Philips Solidifies Cardiology Leadership, Showcases New Cardiovascular Products and Technologies at American Heart Association Annual Meeting.

Business Editors/Health/Medical Writers

American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions

ANDOVER, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 10, 2003

Company also to host educational theater with

presentations from industry experts

Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHI) announced today at the American Heart Association's (AHA) Scientific Sessions in Orlando, Fla. the introduction of several new products and technologies that enable advances in cardiovascular care. The introductions follow recent announcements of several new strategic alliances and are part of Philips goal to become the preferred provider in cardiovascular care solutions. Additionally, Philips will host an educational theater that will highlight its innovative and collaborative approach to the cardiovascular marketplace through customer presentations in areas including: computed tomography, healthcare IT, magnetic resonance, molecular imaging, nuclear medicine, and ultrasound.

Earlier this year, Philips announced several key technology collaborations including an alliance with Epic Systems Corporation, a leader in enterprise-wide, integrated healthcare information systems, to provide enterprise software, medical imaging and monitoring IT solutions that will integrate patient information enterprise-wide. This cooperative agreement combines Epic's strengths in patient-centric, enterprise-wide healthcare information systems with Philips strengths in medical imaging, PACS and patient monitoring technology.

In addition, Philips and Stereotaxis, Inc. are collaborating to develop new technologies focusing on the Philips Integris Allura Flat Detector catheterization (cath) lab system -- Philips most technologically advanced cath lab ever specially designed to meet the market's demanding clinical requirements -- and Stereotaxis NIOBE magnetic navigational system for use in advanced interventional cardiology procedures. The alliance meets interventional cath lab users needs by further expanding the Philips cardiovascular X-ray portfolio. As also announced earlier this year, Philips, has signed a letter of intent with MediGuide Ltd. (Haifa, Israel), to equip its Integris Allura Flat Detector with sensor tracking technology. Comparable to global positioning systems (GPS), this technology will provide clinicians with 3-D information on the vascular structure of the heart and expand Philips innovative approach to 3-D imaging. Philips also formed a research collaboration with Massachusetts General Hospital, a leader in the field of electrophysiology (EP), to co-develop cutting-edge EP cath labs.

Philips collaborative, patient-centric cardiology strategy has gained momentum in the past six months with several customer collaborations. Philips has signed agreements with Wisconsin Heart, in Milwaukee, Wis. and Edward Heart, in Naperville, Ill. Many of these partnerships include research elements to develop state-of-the-art imaging and diagnostic technologies to identify heart conditions earlier and faster, as well as preventative models in cardiology. Specifically, Edward Heart Hospital and Philips conducted a telemetry study to determine the benefits and applications of Philips Emergin technology. The study evaluated the use of Philips wireless technology versus a paging system to transmit messages regarding cardiac dysrhythmia alarms to nurses and practitioners.

Philips deep knowledge and extensive portfolio in cardiovascular care continues to be strengthened by its Cardiovascular Care Business Team. Dedicated to collaborating with cardiologists and leading medical research institutions to develop advanced technologies and services, the business team supports the cardiovascular community in its efforts to deliver effective and efficient patient care to meet both the quality and economic demands of today's healthcare environment. The team meets regularly with its global Advisory Board, striving not only to understand the industry's needs but to help shape the systems of tomorrow to enable better patient diagnosis, treatment and outcome.

"Less than a year ago, Philips announced an aggressive strategy to better meet the needs of the cardiovascular industry and build upon our legacy of providing highly innovative and industry-driven technologies," said David Freeman, vice president, cardiology marketing, for Philips Medical Systems. "The caliber of the alliances and partnerships we have been able to form support our belief that in-depth, long-term relationships between technology companies and healthcare institutions are a formula for success and we are excited about the types of advances in cardiovascular care that are on the horizon."

Additionally, thought leaders will present their experiences using innovative Philips technology in daily practice in live presentation during the AHA conference. Topics will focus on cardiovascular CT, Live 3D echocardiography and congenital heart disease, Live 3D in adult echocardiography, magnetic resonance and coronary imaging, and the clinical value of molecular imaging in nuclear cardiology. Presenters include:

-- Charles Fitzgerald, M.D., FACC Medical Director HeartCare

Clinic and Wellness Center, Vanderbilt University

-- Tony Fuisz, M.D., Director Cardiac MRI, Washington Hospital

Center

-- Gary V. Heller M.D., Ph.D., Director of Nuclear Cardiology,

Hartford Hospital

-- Stanton Shernan, M.D., Director of Cardiac Anesthesia, Brigham

and Women's Hospital

-- Girish Shirali, M.D., Director of Pediatric Echocardiography,

Medical University of South Carolina 

-- Srinivas Vengala, M.D., Fellow, Division of Cardiology,

University of Alabama, Birmingham

-- Corey Goldman, M.D. Ph.D., director of Vascular Medicine,

Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute

-- F. David Rollo, M.D., PhD., FACC, Chief Medical Officer,

Philips Medical Systems

-- Louis A. Nassef, Jr. M.D., FACC, Director of Noninvasive

Cardiology, Geisinger Medical Center Cardiology

In addition, as part of its commitment to continuing education, Philips announces the release of a series of educational resources for cardiovascular MR practitioners at AHA. The Anatomical Atlas of Cardiac MRI CD-ROM, authored by Professor Mohan Sivananthan of The General Infirmary, Leeds, UK, et al, and published by Andromeda Interactive is the first in the series and will focus on normal cardiac anatomy and cross-sectional MR anatomy. The CD-ROM series will form a comprehensive teaching and training course in the procedures and techniques used in cardiovascular MR. The CD-ROM can be ordered online at www.andromeda-interactive.co.uk.

