Methodist Hospital Stone Oak on Feb. 15 hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the arrival of the SOMATOM Force, a dual-source computed tomography scanner.

A news release said the new technology makes Methodist Hospital Stone Oak the first Stone Oak-area hospital to offer advanced CT technology to patients and physicians, providing high-accuracy, low-dose, high-resolution and information-rich images.

The release said this technology will enable advanced imaging for all patients, including some of the most challenging: young children, patients with renal insufficiency and patients who are unable to hold their breath.

Hospital officials also said the new CT scanner is fast, gentle and spacious—providing patients with the comfort they want and clinicians with the confidence they need.

“Our new CT scanner represents a dramatic leap forward in our technological advancements and exemplifies our commitment to exceptional, safe, and quality care for patients at Methodist Hospital Stone Oak,” CEO Jeff Wilson said. “It helps improve diagnostic confidence and provides a positive patient experience for even more people in our communities.”

According to the release, this technology will allow physicians and staff to perform scans with freezing motion. As one of the industry’s fastest and most versatile scanning modes, it enables the user to perform an entire adult chest, abdomen and pelvis study in only one second, so patients do not need to hold their breath.

The scanner can also enable low-dose imaging in lung and colon exams. Patients who are diagnosed with lung or colon cancer are likely to undergo additional follow-up imaging studies that can now be delivered at a continually low dose to enable more decisive treatment and post-therapy evaluations, the release said.