Philips Speeds Care and Improves the Patient Experience Throughout Cardiac Care Cycles.

Wireless data communications, advanced cardiac CT scans and smart data integration simplify workflow, while enhancing clinicians' diagnostic and treatment capabilities

ANDOVER, Mass. -- Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG; AEX: PHI) today showcased its new portfolio of advanced solutions designed to save time in the overall treatment of heart disease patients, as well as the critical first moments of care for heart attack patients. Integrating patient medical information across hospital care areas--from the ambulance to the emergency room, imaging, catheterization (cath) lab and critical care unit--these solutions seek to accelerate diagnosis and treatment and provide enhanced patient comfort and safety.

Throughout the annual American College of Cardiology (ACC) meeting in New Orleans, Philips and its customers will present several research papers that continue to shape the cardiovascular community. In addition, new solutions introduced at the show include:

* HeartStart MRx Monitor/Defibrillator, helps hospitals realize the industry's recommended 90-minute "door-to-balloon" protocol;

* Xper Information Management, a new cath lab workflow solution that speeds and simplifies reporting, scheduling, inventory and data management for cardiovascular professionals;

* Philips Step & Shoot Cardiac application to the Brilliance CT 64-channel scanner that reduces radiation exposure for patients while not compromising image quality; and

* Philips Ambient Experience Cath Lab, providing an innovative, comforting and calming atmosphere for patient and staff during stressful interventional procedures.

"These time-saving solutions aim to unite all corners of the hospital and offer healthcare providers unique views of the cardiac patient that span the continuum of care," said Steve Rusckowski, chief executive officer for Philips Medical Systems. "From Xper Information Management to the dynamic Step & Shoot Cardiac application, Philips is providing clarity and enhancing the way clinicians view and treat the heart. With Philips' unique Motiva and Lifeline remote monitoring solutions, our systems address the needs of the entire cardiac patient care cycle--spanning both hospital and home. The range of innovations on display at this year's meeting further extends Philips leadership in the cardiology segment, while improving overall patient care."

Discovery to Balloon - Speeding Time to Treatment for Heart Attack Patients

Every minute counts for a heart attack patient. The current recommended "door to balloon" protocol--referring to time from patient's hospital arrival to balloon catheter inflation within the patient's blocked artery--is 90 minutes. From discovery--starting with the paramedic--and continuing to and through the hospital, Philips now uniquely offers a complete continuum of care for cardiac patients.

Approximately one million Americans suffer a heart attack each year, and about 515,000 of these heart attack patients die yearly.1 Studies have shown that patients who get interventional treatment within 90 minutes of arriving at the hospital have the best survival chances, and lower chances of long-term effects from their heart attack.2 Research published in the New England Journal of Medicine indicated the average "door-to-balloon" times of the majority of hospitals studied was longer than the 90-minute interval.3

The Philips HeartStart MRx Monitor/Defibrillator helps realize the industry's recommended 90-minute "door-to-balloon" protocol--and goes further to support "discovery-to-balloon" by enabling hospitals to organize their resources--before a patient even arrives. Pre-hospital transmission of the 12-Lead ECG helps avoid unnecessary delays to treatment.

With the MRx, a paramedic can quickly acquire and wirelessly transmit a suspected myocardial infarction patient's ECG data to the emergency department and/or other locations, such as directly to the interventional cardiologist. Prior to the patient's arrival, clinicians can use the transmitted ECG to assess, and if needed, prepare for lifesaving treatment such as Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI) performed in the cath lab, or thrombolytic therapy.

Once inside the emergency department, the MRx monitor/defibrillator also now provides the capability to communicate real-time patient data wirelessly on the Philips IntelliVue Clinical Network. Beginning upon arrival, and as the patient is transported and awaiting treatment, this new industry-first enables continuous surveillance of the patient's waveforms and vital signs with an all-in-one device including advanced monitoring, built-in pacing, synchronized cardioversion and defibrillation capabilities.

