A PCP Guide to Emerging Therapies for Resistant Hypertension
Matthew F. Watto, MD: Welcome back to The Curbsiders . I'm Dr Matthew Frank Watto, here with my great friend and America's primary care physician, Dr Paul Nelson Williams. Paul, this is a topic you know a ton about, isn't it?
Paul N. Williams, MD: It's one I always have questions about; I think this is our 37th episode on high blood pressure, if I'm not mistaken.
Watto: The audience can't get enough of it — turns out, neither can I.
Williams: Me neither!
Watto: I love talking about high blood pressure, and this was with a great guest, Dr Jordy Cohen. She's a hypertension expert and a nephrologist. Paul, to start us off, what are we doing with blood pressure cuffs these days? Those manual ones on the wall, those are the way to go, right?
Williams: This is a scenario we talk about all the time, and we've beat this drum a lot in prior episodes. I think we've all experienced a patient whose initial triage blood pressure reading is elevated, and either you or the patient will ask for a recheck and you're tempted to use a blood pressure cuff that's been hanging on the wall, has not been calibrated in 17 years, has a decaying spiral cord, and looks like it would fall apart if you touched it. Turns out that's probably not the best way to do it, Matt.
So, to reiterate: Automated cuffs are the preferred option. They are more accurate. In this episode with Dr Cohen, we talked about making sure we use the appropriate cuff size and when we have patients who have large arms, you may have to use a wrist measurement every so often. In these circumstances, positioning matters: feet flat, back supported, elbow resting on a table, and have two fingers on the opposite clavicle so that everything is at heart level.
If you're taking the blood pressure reading using a cuff around the arm itself, again, you should make sure the patient's arm is resting on a tabletop, bedside, or even on your own arm to ensure it's at heart level. You also shouldn't talk with the patient during that process so you can give them every chance to have an accurate blood pressure reading. That's the first thing: Get an accurate reading. Then everything else follows that step, as you should only treat a diagnosis that you've appropriately made.
Watto: All the goals are based on a properly taken blood pressure, so if your patient's blood pressure hasn't been appropriately measured, you might overtreat or undertreat someone.
For most patients who are nonfrail, we're now shooting for a blood pressure that is below 130/80 mm Hg. The Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) guidelines for patients with chronic kidney disease state that normal blood pressure should be below 120/80, which is very hard to do. If we're getting people with a systolic in the 120s, that's probably about as good as we're going to get.
For treatment, Dr Cohen and I have adopted this practice of using combination pills for hypertension management — either a calcium-channel blocker with an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or an angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB). I usually prefer a calcium-channel blocker with an ARB or the 'triple pill,' a single-pill combination of a calcium-channel blocker, an ARB, and a diuretic. That's what I go to now as my first-line agent.
I'm using a lot of either low-dose or medium-dose combination therapy. I don't usually go to the highest dose unless I'm in a situation where I have to decide between starting a fourth medication or going to a higher dose. That's really been a practice change for me. Dr Cohen reiterated that point and emphasized that it's easiest for the patient and they usually experience fewer side effects when you choose a low-to-moderate dose in comparison to a high dose.
Williams: It's a point that we've made in prior episodes, as well. As you start to max out the doses of these medications, you get diminishing returns in terms of their efficacy in lowering blood pressure efficacy and patients can start to experience increased side effects. It's a far better option to start with a kind of median dose as opposed to really trying to crank up the dose, because you just don't get that much more benefit with that approach.
Watto: We're going to discuss some of the newer blood pressure–lowering agents.
Paul, the first one I want to ask you about is not quite a blood pressure medication, but it does lower blood pressure. Which medication am I talking about here?
Williams: I think you're probably referring to semaglutide, Matt. I think we all have a fair amount of comfort with these diabetes and weight loss medications. These are remarkable medications and the indications keep piling on, which is great. Semaglutide, in particular, is not approved for hypertension, but it does lower blood pressure, likely as a result of the weight loss that is achieved with the medication. So, it's not technically an antihypertensive, but it provides a great blood pressure benefit.
