Pictured recently at the Princess Anne Maternity Hospital, part of the Southampton Universities Hospital Trust, are (from left): Senior Research Nurse Lyn Greenaway, Clinical Scientist and Head of the Osteoporosis Service Pat Taylor and Vertec Specialist Paul Vaughan.

The Trust has three Hologic Discovery systems, the two at the General Hospital are both Discovery W systems while the one pictured is a Discovery A, pur-chased by the MRC for research under the guidance of Professor Cyrus Cooper.

It is a pioneering system fitted with APEX software, the next generation operating system for QDR densitometers, which can be loaded on any system running QDR for Windows Version 12.1 and higher. APEX contains many new features and enhancements, including AccuView automatic hip positioning, optional Hip Structure Analysis for geometric measurements of the femur, Body Mass Index (BMI), calculated after entering the patient’s height and weight and a new lean NHANES BCA analysis method for body composition measurements.

Osteoporosis Service Head Pat Taylor, comments, “We are happy with the Discovery systems and the support from Vertec. The Osteoporosis service is very busy one in Southampton with more than 5000 patients every year coming through our doors.”