GE Healthcare secures extra supply of contrast agent

GE Healthcare has announced that it has secured additional supplies of Optison, a contrast agent used to improve visualisation of the left ventricular border.

The company has struck an extended supply agreement with its contract manufacturer as it seeks to provide more stock of the perflutren protein type-A microspheres injectable suspension, which is seeing high levels of market demand.

Following this, GE Healthcare aims to accelerate plans to manufacture Optison internally at its plant in Oslo, ahead of a complete transition to in-house production which is scheduled for completion in 2013.

This will make it the only company in the US with internal manufacturing capabilities for these products.

Stephen Lightfoot, general manager and chief operating officer for medical diagnostics at GE Healthcare, said: "GE Healthcare's first priority is to healthcare providers and their patients to enable confident medical decisions and we are doing everything possible to ensure sufficient supplies of Optison are available for patients' needs."

This comes after the firm recently agreed a technology collaboration that will incorporate measurement technology from Covidien into GE Healthcare's patient monitors.