New Products and Technologies on Display

Philips will showcase its complete cardiac care portfolio at this year's AHA meeting, including these new introductions:

-- Ultrasound - Shown for the first time at a cardiology meeting

with even broader applications and cardiac capabilities, the

Philips EnVisor C system is a scalable cardiovascular

ultrasound system that offers performance and features that

were previously unavailable for less than $100,000. The

EnVisor C system delivers superb clinical value, advanced

ergonomic design, and on-board workstation capabilities in a

full-featured platform. The latest upgrade includes QuickSCAN

intelligent workflow features, Omni III TEE transducer,

expanded CV analysis and contrast imaging.

-- Cardiac Resuscitation - Announced at this year's AHA, Philips

HeartStart Disposable Sterile Internal Defibrillation Paddles

are designed to provide healthcare staff in the operating

room, and wherever internal paddles are needed, with increased

ease-of-use and create a safe, cost-effective alternative to

reusable paddles. HeartStart Disposable Internal

Defibrillation Paddles are a unique addition to the market,

offering real advantages over conventional reusable internal

defibrillation paddles. These advantages are most beneficial

to operating room staff who currently maintain and handle

defibrillation paddles before and after use; to patients, who

are at risk of cross-contamination associated with any

reusable, invasive surgical product; and to biomedical 

engineers, whose responsibilities include testing, tracking

and investigating failures of reusable paddles.

-- Patient Monitoring - The new IntelliVue MP40 and MP50 Patient

Monitors designed to match the unique needs of intermediate

care environments, including cardiac care units, operating

rooms, step-down units, and certain neonatal intensive care

units by combining portability and flexibility. IntelliVue

MP40 and MP50 give clinicians throughout the hospital

immediate access to the vital information they need right at

the patient's side. Philips will also introduce a new version

of the IntelliVue Information Center that acts as both a

surveillance system and a clinical workstation. Allowing them

to remotely access information from the patient's bedside,

telemetry and wireless monitoring systems, the IntelliVue

Information Center helps clinicians make treatment decisions

from anywhere in the hospital by providing them with the most

up-to-date patient information. New enhancements to the

Information Center include alert data export, 96-hour full

disclosure of physiological events, trends, and waves,

touchscreen capability, and a larger 1,280-bed network

overview.

-- Cardiography - Philips will introduce a new version of its

TraceMaster ECG management system, TraceMasterVue. This

leading-edge product leverages an open system platform and

standard software technology to deliver superior connectivity

and provide best-in-class support for any hospital's overall

IT strategy. The system utilizes SQL Server 2000, a fully

relational, open and standard software database, and runs on

Windows Server 2003 for greater power and flexibility.

Leveraging the Microsoft.NET framework, TraceMasterVue

delivers new levels of manageability and scalability for the

export of XML ECGs, as well as seamless integration with other

systems across the hospital enterprise, including the Philips

IntelliVue patient monitoring system.

-- Cardiology IT - Expanded at this year's AHA, Xcelera

Cardiology Information Solutions, Philips image and

information management portfolio for cardiology, provides

customizable solutions for the entire cardiology continuum of

care, including the catheterization (cath) lab,

echocardiography (echo) lab, nuclear lab, and cardiac MR

services. The new Xcelera Cath Lab Management (CLM) module,

being featured for the first time ever at the AHA meeting,

includes productivity tools like procedure logging and report

generation to speed documentation and accelerate clinical

workflow. It also offers multiple interfaces and data exchange

with third-party clinical systems, such as hemodynamic patient

monitors, and hospital-based administrative systems, including

admission-discharge-transfer (ADT) and billing.

-- Cardiovascular CT (CVCT) - Rate Responsive(TM) CVCT system, a

next-generation CVCT system, adapts to the patient's heart

rate using Philips-proprietary algorithms. With every

heartbeat the scanner acquires data at the optimal time, when

the heart is most at rest, virtually "stopping" the motion of

the beating heart, resulting in accurate, high quality images.

At the touch of a button clinicians can select pre-programmed

procedures, scanning protocols, reconstruction perimeters,

archiving destination and image processing functions,

automatically. Additionally, review tools make "one-click"

coronary CT angiography, automated ventricular function

assessment, and peripheral CT angiography possible.

-- Nuclear Medicine - ENsphere, Philips workflow management

solution designed specifically for nuclear medicine imaging 

departments, is dedicated to improving productivity, managing

critical patient data and integrating that data within the

hospital enterprise. ENsphere increases efficiency helping

nuclear medicine departments experience significantly quicker

diagnosis and ultimately improve department profitability.

-- 4DM SPECT software, which runs on the Pegasys workstation, is

an automated, comprehensive cardiac review and quantification

suite of applications that allows instant access to many data

files in one application. A fully automated system, 4DM SPECT

performs various cardiac perfusion image calculations, such as

lung-heart ratio and transient ischemic dilation, which enable

clinicians to quickly and easily download images for future

review.

These products and technologies will be displayed at Philips booth, #1545. The booth will also offer two virtual patient technology demonstrations: Gerard Donovan and Rita Williams, being treated for chest pain and arrhythmia respectively. Booth visitors can examine Gerard and Rita's case scenarios and follow each patient's treatment path on one, fully-integrated information system.

About Royal Philips Electronics:

Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands is one of the world's biggest electronics companies and Europe's largest, with sales of EUR 31.8 billion in 2002. It is a global leader in color television sets, lighting, electric shavers, medical diagnostic imaging and patient monitoring, and one-chip TV products. Its 166,500 employees in more than 60 countries are active in the areas of lighting, consumer electronics, domestic appliances, semiconductors, and medical systems. Philips is quoted on the NYSE (symbol: PHG), London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and other stock exchanges. News from Philips is located at www.philips.com/newscenter.

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