnostic imaging suite that will also offer area patients high-speed computed tomography (CT) imaging services. CT imaging, often called a CAT scan, is a diagnostic procedure that uses x-ray technology to obtain cross-sectional images of the body. Highly detailed displays of organs, tissues and bones assist doctors in the detection, diagnosis and treatment of cancer, osteoporosis and vascular disease.

The new LightSpeed QX/i acquired by Mason City Clinic is a four-slice CT imaging system designed by GE Medical Systems and will be the most advanced CT scanning technology in the area. The system’s ability to rapidly scan patients results in images with significantly greater resolution which, in turn, allows doctors to better detect abnormalities.

“The addition of our new high-speed CT scanning service helps us better serve our patients by reducing the waiting period for a scan from sometimes weeks down to days,” says Dr. Rier. “But most importantly, this new technology gives the physician very quick, clear and accurate images of that patient – and helps determine the diagnosis and eventual treatment.”

Mason City Clinic’s new open MRI and CT imaging systems are located in the Westbrook Office Building at 520 South Pierce, Suite 100 in Mason City. For more information, call 641-494-5490 or go to www.mcclinic.com .

The Mason City Clinic is a physician-owned professional corporation of specialists providing patient care in the North Iowa area. Formed in 1989, the Mason City Clinic brought together 30 physicians and 70 staff with a specific mission: "To assure the highest quality health care in North Iowa through our role as patient and physician advocate."

Today, Mason City Clinic specialists and staff provide quality health care each year to more than 200,000 patients in a 14-county region.

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