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Obungoloch J, Harper JR, Consevage S, Savukov IM, Neuberger T, Tadigadapa S, Schiff SJ. Design of a sustainable prepolarizing magnetic resonance imaging system for infant hydrocephalus. MAGMA 2018; 31:665-676. [PMID: 29644479 DOI: 10.1007/s10334-018-0683-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2017] [Revised: 03/11/2018] [Accepted: 03/15/2018] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The need for affordable and appropriate medical technologies for developing countries continues to rise as challenges such as inadequate energy supply, limited technical expertise, and poor infrastructure persist. Low-field magnetic resonance imaging (LF MRI) is a technology that can be tailored to meet specific imaging needs within such countries. Its low power requirements and the possibility of operating in minimally shielded or unshielded environments make it especially attractive. Although the technology has been widely demonstrated over several decades, it is yet to be shown that it can be diagnostic and improve patient outcomes in clinical applications. We here demonstrate the robustness of prepolarizing MRI (PMRI) technology for assembly and deployment in developing countries for the specific application to infant hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus treatment planning and management requires only modest spatial resolution, such that the brain can be distinguished from fluid-tissue contrast detail within the brain parenchyma is not essential. MATERIALS AND METHODS We constructed an internally shielded PMRI system based on the Lee-Whiting coil system with a 22-cm diameter of spherical volume. RESULTS In an unshielded room, projection phantom images were acquired at 113 kHz with in-plane resolution of 3 mm × 3 mm, by introducing gradient fields of sufficient magnitude to dominate the 5000 ppm inhomogeneity of the readout field. DISCUSSION The low cost, straightforward assembly, deployment potential, and maintenance requirements demonstrate the suitability of our PMRI system for developing countries. Further improvement in image spatial resolution and contrast of LF MRI will broaden its potential clinical utility beyond hydrocephalus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johnes Obungoloch
- Center for Neural Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA.,Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA.,Mbarara University of Science and Technology, P.O Box 1410, Mbarara, Uganda
| | - Joshua R Harper
- Center for Neural Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA.,Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA
| | - Steven Consevage
- Center for Neural Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA.,Department of Physics, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA
| | | | - Thomas Neuberger
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA.,The Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA
| | - Srinivas Tadigadapa
- Department of Electrical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA
| | - Steven J Schiff
- Center for Neural Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA. .,Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA. .,Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA. .,Department of Physics, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, USA. .,Department of Neurosurgery, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, 17033, USA.
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