The SPY Elite fluorescent imaging system, used at Georgetown University Hospital, gives breast surgeons and plastic surgeons the ability to assess the quality of blood flow in the breast tissue so that they can make the important decision on whether to insert implants immediately or wait.
After a mastectomy, the plastic surgery team enters the operating room with a fluorescent imaging system called SPY Elite. SPY Elite has a long arm that connects to an infrared lamp device, which is used for scanning over a patient’s body. A special contrast is injected through the patient’s IV line, and a TV monitor shows the scans of breast tissue and blood vessels in real-time.
A breast reconstruction surgeon will move the SPY Elite lamp over different areas of the breast to detect the quality of blood flow in breast tissue before proceeding with the surgery. The system’s monitoring of the blood flow helps surgeons determine if the patient’s tissue is in a safe state to move forward with surgery and place an implant. If blood flow is limited, surgeons will add hyperbaric oxygen therapy after surgery to promote healing in the tissue.