EH 3_2015

Internationale Fachmesse und Konferenz für Identifikation Frankfurt am Main, 10.–12.11.2015 Conceptual partner Exhibition: Identifikation? … dann sind Sie hier richtig! Die Welt der ID-Technologien für Entwickler und Innovatoren – hier entsteht Zukunft. Weitere Informationen unter: www.euro-id-messe.de oder +49 711 61946-0 Erfahren Sie, welche Produkte & Innovationen die Branche zu bieten hat! EURO-ID-World_2015_ANZ_D_210x150_.indd 1 03.03.15 12:27 EUROPEAN HOSPITAL Vol 24 Issue 3/15 20 RADIOLOGY Researchers deliver progress in scanning capabilities Screens that show m Molecular imaging mines deeper High-res ei megapixels Report: Brigitte Dinkloh The view across the Atlantic – it fills Professor Fabian Kiessling, Chair of Experimental Molecular Imaging at the RWTH Aachen (Rhine- Westphalia Institute of Technology Aachen), with optimism. The USA offers more opportunities for molec- ular imaging. Only recently, new tracers for Alzheimer’s were accept- ed as reimbursable in some centres, whilst the development of new diag- nostics in Europe continues to be rather sluggish by comparison. ‘But this will change,’ Professor Fabian Kiessling is sure, ‘at the very point when we realise that many new therapies will not work without suf- ficient staffing, and that the use of molecular imaging will help to keep down costs and resources.’ PET – gentler, faster and used intraoperatively Molecular Imaging is no longer the playing field of individual research- ers. To the contrary: We are now pretty certain what actually works, and there are intensive efforts to bring these applications into clinical routine. One good example of this is PET, and in particular hybrid imag- ing with MRI: ‘For a long time it was thought that PET has reached the zenith of its capabilities but, thanks to the new detector technology with fully digitised sensor arrays, the tracers can be detected with even more sensitivity and their spatial attribution has improved. ‘The pro- cedure is further advanced through new geometries, such as whole- body scanners and the development of new calculation procedures. ‘This will further enhance the sensitivity of the procedure,’ Kiessling foresees. In future we will not only require significantly smaller amounts of radioactive substances but scanning will also become much faster and therefore considerably cheaper. He believes that, in the long term, MRI/ PET will become fully established at least at university hospitals because of its clearly improved soft tissue contrast. Next to PET, Kiessling also sees a big potential in Cherenkov Imaging. The idea behind this is initially to localise a tumorous lesion, or the lymph nodes, with PET imaging. During the operation a camera then enables detection of the area in vivo through light emission during the radioactive decay of the trac- ers. The procedure has now been developed to such an extent that the first patient examinations are being planned in New York. Magnetic particle imaging (MPI) The professor is particularly proud of the first ever presentation of an image from a hybrid MRI-MPI scan- ner. Since Bernhard Gleich first pub- licised the magnetic particle imag- ing procedure about 10 years ago there has been intensive research in this field. The principle behind it is that, in a magnetic gradient field, small iron oxides display harmonic distortions through periodic stimu- lation, which can be measured and which can then be utilised to carry out fast, highly sensitive imaging. ‘The Hybrid MRI-MPI scanner also allows switching between MRI and MPI. This enables visualisation of small iron oxide particles in the body with high sensitivity, which can then be hybridised into mor- phological MRI images. The areas of application for the hybrid scan- ner are still subjects of research. The first clinical MPI is located in Hamburg and will be used for cardi- ovascular imaging, and in particular for the fast acquisition of lung- and myocardial perfusion.’ The determination of the oxygen content in tissue, dynamically and without any additional contrast media, is a particularly interesting application of photoacoustic imag- ing. Kiessling: ‘It allows the detec- tion and characterisation of tissue that is poorly supplied with oxygen, and the observation of the effects of treatment. The procedure is used in oncology, for cardiovascular dis- ease, muscle perfusion studies and inflammatory diseases.’ The user can also inject a fluores- cent dye to measure the tissue per- fusion and permeability of the tissue or to detect sentinel lymph nodes. It is specifically these simple appli- cations that should be tested a lot more because they can be quickly, clinically implemented with existing technology. Molecular ultrasound Kiessling is working on the discov- ery of new indications for the first molecular contrast medium with target-specific microbubbles. He has also achieved early measurements of perfusion and relative blood volume following the administration of only one dose of contrast medium, later obtaining molecular information on Double gated (breathing and ECG) simultaneous PET/MR measurement of a mouse heart (four time bins). MRI gradient echo cine sequence with 3002 µm 2 pixels size and 1 mm slice thickness; both, left ventricle (LV) and right ventricle (RV) are visible in the PET images. Source: Weissler, Schulz, et al. A digital PET/RF insert for preclinical PET/MRI applications, IEEE Trans. on Med. Im. DOI: 10.1109/TMI.2015.2427993 Medical imaging technology has shown tremendous innovation in recent years, with devices such as CT and MRI scanners yielding ever- higher resolution to gain great image detail and therefore better diagnos- tics. Monitors need to be of similarly high standards. Recently produced and soon established as standard in many medical imaging areas, monitor devices can deliver eight- megapixel resolution. For example, NEC Display Solutions, which pro- duces 10-bit grey scale diagnostic and review monitors, reports: ‘From our medical imaging display range the current top of the line monitor is the MD322C8, a 31.5-inch screen offers a generously wide-format workspace with remarkable eight megapixel resolution. ‘The MD322C8 display works seamlessly with NEC’s hospital- wide Quality Assurance Solution GammaCompMD QA. This spe- cialised medical quality assurance software meets all challenges and demands head on by providing either an entry-level QA solution for small practices and clinics or a comprehensive solution for a larger hospital environment.’ The GammaCompMD QA ensures that all the hospital moni- tors conform to the DICOM standard and the display also follows all other qual- ity control routines, includ- ing AAPM TG-18, IEC62563-1 and the latest German DIN 6868-157 for Fluoroscopy and Computer Tomography. ‘The high quality eight megapixel image is further enhanced with the Digital Uniformity Control (DUC) function, which optimises colour and luminance uni- formity throughout the entire www.euro-id-messe.de oder +4971161946-0 EURO-ID-World_2015_ANZ_D_210x150_.indd 103.03.1512:27

EH 3_2015

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