I think there's also some 'fancy pants' medications coming down the pipeline that we should probably be aware of, right?
Watto: Yes, and the first one I'll mention is endothelin receptor antagonists. As a generalist, you're probably not going to be prescribing these; they will probably be prescribed by a hypertension specialist. Compared with placebo, they have a modest effect in lowering blood pressure (~4 mm Hg), but they are officially approved, so they're out there.
What's more exciting, Paul, are aldosterone synthase inhibitors. The generic names for these include baxdrostat and lorundrostat. They're not yet approved, but I believe they are in phase 2 or phase 3 trials, depending on the indications. They seem promising, as they have a much stronger effect on blood pressure (~10-15 mm Hg) compared with placebo. Dr Cohen thinks these medications are probably going to be in the primary care wheelhouse soon. Cost will probably an issue with these medications at the start, but otherwise, these are pills that are taken once a day and they don't have the antiandrogen side effects that you can get with the mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs), like spironolactone. Dr Cohen was really excited about being able to prescribe these at some point.
Williams: And the MRAs are traditionally a fourth-line medication (unless you have compelling indications), so to have something else in your armamentarium that has less side effects is super exciting. It'll be great to see these in the pipeline.
Watto: Now, what would you say, Paul, if I told you there was a medication for blood pressure that is only administered once every 6 months and will shut down the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS)? How does that sound?
Williams: As someone who's taken medical school physiology, it sounds lightly terrifying! It feels like you do need the RAAS for some things, but I think for patients that are less interested in taking medications — which turns out to be most patients — it could potentially be exciting. I think as long as we have a way to reverse the effects of this medication if needed, then I think there's potential for excitement around this medication.
Watto: I'm of course talking about a small interfering RNA (siRNA) agent. The one we talked about in this episode was zilebesiran; it's an siRNA agent and is administered once every 6 months. But no one would feel comfortable giving this unless there's an antidote, because if a patient gets septic, they probably need their RAAS to help them out there.
Williams: Or if you have a patient who is pregnant — lots of reasons why you might actually want that system working.
Watto: Exactly. Now, some people just don't want to take medications even if they need them, Paul. What else might be offered to a patient with high blood pressure? And how excited should we be about this next therapy?
Williams: I feel like you're asking the wrong guy, Matt! I think you're alluding to renal denervation therapy. I feel it had a lot of wild enthusiasm initially, then it kind of waned, and now I feel like enthusiasm is back, baby — we're back into renal denervation. It sounds like a great option and I think we're doing a little better job with it, but its effect on lowering blood pressure is about equivalent to the effect you observe with a single-agent medication. So, realistically, these patients may still need to be on medications for blood pressure control. It's only effective for about two thirds of patients who get the procedure; that's 33% of your patients who would go through this invasive procedure where we're frying a nerve and in the end, they may not actually experience any blood pressure benefit.
I think there's still a population that would benefit from and be interested in this option, but I don't think it's something that we should consider as first-line therapy for the majority of folks because of that potential for treatment failure and the continued need for medications among a substantial portion of the patients who undergo this procedure. It's still exciting that there's evidence for it and it does cause significant blood pressure lowering, so it's nice to have another option.
Watto: Yeah, and I think patients are going be coming in and asking about it, so having some knowledge about the pros and cons of the procedure is important.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
28 minutes ago
- Forbes
Yes, You Should Brush Your Teeth For 2 Minutes, Twice A Day. Here's Why.
