GE HealthCare is introducing Allia upgrade pathways to facilitate a modernisation of older interventional environments, along with extending the lifetime of existing technologies.

The upgrade pathways will give customers with certain older GE HealthCare image-guided systems (IGS) access to technologies previously only available within its newer Allia interventional suite.

Relevant to certain of the imaging giant’s legacy Innova and Discovery IGS platforms for interventional x-ray procedures in radiology and oncology, the upgrade initiative will allow customers to access technology designed to enhance image quality, expand imaging capabilities, and streamline workflows.

Depending on factors such as system configuration and market availability, the upgrade possibilities include the ability to access technologic innovations available on GE HealthCare’s Allia IGS and Allia IGS Pulse systems. These include CleaRecon DL, an AI-based reconstruction technology for improving cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) image quality, and Embo ASSIST AI, a tool for streamlining embolisation workflows.

More broadly, the legacy product’s upgrade pathways are designed to provide access to Allia technologies and workflows while preserving existing infrastructure, avoiding major construction work, extending interventional room lifetime, and minimising disruption to clinical operations, GE HealthCare stated.

Research by the European Coordination Committee of the Radiological, Electromedical and Healthcare IT Industry (COCIR) indicates that a third of interventional x-ray systems in Europe are over 10 years old, a reality GE HealthCare said reflects the importance of technology renewal planning to support increased access to advanced care.

Jyoti Gera, CEO of cardiovascular and interventional solutions, advanced imaging solutions at GE HealthCare, commented: “Interventional care continues to evolve rapidly, and health systems are looking for technology strategies that balance innovation, operational continuity and long-term value.

“These Allia upgrade pathways reflect our commitment to helping customers modernise on their own terms by extending the capabilities of existing systems while providing access to the latest Allia innovations and AI-enabled technologies in a less disruptive, more sustainable way.”

GE HealthCare’s upgrade pathways to Allia resonate with recent analysis by investment bank  Houlihan Lokey, suggesting that data and platform infrastructure will eclipse incremental hardware improvements as the primary driver of market value in the medtech industry over the next decade.

In previous conversation with Medical Device Network, Paul Tomasic, head of European healthcare at Houlihan Lokey highlighted that hospitals are now demanding “simplicity over variety”, with a focus on how products fit into existing systems rather than their offerings alone.