Laboratory of Biomedical Imaging and Signal Processing, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Nat Commun. 2021 Dec 14;12(1):7238. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-27317-1.
Magnetic resonance imaging is a key diagnostic tool in modern healthcare, yet it can be cost-prohibitive given the high installation, maintenance and operation costs of the machinery. There are approximately seven scanners per million inhabitants and over 90% are concentrated in high-income countries. We describe an ultra-low-field brain MRI scanner that operates using a standard AC power outlet and is low cost to build. Using a permanent 0.055 Tesla Samarium-cobalt magnet and deep learning for cancellation of electromagnetic interference, it requires neither magnetic nor radiofrequency shielding cages. The scanner is compact, mobile, and acoustically quiet during scanning. We implement four standard clinical neuroimaging protocols (T1- and T2-weighted, fluid-attenuated inversion recovery like, and diffusion-weighted imaging) on this system, and demonstrate preliminary feasibility in diagnosing brain tumor and stroke. Such technology has the potential to meet clinical needs at point of care or in low and middle income countries.
磁共振成像是现代医疗保健中的重要诊断工具，但由于机器的安装、维护和运营成本高昂，因此可能会非常昂贵。每百万居民中大约有 7 台扫描仪，其中 90%以上集中在高收入国家。我们描述了一种超低磁场脑 MRI 扫描仪，它使用标准交流电源插座运行，并且建造成本低廉。它使用永久的 0.055 特斯拉钐钴磁铁和用于消除电磁干扰的深度学习技术，既不需要磁屏蔽笼也不需要射频屏蔽笼。该扫描仪在扫描过程中紧凑、移动且安静。我们在该系统上实现了四个标准的临床神经影像学协议（T1 和 T2 加权、液体衰减反转恢复类似和扩散加权成像），并证明了在诊断脑肿瘤和中风方面的初步可行性。这种技术有可能满足在医疗点或在低收入和中等收入国家的临床需求。