Maintaining good oral hygiene practices is key to keeping your teeth and gums healthy—and spending two minutes brushing twice a day is a crucial part of any routine. This may seem like a simple mandate, but there are several factors to keep in mind when you're brushing for optimal results: Technique, toothpaste, pacing and more will make a difference. The ultimate goal of brushing your teeth is to remove bacteria, which can otherwise build up to cause decay and disease. '[For] oral disease, whether that's cavities or whether that's gum disease, reducing the amount of bacterial load in the mouth is a critical piece of that prevention measure,' says Jennifer Cullen, clinical assistant professor at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry. We spoke to three dental experts to learn the best tips and tricks for keeping your teeth sparkling ... More clean. Illustration: Forbes / Photos: Retailers To help you make the most of your two-minute toothbrushing sessions—and learn why we should brush at this cadence in the first place—I spoke to three dental experts to get their advice: Mark S. Wolff, DDS, PhD, Morton Amsterdam dean and professor of the division of restorative dentistry at the University of Pennsylvania; Jennifer Cullen, clinical assistant professor at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, and director of the division of dental hygiene; and Matthew Messina, DDS, associate professor, clinical and clinic director at the Ohio State University College of Dentistry, and ADA spokesperson. These experts shared their insights on how to brush most effectively, and why brushing teeth is important, to help you stay motivated. Here are the tips and techniques they recommend. Multiple clinical studies show that brushing for two minutes is key to removing plaque so you can keep your teeth and gums healthy. 'There's clinical studies that have shown two minutes of brushing to be highly effective in reducing [tooth] decay,' says Dr. Wolff. A key reason for the two-minute mandate is so you can actually reach the surface of every tooth in the mouth with your brush, and tackle all of the plaque on your teeth. Cullen explained that there are multiple layers of plaque on teeth, and that the longer you brush, the better you can get to the bottom-most, stickiest layers. The experts I spoke with maintained that thoroughly brushing the surface of every tooth takes time: You want to make sure you get the cheek and tongue surface and the back and front of each one. Wolff advises softly placing the bristles right at the gumline to start brushing. How can you ensure you're getting each tooth? 'Brush methodically, not randomly,' says Wolff. Approaching each quadrant of the mouth in 30-second intervals can help you hit all the areas of your mouth, too. Some of the best electric toothbrushes we've tested, like the Oral-B iO Deep Clean + Protect, our pick for the best smart electric toothbrush, and the Philips Sonicare 9900 Prestige, our pick for best splurge electric toothbrush, not only buzz at 30-second intervals to move you along but also have apps that track your brushing to show you any spots you're missing. Let Fluoride Do Its Job The other crucial reason to brush for two minutes twice a day is to let the fluoride in toothpaste take effect to help prevent tooth decay. Cullen notes that hygienists and dentists recommend that people use some sort of fluoridated toothpaste, and that 'there is evidence for the benefits of that increased duration with respect to fluoride delivery.' The experts I spoke to said that fluoride is key to protecting tooth enamel, and that longer exposure to fluoride makes it harder for bacteria to build back up on the tooth. 'It's actually making the enamel less soluble to acids,' says Wolff. Many of the best electric toothbrushes have timers to track your brushing. Some, like the Oral-B iO Deep Clean + Protect, display time clearly on the brush's LED interface and offer cartoon faces (ranging from a frown to starry-eyed smile) to indicate where you stand with your time goal. This brush also works with an app to help you track time, and uses a buzzer in 30-second increments to cue you to move around your mouth. Other brushes use an automatic shutoff feature, or similar buzzing notifications, to let you know when you've reached your full two minutes. Timers And Apps There are multiple ways to time your brushing. Cullen suggests a sand timer for kids or patients with special needs. Dr. Messina recommends using a timer on your phone. He also notes there are apps that are especially helpful for kids to guide them to brush around their mouth over the course of two minutes. Break It Up By Quadrant To break up the two minutes, you can also count for 30 seconds while brushing each quadrant of your mouth, if you don't have an electric toothbrush that does this automatically. This can help keep track of time while making sure you're getting to every tooth. Sing A Song Both Cullen and Messina suggest one way to track your time is to either sing or play a favorite song that lasts around two minutes. This can help gamify your brushing—and make it more enjoyable, a technique that can be especially helpful for kids. Be Gentle Though it's important to be thorough while brushing, experts advise against brushing too hard. 