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grow the business of the Upright MRI,” says Culver. “We simply
image the spine better. We can also image patients who can’t
lie down because of COPD or a spine dysfunction. We also image
claustrophobic and obese patients with unparalleled ease.”
Fonar currently has 134 Upright MRI scanners operating
internationally and just recently sold units in Libya, Canada
and Australia.
Non-contrast Imaging
A wave of non-contrast imaging is picking up speed across all the
major manufacturers. New sequences are especially designed to
capture signal without agents, which a significant number of patients
cannot tolerate. Fonar, Toshiba, GE and others offer some
form of non-contrast imaging for select procedures.
“The development of non-contrast imaging has really
been one of the key successes with selling in the U.S. market,”
says Urick.
“Everybody is being responsive to the marketplace demand
for newer non-contrast imaging techniques,” says Davis,
who points out that there is also a cost driver behind the
development. “With or without contrast, your reimbursement
is the same, so it is an added cost.”
MRI on the brain
Dr. Russo is the section head of neuroradiology at the Memorial
Medical Center. He is a proponent of 3T high field strength
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DOTmedbusiness news I s e p t e m b e r 2009
Siemens Magnetom ® Verio 3T
systems for brain imaging. “These 3 Tesla systems are not necessarily
the best for everything, but there are clear advantages,
especially for brain imaging applications.”
MR is an excellent modality for neurosurgery due to the high
sensitivity and soft-tissue contrast of its images. Some of the most
striking applications in neurological MRI procedures include diffusion
tensor imaging (DTI), a method of MRI that provides clear
images of neural tracts, and functional MRI, which clearly maps
important regions of the brain by their function.
Superior detection of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease
may be possible with specialized MRI software, like the software
that helped researchers detect Alzheimer’s disease with
100% accuracy in a recent cohort study conducted by Massachusetts
General Hospital. In two separate cohorts, patients
with mild cognitive impairment were also distinguished from
controls with 91% and 95% accuracy. The study, published
in the May 2009 edition of Brain, demonstrated that with the
help of specialized software, MR could be a powerful diagnostic
tool in the accurate detection of Alzheimer’s disease.
“I think it will be huge when it is shown to be very consistent
and reliable,” says Dr. Russo. “I think it will be gigantic. Dementia
imaging is going to be very important in the future and I will
certainly be watching the literature to look for ways to borrow
those ideas and bring that to the community level.”
MRI in the O/R
MRI’s foray into the brain continues with intraoperative and interventional
MR. IMRIS, a Manitoba, Canada-based manufacturer,
is a leading provider of intraoperative MR systems for neurosurgery.
The IMRISneuro, available in both 1.5T and 3T high
field strengths, is a movable, ceiling-mounted system that can be
brought into the operating room during surgery to map the progress
of procedures including craniotomies — open-skull surgeries
most commonly performed for the removal of brain tumors. By
providing up-to-the-minute imaging of targeted areas, intraoperative
MR can help surgeons accurately excise tumors with the least
possible damage to vital surrounding tissues.
“IMRIS is the only company that provides a solution focusing
solely on optimization of the workflow that surgeons,
nurses and anesthesiologists are familiar with today. We are
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