Hospital Patients Receive Cutting-Edge Imaging and Ambient Settings

Philips imaging systems--from Computed Tomography (CT), Cardiovascular (CV) X-ray, Diagnostic ECG, Magnetic Resonance (MR), Nuclear Cardiology to Ultrasound--feature easy to use, patient-friendly designs while helping clinicians gain valuable insights into the heart for confident diagnosis and treatment.

As the newest cardiac imaging innovation for the Philips Brilliance CT 64-channel scanner, Step & Shoot Cardiac reduces radiation dose with better clarity in a shorter breath hold, aiding in patient comfort. This new feature provides high-quality images of the coronary arteries and heart anatomy at low dose levels. The Wisconsin Heart Hospital found that the Step & Shoot Cardiac feature delivered an 80-percent dose reduction versus retrospective helical CT angiography techniques.

For the first time at ACC, Philips will showcase the Ambient Experience Cath Lab. The suite's unique design offers a patient-friendly environment with personalized lights, themes and music, while helping eliminate unnecessary physical barriers in the imaging suite for better patient relaxation and interaction with clinical staff, reduced clutter and improved workflow. The Ambient Experience Cath Lab suite may help to reduce heart patient's anxieties and deliver a sense of control over their experience.

The Philips Achieva XR scanner helps cardiology departments simplify their MR planning and purchasing. In one convenient system the Achieva XR delivers an advanced Achieva 1.5T MR for use today in cardiac imaging, while providing flexibility for future transition to the cutting-edge Achieva 3.0T technology. Unique to the market, this system paves the way for a cost effective upgrade that aids in reducing transition downtime and the elimination of upgrade construction costs involved with a traditional magnet exchange.

Signaling the benefits of 3D echocardiography (echo), or an ultrasound of the heart, the American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) recently endorsed increased adoption of 3D echo.4 Included among the ASE's reasons for encouraging 3D echo exams are that 3D data enables improved left ventricle assessment, a better understanding of valve function and improved display of congenital heart lesions. Rick Meece, RDCS, RCS, RCIS, FASE, director, Echocardiography Research & Education, Saint Thomas Heart Institute in Nashville, Tenn., will be at the Philips booth during the show to discuss the medical community's shift towards innovative 3D echo. Philips is ahead of the curve with its fifth generation Live 3D Echo - allowing clinicians to capture and assess function of the beating heart in 3D. These dynamic studies provide recognized benefits by providing more information in the same amount of time as 2D.

Integrated Cardiovascular Information Management Speeds Hospital Workflow

Managing crucial patient data is imperative to keep hospital staff informed and ensure quality care. At this year's ACC meeting, Philips will demonstrate the next major release of its widely trusted Xcelera Cardiovascular Information Solution (works-in-progress). Xcelera unites cardiovascular care by integrating various clinical specialties, locations, equipment and vendors, giving hospitals the key to enhance cardiovascular workflow and management for efficient and high quality patient care. Simplified access to all relevant information saves time, helps to improve patient management and lowers cost. Xcelera offers a broad spectrum of image and information management modules that can be scaled to a specific cardiovascular specialty, multiple subspecialties or a multi-site hospital enterprise.

Precisely capturing and integrating data at the point of care in the cardiac cath lab can enhance quality, improve productivity and help clinicians by transforming data into accurate, useful information. Philips is responding to these needs with the introduction of Xper Information Management, its new cardiovascular workflow solution. This product suite features the latest evolution of Philips award-winning physiomonitoring technology, as well as a variety of new innovations for reporting, scheduling, inventory and intelligent data management. Xper Information Management is more than a cath lab solution, as it encompasses pre- and post-cath holding, physician review with reporting and administrative and systems management. With user-centric navigation and tools that enhance efficiency on multiple levels, this new solution simplifies workflow for all cardiovascular professionals so they can focus on delivering quality patient care.

