Friday, February 21, 2014

What is Magnetic Resonance Imaging?




Fatima Far


Need a detailed answer upto intermediate level...


Answer
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (NMRI), or magnetic resonance tomography (MRT) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to visualize internal structures of the body in detail. MRI makes use of the property of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to image nuclei of atoms inside the body.

An MRI scanner is a device in which the patient lies within a large, powerful magnet where the magnetic field is used to align the magnetization of some atomic nuclei in the body, and radio frequency fields to systematically alter the alignment of this magnetization. This causes the nuclei to produce a rotating magnetic field detectable by the scannerâand this information is recorded to construct an image of the scanned area of the body. Magnetic field gradients cause nuclei at different locations to rotate at different speeds. By using gradients in different directions 2D images or 3D volumes can be obtained in any arbitrary orientation.

MRI provides good contrast between the different soft tissues of the body, which makes it especially useful in imaging the brain, muscles, the heart, and cancers compared with other medical imaging techniques such as computed tomography (CT) or X-rays. Unlike CT scans or traditional X-rays, MRI does not use ionizing radiation.

What is the difference between a traditional CT Scanner and a Spiral CT Scanner?




marshyanke


I know that a spiral produces thinner slices and perhaps in more detail, I am not really sure? I would like to better understand the science behind it? Also, could you respond with some understanding of MRI and Doppler scans as well? Could you provide some of the history of the above mentioned diagnostic tests? Thank you.


Answer
Computed tomography (CT), originally known as computed axial tomography (CAT or CT scan) and body section roentgenography, is a medical imaging method employing tomography where digital geometry processing is used to generate a three-dimensional image of the internals of an object from a large series of two-dimensional X-ray images taken around a single axis of rotation. The word "tomography" is derived from the Greek tomos (slice) and graphia (to write). CT produces a volume of data which can be manipulated, through a process known as windowing, in order to demonstrate various structures based on their ability to block the X-ray beam. Although historically (see below) the images generated were in the axial or transverse plane (orthogonal to the long axis of the body), modern scanners allow this volume of data to be reformatted in various planes or even as volumetric (3D) representations of structures.

Spiral CT scanning is just a new and advanced from of CT scanning: This is a newer type of CT scan, also known as a 'helical' CT scan. It is faster than a standard CT scan and gives an even more detailed picture of your organs and tissues, including blood vessels. This can make it useful for picking up very small tumours. It's called a spiral scan because the X-ray beam rotates around you during the scan in a spiral shape. This gives the radiographers a continuous picture, with no possible gaps between the 'slices' of the scan.




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