Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) News and Research

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Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) uses a large magnet and radio waves to look at organs and structures inside your body. Health care professionals use MRI scans to diagnose a variety of conditions, from torn ligaments to tumors. MRIs are very useful for examining the brain and spinal cord. Also called: Magnetic resonance imaging, NMR, Nuclear magnetic resonance.

Doctors in the U.S. slow to report an incompetent or unethical colleague

The results of a new survey of doctors in the States suggests that the majority of them, regardless of what they may say, are reluctant to report incompetent or unethical colleagues.

4 Dec 2007

Genetic markers for mental illness

Researchers have discovered natural genetic differences that might help predict the most effective antipsychotic drugs for particular patients with mental disorders such as schizophrenia, Parkinson's and drug addiction.

4 Dec 2007

Body dysmorphic disorder due to visual brain glitch

Although they look normal, people suffering from body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) perceive themselves as ugly and disfigured.

4 Dec 2007

Functional magnetic resonance imaging aids study of brain development

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a powerful noninvasive tool for studying brain activity in both humans and experimental animals.

3 Dec 2007

Brain patterns of former anorexics reveal clues to disorder's lasting impact

Even after more than a year of maintaining a normalized body weight, young women who recovered from anorexia nervosa show vastly different patterns of brain activity compared to similar women without the eating disorder, Walter H. Kaye, M.D., professor of psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and colleagues report in the December issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry.

2 Dec 2007

Potential early warning system for lung cancer identified

The study, published in the journal Thorax, found that changes in the blood can be detected which signal the presence of lung cancer, and that these changes can be present years before outward symptoms become apparent.

29 Nov 2007

Scientists observe gene activity outside the body

Researchers at Jefferson Medical College and Jefferson's Kimmel Cancer Center in Philadelphia have used PET imaging to see hyperactive cancer genes inside breast tumors in laboratory animals, marking the first time such gene activity has been observed from outside the body.

29 Nov 2007

Hypertension may heighten effects of Alzheimer's disease

Having hypertension, or high blood pressure, reduces blood flow in the brains of adults with Alzheimer's disease, according to a new study presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

29 Nov 2007

Defensive medicine leads to overuse of CT scans

Computed Tomography (CT) scans are an increasingly used X-ray-based tool for providing a three-dimensional view of a particular organ or tissue.

29 Nov 2007

The health risk posed by excessive CT scans

Scientists in the United States have expressed concern about the number of computed tomography or CT scans now being performed.

29 Nov 2007

Unprecedented increase in the use of radiologic exams on pregnant women

The past decade has seen an unprecedented increase in the use of radiologic exams on pregnant women, according to a study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

27 Nov 2007

Positron emission tomography may improve lung cancer diagnosis

Tumor imaging with positron emission tomography (PET) may improve the diagnosis and subsequent treatment of lung cancer patients, according to a review published online November 27 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

27 Nov 2007

Pregnant women may be having too many high-tech scans

A new study has found that pregnant women are having more high-tech imaging examinations and are thereby exposing their babies to higher doses of radiation than a decade ago.

27 Nov 2007

Special scans reveal the deadly effects of second hand smoke

Any doubts harboured about the damage second hand smoke can inflict on the health may be resolved in the minds of skeptics by the results of a new study.

27 Nov 2007

Secondhand smoke does damage lungs

It's not a smoking gun, but it's smoking-related, and it's there in bright medical images: evidence of microscopic structural damage deep in the lungs, caused by secondhand cigarette smoke.

27 Nov 2007

Children with bipolar disorder respond differently to facial expressions

Children with bipolar disorder respond differently to facial expressions than children without psychiatric disorders, according to a new study led by a Bradley Hospital researcher.

27 Nov 2007

Brain pattern associated with genetic risk of obsessive compulsive disorder

Cambridge researchers have discovered that individuals with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and their close family members have distinctive patterns in their brain structure.

27 Nov 2007

Mapping the selective brain

Researchers have added a new piece to the puzzle of how the brain selectively amplifies those distinctions that matter most from the continuous cascade of sights, sounds, and other sensory input.

21 Nov 2007

Scientists find what we see depends on the patterns of neural activity in our brains

Vase or face" When presented with the well known optical illusion in which we see either a vase or the faces of two people, what we observe depends on the patterns of neural activity going on in our brains.

21 Nov 2007

Study shows how men and women differ in their neural responses to psychological stress

According to a study that appears in the current issue of SCAN (Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience), researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine discuss how men and women differ in their neural responses to psychological stress.

20 Nov 2007