A radiological diagnostic instrument which allows to make radiographic evaluations, commonly called plates, in an upright position (under load) of the spine, of the lower limbs and total body, with fast, accurate acquisitions and with minimum dose of X-rays: the EOS Edge system was acquired by the Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute in Bologna-IRCCS, the first public facility in Italy to adopt this technology.

Presented today by the General Director of Rizzoli Anselmo Campagna, in the presence of the President of the Emilia-Romagna Region Michele de Pascale and the President of the Fondazione Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli Federica Guidi, the system has a value of one million euros, of which 200,000 donated by the Foundation.

This new system is particularly beneficial for patients suffering from spinal deformities (scoliosis, kyphosis, lordosis, defects in the load of the spine and hips, congenital or acquired skeletal dysmorphies) and limb defects (valgism, varism, dismetry, procured and recurved bone, shoulder joint relationships...). These are mainly paediatric patients with pathologies that require frequent radiographic evaluations.

"We are particularly proud that the Irccs Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, already a centre of excellence at national and international level, is the first in Italy to be equipped with EOS Edge technology - declare the president of the Emilia-Romagna Region, Michele de Pascale, and the Councillor for Health Policies, Massimo Fabi. -  Investing in advanced and highly innovative machinery and equipment, which allow early diagnosis, accurate, fast and safe, means investing in public health and increasingly improving the quality of patient care, Especially if they are children. We thank the Rizzoli and the Foundation for this investment, another flagship of public health in Emilia-Romagna".

X-ray exposure is more than twenty times lower than similar surveys with other instruments: the system can simultaneously and continuously capture frontal and lateral images of the whole body in a standing position, a lifting platform allows the patient to be positioned for scanning including foot and ankle, Specific software and protocols optimize the Rx dose and time is reduced to less than three seconds for full spine acquisition in pediatric patients.

"Our Institute is a national and international reference centre for spinal pathologies - stresses the general director of Rizzoli Anselmo Campagna. - This endowment is therefore an additional element in the care path that we guarantee to patients, often children who we follow for years in their growth. The regular and thorough checks they undergo are essential for a proper assessment of the best possible approach to the individual situation, including whether surgery is necessary, Often very demanding in the vertebral field and therefore considered as a last option. The possibility of frequent monitoring, but limiting exposure to ionising radiation, is therefore a clear advantage for patients' overall health."

"We are proud as a Foundation to achieve another important result alongside the Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute - says the president of the Foundation Federica Guidi. - With the donation of 200,000 euros for the purchase of EOS Edge, we will enable many children and families to face a more serene path of care that protects their health even more. Investing in children is a priority for our Foundation from the very beginning, whose main objective is to build a new future of care and hope."

Once acquired, in terms of "return" the system is able to calculate more than one hundred clinical parameters and release reports that are used by surgeons for surgery planning, post-operative control and follow-upup of patients over time, in addition to providing the 3D reconstruction of the spine and lower limbs from images acquired under load position, all results of investigation that often avoid using Tc, Further protecting the patient from exposure to radiation.

Employment is also planned in research projects that the Rizzoli, as IRCCS, Institute of Scientific Shelter and Care, leads with reference results for the international scientific community in the study of spinal deformities and degenerative diseases of the spine, the evaluation of osteoporosis as a possible alternative to bone densitometer, of cervical spine diseases and the assessment of osteoarthritis.