An MR scan in 5 minutes?
September 1, 2011
Imagine you could do an MR scanner in 5 minutes and get all the image types that you need.
SyntheticMR offers a product called SyMRI that does just that: “On the MR scanner a special sequence is introduced that results in the measurement of the absolute MR parameters.Based on these parameters T1- and T2-weighted image can be generated without rescanning. As each tissue has its own unique combination of parameters, the anatomy can automatically be segmented into various tissue components”.
The quantification scan is a multi-slice, multi-echo, multi-saturation delay sequence that is able to retrieve T1 and T2 relaxation, proton density and the B1 field in one scan.
Whether this is the future of MRI, only time and clinical studies will tell, but it looks promising.
AnatOnMe: Augmented reality applied to Healthcare
June 21, 2011
Microsoft Research has come up with a virtual tool for physiotherapy. The idea behind it is to motivate people recovering from injuries to do their exercises. AnatOnMe is a device that projects images of the bones muscles and ligaments inside the body onto the patient’s own skin. This is a novel implementation of augmented reality as the augmented world is projected on the patient. An image of the underlying bone structure, muscle tissue, tendons, or nerves is projected onto the skin, giving patients a better understanding of the injury, and of what they need to do to help the healing process.
The device consists of two parts: the first one contains a projector, an ordinary digital camera, and an infrared camera. The second contains a laser pointer and the control buttons. The system is not meant to be very accurate, and the image of the internal injury is not precisely map onto the patient’s exterior, the therapist simply points the projector and lines it up by eye. The images displayed are not actually taken from scans of the patients but come from stock graphical images used to show one of six different types of injury. However, it works pretty well to educate patients and help them better understand their injuries.
Autofluorescence imaging is becoming more and more important in the assessment of the severity of a variety of diseases. Recently, researchers from Vojvodina, Clinic for Pulmonary Oncology, Serbia, have shown the benefits of autofluorescence imaging videobronchoscopy (AFI). AFI is one of the new systems of autofluorescence bronchoscopy designed for thorough examination of bronchial mucosa. Indications for AFI go from evaluation of early-stage lung cancer and detection of precancerous lesions, to evaluation of tumor extension or follow-up after surgical resection. This technique provides clear differentiation between normal and pathologically altered mucosa. However, AFI has a low specificity in the detection of premalignant lesions, early-stage lung cancer. According to the researchers, this disadvantage could be overcome by addition of backscattered light analysis, ultraviolet spectra, fluorescence-reflectance or dual digital systems. In addition, quantitative image analysis is also required to reduce intra and inter-observer variability in the assessment of the disease. For more information, Expert Rev Med Devices. 2011 Mar;8(2):167-72.
