Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
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Submitted To:
Dr. A.B.M. Anwarul Bashar
&
Syeda Siraj
Faculty,Depatment of Pharmacy.
Submitted By:
CONTENTS
Chapter Page
Introduction 01
MRI is based upon the science of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR). Certain
atomic nuclei can absorb and emit radio frequency energy when placed in an
external magnetic field. In clinical and research MRI, hydrogen atoms are most-
often used to generate a detectable radio-frequency signal that is received by
antennas in close proximity to the anatomy being examined. Hydrogen atoms exist
naturally in people and other biological organisms in abundance, particularly in
water and fat. For this reason, most MRI scans essentially map the location of
water and fat in the body. Pulses of radio waves are used to excite the nuclear spin
energy transition and magnetic field gradients localize the signal in space. By
varying the parameters of the pulse sequence, different contrasts can be generated
between tissues based on the relaxation properties of the hydrogen atoms therein.
Since its early development in the 1970s and 1980s, MRI has proven to be a highly
versatile imaging modality. While MRI is most prominently used in diagnostic
medicine and biomedical research, it can also be used to form images of non-living
objects. MRI scans are capable of producing a variety of chemical and physical
data, in addition to detailed spatial images.
MRI is widely used in hospitals and clinics for medical diagnosis, staging of
disease and follow-up without exposing the body to ionizing radiation.
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Medical uses
MRI has a wide range of applications in medical diagnosis and over 25,000
scanners are estimated to be in use worldwide. MRI affects diagnosis and treatment
in many specialties although the effect on improved health outcomes is uncertain.
Since MRI does not use any ionizing radiation, its use is generally favored in
preference to CT when either modality could yield the same information. (In
certain cases, MRI is not preferred as it can be more expensive, time-consuming,
and claustrophobia-exacerbating).
MRI is in general a safe technique but the number of incidents causing patient
harm has risen.[citation needed] Contraindications to MRI include most cochlear
implants and cardiac pacemakers, shrapnel and metallic foreign bodies in the eyes.
The safety of MRI during the first trimester of pregnancy is uncertain, but it may
be preferable to other options. The sustained increase in demand for MRI within
the healthcare industry has led to concerns about cost effectiveness and over
diagnosis.
What is MRI?
In 1977 the first MRI exam was performed on a human being. It took 5
hours to produce one image.
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How Does it Work?
electromagnetic spectrum.
Why MRI?
The Components
1. A magnet which produces a very powerful uniform magnetic field.
2. Gradient Magnets which are much lower in strength.
3. Equipment to transmit radio frequency (RF).
4. A very powerful computer system, which translates the signals
transmitted by the coils.
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The Magnet
The Technology
Spin:
The atoms that compose the human body have a property known as spin ( a
fundamental property of all atoms in nature like mass or charge).
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An unpaired component has a spin of ½ and two particles with opposite
spins cancel one another.
Fig: spin
Human body is mainly composed of fat and water, which makes the human body
composed of about 63% hydrogen.
Why Are Protons Important to MRI?
positively charged spin about a central axis
a moving (spinning) charge creates a magnetic field.
the straight arrow (vector) indicates the direction of the magnetic field.
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When placed in a large magnetic field, hydrogen atoms have a strong
tendency to align in the direction of the magnetic field
Inside the bore of the scanner, the magnetic field runs down the center of the
tube in which the patient is placed, so the hydrogen protons will line up in
either the direction of the feet or the head.
The majority will cancel each other, but the net number of protons is
sufficient to produce an image.
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Energy Absorption:
The MRI machine applies radio frequency (RF) pulse that is specific to
hydrogen.
The RF pulses are applied through a coil that is specific to the part of the
body being scanned.
Resonance
The gradient magnets are rapidly turned on and off which alters the main
magnetic field.
The pulse directed to a specific area of the body causes the protons to absorb
energy and spin in different direction, which is known as resonance.
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Imaging:
When the RF pulse is turned off the hydrogen protons slowly return to their natural
alignment within the magnetic field and release their excess stored energy. This is
known as relaxation. -> two time-scales (see later)
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Physics of MRI
A) The protons spinning in the nature, without an external strong field. The
directions of spins are random and cancel out each other. The net magnetization is
nearly 0.
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A) The compass needle (a small magnet) aligns itself with a N/ S-S/N
direction when placed in a large magnetic field.
B) When another strong magnet is brought near the aligned compass needle
the magnetic fields of all three magnets interact in such a way that the mobile,
weakest magnet (the compass needle) realigns itself away from its original
orientation.
Resonance
A) the body placed in the core of the magnet with B0 aligned to its long axis.
B) B) the gradient coil oriented in the Z-axis (along the long axis of the body)
which gradually and linearly increases from left to right.
C) At the center of the gradient field, the frequency is equal to that of B0, but
at a distance Δx the field changes by a factor of ΔB0.
ν = γ Bo
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