In addition, the following products will also be on display at ACC:

* Philips X7-2 ultrasound transducer combines xMATRIX and PureWave crystal technology into a remarkably compact size. The first real-time 3D transducer optimized for pediatric echo examinations, the X7-2 allows the echocardiologist to capture high-quality, volumetric images of the heart in young children. Part of a robust pediatric and congenital heart disease package, the X7-2 brings the benefits of Live 3D echo to small patients.

* CardioMD with Astonish software features a compact, fixed 90-degree nuclear cardiology camera with performance that meets or exceeds American Society of Nuclear Cardiology (ASNC) guidelines. It offers proven attenuation correction (AC) technology and truncation compensation to maximize diagnostic accuracy and clinical usefulness. The Astonish advanced reconstruction algorithms can reduce cardiac acquisition times by 50 percent while maintaining image quality.

* TraceMasterVue B.02 collects ECG data from multiple sources within and beyond the walls of the hospital including Philips PageWriter cardiographs, Philips IntelliVue patient monitors, Philips telemetry systems, Philips HeartStart MRx defibrillators and more. It offers clinicians easy access to the ECG data they need to make critical assessment and treatment decisions with confidence--anywhere, any time.

New Research Demonstrates Impact of Imaging

Below are some notable panel discussions being presented at ACC regarding the role of imaging and its diagnostic impact in evaluating patients:

* Cardiac Magnetic Resonance: A Disease-Based Approach. Sunday, March 25, 10:15 AM - 12:00 PM. Room 275. Samuel A. Wickline, St. Louis MO. Andrew J. Powell, Boston, MA

* Integrated Multimodality Imaging: Chest Pain Syndrome. Sunday, March 25, 1:30 - 3:30 PM. Auditorium C. William Guy Wiegold, III, Washington, DC.

* Case Studies in Complementary/Competing Imaging: Computed Tomography and Nuclear. Sunday, March 25, 4:00 - 5:30 PM. Auditorium B. David A. Halon, Haifa, Israel.

* Cardiovascular Diseases That Require Multimodality Imaging. Monday, March 26, 9:00 - 10:30 AM. Auditorium C. Srikanth Sola, Cleveland, OH.

* New Horizons for Cardiac Magnetic Resonance: Devices, 3T, Intervention, and Electrophysiology. Monday, March 26, 10:00 - 11:00 AM. Room R02. Mathias Stuber, Baltimore, MD.

* Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography and Prognosis. Tuesday, March 27, 7:00 AM - 8:30 AM. Room 262. William Guy Wiegold, III, Washington, DC.

* Coronary Artery Disease and Valvular Heart Disease (Coronary Artery Disease and Valvular Prosthesis). Tuesday, March 27, 8:00 - 9:00 AM. Room R08. John C. Gurley, Lexington, KY.

Visitors can experience Philips award-winning technologies and additional innovative cardiac solutions at ACC, booth number 2133.

About Royal Philips Electronics

Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHI) is a global leader in healthcare, lifestyle and technology, delivering products, services and solutions through the brand promise of "sense and simplicity." Headquartered in the Netherlands, Philips employs approximately 121,700 employees in more than 60 countries worldwide. With sales of USD 34 billion (EUR 27 billion) in 2006, the company is a market leader in medical diagnostic imaging and patient monitoring systems, energy efficient lighting solutions, personal care and home appliances, as well as consumer electronics. News from Philips is located at www.philips.com/newscenter.

1 National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI). Web Site accessed on March 15, 2007: www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/HeartAttack/HeartAttack_WhatIs. html

(Due to the length of this URL, it may be necessary to copy and paste it into your Internet browser's URL address field. You may also need to remove an extra space in the URL if one exists.)

2 University of Michigan. Web Site accessed on March 15, 2007: http://www.med.umich.edu/opm/newspage/2007/angioplasty.htm

3 Bradley, Elizabeth H. "Strategies for Reducing the Door-to-Balloon Time in Acute Myocardial Function." New England Journal of Medicine, November 30, 2006.

4 Picard, Michael. "President's Message: The Time for 3D." Journal of American Society of Echocardiography, Volume 20, Number 3.