Nicholas Richards, Business Writer

A private clinic in Kingston has invested US$1.2 million in equipment that can diagnose brain abnormalities and other complex medical conditions.

X-Ray and Diagnostic Ultra Sound Consultants Limited (DUCL), said the equipment - a 64 Slice General Electric Multi Detector Row Computed Tomography (MDCT) machine - was installed last month.

Jamaica is "the first and only country of its kind in the English-speaking Caribbean to possess such equipment," said Dr. Winston 'Freddie' Clarke, founder of DUCL.

Diagnosis of strokes

The new machine which will be used in the diagnosis of strokes, brain haemorrhages, detecting cancer, aneurysms and clogged arteries, is an upgrade from a 16 slice MDCT to a 64 MDCT.

This means that the machine is capable, through computer technology, of examining 64 sections of the body within a matter of minutes.

It provides high resolution images on whatever part of the body is being examined, using three-dimensional technology.

"Something that the traditional machines could not do," said Clarke, speaking yesterday at a press conference at his Ripon Road facility.

At present, only a handful of countries in Latin America have this machine, including Venezuela, Panama and Puerto Rico, which have just one each, and Mexico, which has two.

On par

"This puts Jamaica on par with any first world country which offers service in this area," said Clarke.

The clinic, he said, can process 50-60 patients daily. The cost is about half of the fees charged in the U.S., where diagnoses are up to US$2,000.

Clarke is expecting an upgraded version of the MDCT machine to be out within the next six months, which he says UCLD is aiming to procure, despite anticipated costs of US$2.5 million.

- business@gleanerjm.com