Device Designed to Provide Advanced Anesthesia Technology in the MR Environment

A new line of anesthesia machines is designed specifically to meet the requirements for the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) environment.

Draeger Medical, Inc. (Telford, PA, USA) announced that the Draeger Fabius MRI anesthesia machine has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance. The Fabius MRI is designed for use with 1.5T and 3T MRI systems. An integrated Teslameter provides an acoustic alarm if the Fabius MRI is positioned within a field strength greater than 40 mTesla (400 Gauss).

The Fabius MRI employs the same user interface as Draeger's Fabius GS, Fabius Tiro, and Apollo machines, creating a uniform and consistent interface for the anesthesia provider wherever anesthesia is required. The size of the MRI system frequently requires the anesthesia provider to be outside the room or some distance away from the device during an examination. To accommodate this, additional optical alarm displays (light-emitting diodes [LEDs]) at the top of the system provide visual indication for all alarm conditions for the safety of the patient in this specialized environment.

The Fabius MRI also continues the same quality of care to which clinical personnel are accustomed--from the operating room (OR) application to the MRI environment. The standard configuration includes the advanced ventilation modes (volume and pressure controlled, pressure support, and SIMV [synchronized intermittent mandatory ventilation]) that are particularly required for the care of premature infants, newborns, and intensive care unit (ICU) patients and makes them available for use in this environment.

The high-speed piston ventilator provides controlled compliance compensation, even with the longer ventilation tubes often used in the MRI environment, providing for even the smallest infant.

Draeger also offers a range of MRI-compatible accessories, all tested and certified for use with the Fabius MRI machine. "Draeger is now offering the same quality of anesthesia delivery in the MRI suite as it provides in the most demanding OR environment,” said Robert Clark, director of anesthesia care for the US. "We now offer an ICU-quality ventilator in an MRI setting, as well as a broad platform of anesthesia machines that are appropriate for any acuity situation. We are pleased to be able to offer our customers and their patients the highest quality of care wherever they are receiving anesthesia.”

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