'You don't want to wear the teeth away by scrubbing like this is a floor,' says Wolff. Brushing too hard can actually damage your teeth and gums. To avoid that, opt for a brush with soft bristles. Many electric toothbrushes also have pressure sensors to indicate if you're brushing too aggressively, or if you're hitting the sweet spot. In our electric toothbrush tests, we preferred the easy-to-see sensor on the Oral-B iO Deep Clean + Protect, which uses a light around the neck of the toothbrush to flash green, white or red to indicate pressure. Other brushes can have pressure sensors that will buzz or light up to tell you to ease up. Don't Forget To Floss Brushing is just one key component of a great oral hygiene routine; it can't act alone. Flossing is crucial to reach every surface of the tooth to remove food and debris. 'Brushing itself only reaches 60% of your tooth surfaces,' says Cullen. 'Everywhere a tooth touches another tooth, that toothbrush can't get to.' She recommends floss or an adaptive aid to help get into those hard-to-reach spaces. We've also tested the best water flossers at Forbes Vetted, and these devices can help reach in between teeth to clear debris. The Waterpik Aquarius Water Flosser won as best water flosser overall in our tests. Water flossers may be especially useful for people with orthodontia or those who have difficulty using traditional dental floss. Consider The Swish, And The Social Brush All the experts I spoke to recommended brushing at least twice a day—but what if you want, or need, to brush more frequently? In general, that's fine, and some people may need to brush more frequently due to medical conditions or orthodontia. Wolff advises being mindful of not brushing too hard, however. 'There's nothing wrong with too much or too frequent brushing, as long as you do it gently and you don't wear away the gums [or] damage the tooth with a hard toothbrush,' he says. He also warned of compensating with frequency versus technique. 'Doing it three times a day badly does not make you less likely to get cavities or less likely to have gum disease,' he says. If you don't have access to a sink or brush after every meal, there are still easy things you can do to help keep your mouth cleaner. Cullen and Messina both advise swishing your mouth with water after eating to neutralize the pH of the mouth (when the environment of the mouth is more acidic, it becomes more hospitable to cavity-causing bacteria). Messina also recommends what he calls a 'social brush,' or a quicker brush to clear the mouth of food—for example, after eating a pungent meal like a hamburger with onions— that's less thorough than your twice-daily toothbrushing geared toward deeper cleaning and hitting every surface of the tooth. Remember That Every Patient Has Different Needs Though brushing your teeth for two minutes twice a day is the standard, every patient has different needs; some people may need to brush more frequently or require assistance with brushing. Cullen spoke to how a 10-year-old who isn't snacking frequently or drinking sweet drinks could brush just twice a day, while someone with Parkinson's disease may need to brush more frequently and with assistance. Sometimes electric toothbrushes can help people brush more effectively, but other assistive devices, like a universal cuff, can also help with holding a toothbrush independently. Cullen also said that caregivers may need to give patients breaks or adjust the location for brushing. 'If you're a caregiver, maybe you're doing it at the kitchen table,' she says. 'Maybe you're able to brush for 60 seconds and that person needs a break.' Check in with your hygienist, dentist and care team for the most relevant advice for your needs. Some Brushing Is Better Than None Building new habits like brushing your teeth for two minutes twice a day takes time, and starting a new routine can be intimidating. Messina notes that some patients can feel overwhelmed by the guilt of not brushing enough, and encourages people to do the best they can. Brushing isn't all or nothing; even if you can't reach the full two minutes, Messina says it's still helpful to brush in the first place, no matter how long the duration. 'I know if you start small, that you'll realize how much better it feels and then you'll do more and more,' he says. And remember, brushing is key to overall health. 'It seems like such a small thing to brush your teeth twice a day, but I think people should be encouraged that they're really making a big impact on their overall health when they do that small thing,' says Cullen.
