GE Healthcare Discovery MR750w 3.0T scanner installed at BRMI

Feb 27 2012

Patients and clinicians alike are celebrating the newest arrival at BRMI@ Dyker Heights of an innovative GE Healthcare Discovery MR750w 3.0T scanner. This new GE Healthcare w-series system is the first of its kind to be installed in the United States and offers a wide-range of advanced clinical functionality and uncompromised image quality, and was designed to be patient friendly, with the goal of transforming the experience for patients who find having a traditional MRI scan uncomfortable or intimidating.

The Discovery MR750w 3.0T system allows greater use of feet first scanning but head first scanning remains a viable choice; and introduces a larger, 70cm patient 'bore' (the area where the person lies to be scanned), and a patient-friendly design to help alleviate patient anxiety and stress during the scan. In particular, it accommodates patients who are usually difficult to scan, such as those who are elderly or very young, or those who are in pain and require a larger imaging system. A detachable table, equipped with comfort tilt to help better position the head and neck during brain and spinal exams, is intended to help improve comfort, which in turn may help reduce patient movement and therefore enhance image quality. In addition, it means that the patient can be positioned for their scan in another room if necessary.

According to BRMI Medical Director Dr. Shahrokh Abiri, "BRMI takes patient comfort seriously. The goal of our imaging centers is provide the utmost in patient care and one way to accomplish this goal is by transforming what could be a stressful MRI exam into a comfortable, stress-free experience. We pride ourselves in offering our patients the latest advancements in technology and that's one of the reasons we are so pleased to introduce this system to our patients. This new GE Healthcare scanner is not only a sleek, ergonomically-friendly design, our patients feel more comfortable which means they are better able to lie still during the scan and as a result our Radiologists are more likely to get uncompromised quality images quickly."

The system's advanced RF signal reception system - the part of the MRI scanner that makes the images possible - includes a new integrated, lighter weight, and higher performance RF coil architecture (in comparison to previous generation GE Healthcare systems) designed to facilitate image quality and examination speed. Using thinner flexible materials designed to accommodate a variety of body types, this helps facilitate easier patient positioning. The ergonomic lightweight GEM coil system is also designed to impact the experience for technologists as they don't have to manipulate bulky and heavy coils. In turn, this may help improve workflow and allow for hospitals to scan patients more quickly.

The Discovery MR750w offers GE Healthcare's latest advanced clinical applications to help utilize the full potential of 3.0T MR imaging. GE's latest applications offer clinician's the ability to quantify the degree of fat within the entire liver and to evaluate tissue stiffness. Combined, these two rapid and completely non-invasive techniques have potential to aid in early detection and evaluation of diffuse and focal liver disease often associated with obesity. These are just two of the many insightful applications available on the Discovery MR750w.