Sequential whole-body PET/MR scanner: concept, clinical use, and optimisation after two years in the clinic. The manufacturer’s perspective

PET and MRI are established clinical tools which provide complementary information, but clinical workflow limits widespread clinical application of both modalities in combination. The two modalities are usually situated in different hospital departments and operated and reported independently, and p...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Magma (New York, N.Y.) N.Y.), 2013-02, Vol.26 (1), p.5-23
Main Authors: Kalemis, Antonis, Delattre, Bénédicte M. A., Heinzer, Susanne
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering
Computer Appl. in Life Sciences
Equipment Design
Health Informatics
Humans
Imaging
Magnetic Resonance Imaging - instrumentation
Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Positron-Emission Tomography - instrumentation
Positron-Emission Tomography - methods
Radiology
Review Article
Solid State Physics
Whole Body Imaging - instrumentation
Whole Body Imaging - methods
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:PET and MRI are established clinical tools which provide complementary information, but clinical workflow limits widespread clinical application of both modalities in combination. The two modalities are usually situated in different hospital departments and operated and reported independently, and patients are referred for both scans, often consecutively. With the advent of PET/MR as a new hybrid imaging modality there is now a possibility of addressing these concerns. There are two different design philosophies for integrated PET/MR imaging—positioning PET inside the MRI magnet or in tandem, similar to PET/CT. The Ingenuity TF PET/MR by Philips Healthcare is a sequential PET/MR tomograph combining state-of-the-art time-of-flight PET and high-field MRI with parallel transmission capabilities. In this review article we describe the technology implemented in the system, for example RF and magnetic shielding, MR-based attenuation correction, peculiarities in scatter correction, MR system optimisation, and the philosophy behind its design. Furthermore, we provide an overview of how the system has been used during the last two years, and expectations of how the use of PET/MR may continue in the years to come. On the basis of these observations and experiences we discuss the utility of the system, clinical workflow and acquisition times, and possible ways of optimization.
ISSN:0968-5243
1352-8661
DOI:10.1007/s10334-012-0330-y