Forbes
28 minutes ago
- Forbes
20 Hurdles For Healthcare Tech Startups In Scaling Solutions
A healthcare startup may launch with a bold and innovative idea, but turning that idea into a scalable solution that works across hospitals and complex health systems is rarely straightforward. From integrating with legacy infrastructure to navigating strict compliance requirements and diverse stakeholder priorities, even the most agile teams can struggle to scale effectively. Left unaddressed, these challenges can stall adoption, drain internal resources and limit a product's long-term impact. Below, members of Forbes Technology Council highlight some of the most common hurdles healthcare startups must be ready for and share their expertise on breaking into and succeeding in this challenging sector. 1. Finding Client Champions To scale solutions within a health system or payer organization, you need to engage a team of internal champions who can understand, justify and prioritize your platform. Organizations evaluate dozens if not hundreds of companies each year. Champions help articulate your value, often leveraging their professional credibility to advocate for it. Finding and 'winning' them is essential to scaling. - Graham Gardner, Kyruus Health 2. Navigating Integration Requirements Across Hospital Systems One of the biggest hurdles is navigating the complexities of integration requirements across different hospital systems. Healthcare startups frequently underestimate the time and resources needed for integrations. Success requires building flexible APIs from day one and having dedicated integration specialists who understand healthcare IT infrastructure, not just general software development. - Ted Kail, Cority Forbes Technology Council is an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs, CTOs and technology executives. Do I qualify? 3. Gaining Traction In A Risk-Averse Environment Most healthcare organizations are risk-averse and don't want to be early adopters. They look for proven, well-established companies and products, making it difficult for healthcare startups to get traction, even when they have clearly better solutions. Partnering and delivering real value to that first set of clients is critical in scaling early on. - John Bou, Modio Health 4. Integrating With Insurance Systems Health insurance companies amplify the interoperability challenge by adding another layer of complex, often siloed, data and systems that healthcare tech startups must integrate with. This makes the negotiation and implementation of business associate and HIPAA agreements more complicated, given the data types, security requirements and shared liabilities that arise from integrating with both providers and payers. - Ajai Paul, Affirm Inc. 5. Understanding The Complex Stakeholder Ecosystem Healthcare startups often make the mistake of viewing the U.S. healthcare system with a 'singular' point of view. It is an integrated ecosystem where each stakeholder is affected by the others, which means multiple interests must be aligned when adopting new technologies. - Raghav Ramabadran, Intelligine Technologies 6. Building Custom Integrations For Each Customer Healthcare startups' challenges include integrating with electronic health record systems, which is not a 'plug and play' process. Each hospital or system has its own highly customized version of an EHR, with unique workflows, data fields and security protocols. This lack of standardization means startups must build a new integration for nearly every customer. - Chris Ciabarra, Athena Security Inc. 7. Developing Strong Governance From The Outset Healthcare startups often wait to build full product depth until after landing their first client, but healthcare's high-risk, structured environment demands strong governance from day one. Change control, release management and a deep understanding of current operations, especially when replacing legacy systems, are essential before customizing. Building depth late risks delays and failure! - Trisha Swift, Mula Integrative Health & Wellness 8. Maintaining HIPAA Compliance With Digital Content One challenge healthcare startups face when scaling tech is managing digital content while staying HIPAA-compliant. Hospitals need more than stock photos and shared drives—they expect secure, role-based access to branded visuals that convey authenticity and protect patient privacy. Without a digital asset management strategy, startups risk falling short on compliance, credibility and growth. - Andrew Fingerman, PhotoShelter 9. Ensuring Consistent Performance And Compliance Across Disparate Systems Healthcare startups often struggle to scale because hospital environments vary widely in terms of infrastructure, workflows and data systems. Without a unified data architecture, real-time metrics, and built-in security and governance, it's hard to ensure consistent performance—or meet privacy requirements like HIPAA and business associate agreements governing protected health information. - Dave Albano, Diliko 10. Working Within Complex Pricing And Claims Rules One of the challenges is the integration of new tech into strict hospital billing and compliance processes. Hospitals have complex