At the NFL Combine-the professional football scouting camp where potential players are evaluated by all 32 NFL teams- each player must undergo a comprehensive battery of medical exams and measurements, including a thorough radiographic screening. Radiographic exams use x-rays to create digital images that show body structure and functioning. Agfa HealthCare's DX-S systems were used during this screening process for high-detail digital images, lower radiation dose, and faster throughput.

The NFL Combine is held every winter in Indianapolis, Indiana. More than 300 of the nation's best college football players are invited to participate. The medical evaluation is held at Clarian Health's Methodist Hospital, which used two of Agfa HealthCare's DX-S CR systems with MUSICA2 Platinum software and a Central Monitoring Station (CMS) to perform radiological studies.

"During previous scouting camps, radiology technologists worked late into the night to complete all of the exams," said Todd Stanley, director of radiology at Methodist Hospital. "Thanks to the DX-S CR system, Methodist was able to finish by dinner time on a couple of evenings."

The speed and flexibility of the DX-S helped physicians at Methodist Hospital process hundreds of digital imaging exams in record time without sacrificing image quality. Methodist Hospital's radiology department normally processes about 100 x-rays in one day; during the Combine this number jumps to approximately 1,600 over a four-day period. "The sheer volume of x-rays is phenomenal. It's one of the most challenging schedules a radiology department will ever face," said Stanley.

Workflow is crucial, especially during peak patient load. "Our priority was high quality images and faster throughput." Stanley continued. "The CMS workstation was critical because it allowed us to perform quality control on all images coming in from the readers before we sent them to our PACS (Picture Archiving and Communication System)."

Agfa HealthCare's DX-S is a groundbreaking Computed Radiography system. At its heart are two breakthrough technologies unique to Agfa HealthCare: DirectriX needle-based detector technology for increased image quality with potential dose reduction, and Scanhead line-to-line CR simulation and light collection technology for reduced waiting times.

The DX-S is used in environments where patient comfort, exam speed and imaging flexibility are of paramount importance, including emergency, trauma, pediatric, neonatal, and general radiography departments. The DX-S is ideal for imaging athletes because of their larger size. Typically, high doses of radiation must be delivered to achieve high quality images of larger-sized patients. The greater sensitivity of the DX-S detectors means better image quality at lower dose.

"As players hone their skills in NFL Training Camps in preparation for the new season, Agfa HealthCare is excited and proud to have been a part of the recruit evaluation process in cooperation with Methodist Hospital," said Michael Green, Vice-President North America, Agfa HealthCare. "We congratulate all of the new players and wish all of the NFL teams the best for a successful season."