Exceptionally Detailed Images Made Possible with New Imaging Modality

New technology will enable extremely detailed images to be made of the smallest structures of the human body. The goal is to detect the risk or start of an illness at a very early stage in the brain, or the heart, and cancer research. The new equipment will be the only magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) device of the modern 7-Tesla generation in the world, in which a metrology institute is also involved.

MRI units, which use a magnetic field of 7 Tesla, have not yet been in operation in hospitals and clinics, but have solely served research. For the first time, cardiovascular research performed on such a device is now also to play an important role. The magnetic resonance tomograph, costing approximately EUR 7 million and weighing 35 tons, was delivered to its new location, the Experimental and Clinical Research Center (ECRC) of the Max Delbrück Center (MDC) for Molecular Medicine in Berlin-Buch, Germany, on September 11, 2008.

In contrast to the 1.5 and 3 Tesla devices, which have largely been the standard to date, its higher magnetic field will provide sharper images and better insights into the smallest structures of the human body.

Most significantly, heart research by MRI technology is viewed as very difficult. As such, a demanding task will be waiting for scientists, including those from the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB; Braunschweig, Germany) from January 2009, when the device has been fully installed: as the partner dealing with physics and technical issues in the joint project, they are responsible for making the unique potential of this technology useful for applications in clinics.

Moreover the PTB researchers will find the ideal conditions to advance its work on patient safety in high-field MRI units and on the development of new concepts in MR imaging. The other partners in the project, in addition to the Max Delbrück Center and the PTB, are Siemens Healthcare (Erlangen, Germany), the developers of the 7 Tesla device, and the Charité University Hospital (Berlin, Germany).

Related Links:
Max Delbrück Center
Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt
Siemens Healthcare