pricing and claims rules, and startups must work within these rules. They can't disrupt revenue or patient data safety. Doing this right builds trust and helps a solution scale faster. - Abhishek Sinha, Accenture 11. Processing Both Structured And Unstructured Health Data Integrating structured data (EHRs; lab results) and unstructured data (clinical notes; imaging; video) can be a major challenge. Healthcare startups must ensure their tech can process both, all while adapting to varying data and privacy standards across systems, which further complicates scaling and interoperability. Fortunately, generative AI is making this easier to do. - David Talby, John Snow Labs 12. Balancing Accuracy And Transparency With Scalability The healthcare and life sciences sector faces rigorous accuracy and transparency requirements that cannot be sacrificed and must be built into products from the start. Balancing this with scalability—which is really code for 'solving problems you don't have yet'—is a constant challenge—especially for startups, which often place a key focus on agility and speed. - Martin Snyder, Certara 13. Maintaining A Consistent, Accurate Record Of Core Assets One key challenge healthcare startups face when scaling tech solutions across systems is the inability to maintain a consistent and accurate record of core assets—such as patients, providers and devices—due to the absence of a robust master data management strategy. This causes data fragmentation, which in turn hinders decision-making, innovation and seamless integration across platforms. - Somnath Banerjee 14. Keeping Up With A Range Of Regional Norms And Laws Key challenges include a wide range of compliance requirements, regulations, cultural norms, and data privacy and region-specific laws—making a one-size-fits-all solution impractical, even within a single organization. Startups often rely on business rules engines that lack user friendliness. Agentic AI offers a more adaptable and intuitive alternative. - Koushik Sundar, Citibank 15. Working Within Legacy Hospital Systems One major challenge healthcare startups face when scaling tech solutions is integration with legacy hospital systems. Many hospitals rely on outdated EHRs or siloed IT infrastructure, making interoperability difficult. Startups must ensure compliance, data security and seamless integration to gain trust and adoption at scale. - Srikanth Bellamkonda 16. Clearly Demonstrating ROI And Pathways To Reimbursement Healthcare startups often struggle to clearly demonstrate a return on investment and secure reimbursement pathways. Without established billing codes or tangible cost-savings data, hospitals hesitate to allocate budget. Startups must invest heavily in economic validation, health economics and outcomes research, ensuring payers and finance teams see sustainable revenue models before adoption. - Manav Kapoor, Amazon 17. Creating An Internal COE Establishing an internal center of excellence with deep industry experience in scaling healthcare systems is vital, but costly. A key challenge lies in selecting vendors that align with the company's DNA. Bridging the gap between emerging tech and the unique demands of healthcare requires thoughtful planning and a nuanced understanding of both innovation and patient-centric outcomes. - Hari Sonnenahalli, NTT Data Business Solutions 18. Overcoming Resistance To New Tech I've regularly observed the challenges clinical sites face when adopting new technologies. There is often reluctance or resistance to change; staffing shortages further exacerbate these issues. A more effective approach may be to 'mirror' site-level data. This would allow AI-driven platforms to build a harmonized system that enables forward progress without disrupting existing workflows. - Rachel Tam, Bristol Myers Squibb 19. Accounting For Integration Issues When Building Solutions The biggest hurdle to overcome when scaling tech solutions across hospitals or healthcare systems is not technical; rather, it is integration—into provider workflows, clinical practice guidelines, financial models and revenue cycle management programs. Unless the issues around integration are considered and covered when building the solution, scaling will not occur. The landscape is littered with misaligned HealthTech startups. - Mark Francis, Electronic Caregiver 20. Completing Vendor Risk Documentation Post-ransomware, hospitals demand extensive vendor risk audits with hundreds of security controls, SOC 2/HITRUST docs, and custom BAAs. Completing these lengthy questionnaires stretches sales cycles to 18 to 24 months, burning cash and pulling engineers from product work to compliance, blocking scale. - Mohit Menghnani, Twilio
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
GE HealthCare launches new advanced digital X-ray system to enable access and increase efficiency in high throughput settings
