Philips enters handheld ultrasound market

Royal Philips Electronics has launched a handheld ultrasound system for cardiologists to obtain diagnostic data bedside. Philips representatives said the CX50 CompactXtreme features its PureWave transducer, which can improve penetration in difficult-to-image patients. It also features Philips XRES adaptive image processing for reduced speckle and haze inherent with ultrasound imaging. The Philips CX50 CompactXtreme also supports adult transthoracic and transesophageal cardiology applications, the representatives said.