Definium™ Pace Select ET, a new floor-mounted digital X-ray system, enables access to affordable, high-quality medical imaging technology while easing workflow burdens in high-volume environments This new X-ray system, designed to act as a personal assistant for technologists, provides automation of in-room workflows and motorization of manual, repetitive tasks to increase throughput and reduce technologist learning curve CHICAGO, July 24, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--GE HealthCare (Nasdaq: GEHC), today announced commercial availability of an advanced floor-mounted digital X-ray system, Definium™ Pace Select ET1, designed to deliver high-image quality and optimize efficiency in highly demanding environments while enhancing access and affordability. X-ray exams often serve as the entry point to diagnostic imaging, accounting for 60% of all imaging studies conducted, resulting in an ever-increasing workload for radiologists and technologists2 3. This increased demand, combined with acute staffing challenges where 80% of healthcare organizations are short-staffed and radiology technologists have the highest vacancies3, high burnout levels and work-related injuries, creates critical barriers to providing timely, effective diagnostic imaging for patients in need of X-ray imaging. GE HealthCare's new Definium Pace Select ET solves for many of these challenges by automating manual, repetitive steps and helping to reduce physical strain. The system leverages AI to ensure accurate patient positioning and consistent image quality across various clinical conditions while streamlining the technologist workflow to maximize the patient experience and throughput. "Burdened with the stress and pressure to keep radiology departments running smoothly and profitably, we aim to empower technologists with a system that consistently makes the first image count," said Sharad Sharma, Global General Manager, X-ray, at GE HealthCare. "With its advanced digital capabilities and automation, Definium Pace Select ET allows technologists of all experience levels to deliver consistent high-quality images to serve the full range of anatomies and patient populations." Easy-to-use features allow technologists to focus on patient care Building on the trusted Definium platform from GE HealthCare, the Definium Pace Select ET system brings advanced automation and workflow features to a flexible, floor-mounted system with elevating table, in-room exam control, and common user interface to assist technologists. "This launch reinforces our commitment to provide accessible, efficient, and high-quality care for patients, while alleviating stress from the technologist's workday by minimizing repetitive tasks and automating steps," said Jyoti Gupta, PhD, President & CEO of Women's Health and X-ray at GE HealthCare. "We remain dedicated to advancing our technology through transformative digital and AI-enabled capabilities that will remove barriers to timely and effective diagnostic imaging for any patient in need of X-ray imaging." The Definium Pace Select ET system brings the same high image quality typically seen in more expensive overhead tube suspension (OTS) systems to the affordability focused floor-mounted market. Designed and developed with extensive customer feedback, the system brings: Advanced automation to reduce workflow steps and physically demanding movements for technologists, potentially minimizing work-related injuries. Image variability reduction through the AI-enabled Helix™ Advanced Image Processing to provide consistent high-quality images. Prevention of errors before they occur through automated positioning, protocol selection, patient size (body habitus), and collimation via the Intelligent Workflow Suite, and a quality check prior to radiation exposure. To learn more about the new X-ray system, visit About GE HealthCare Technologies Inc. GE HealthCare is a trusted partner and leading global healthcare solutions provider, innovating medical technology, pharmaceutical diagnostics, and integrated, cloud-first AI-enabled solutions, services and data analytics. We aim to make hospitals and health systems more efficient, clinicians more effective, therapies more precise, and patients healthier and happier. Serving patients and providers for more than 125 years, GE HealthCare is advancing personalized, connected and compassionate care, while simplifying the patient's journey across care pathways. Together, our Imaging, Advanced Visualization Solutions, Patient Care Solutions and Pharmaceutical Diagnostics businesses help improve patient care from screening and diagnosis to therapy and monitoring. We are a $19.7 billion business with approximately 53,000 colleagues working to create a world where healthcare has no limits. GE HealthCare is proud to be among 2025 Fortune World's Most Admired Companies™. Follow us on LinkedIn, X, Facebook, Instagram, and Insights for the latest news, or visit our website for more information. _______________________________ 1 510(k) cleared. Not CE marked. Cannot be placed on the market or put into service or used with human beings until it has been made to comply with CE marking and/or regulatory approval. Not all features available in all markets. 2 MV 2019 X-ray CR / DR Market Outlook Report) page 9, 37 3 Pearson, Dave. "Radiology techs in especially high demand as 85% of hospitals seek 'allied' health workers", 23 Oct. 22. View source version on Contacts GE HealthCare Media Contact: Katie ScrivanoM +1 Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
