New MRI Scanner to Help Translate Research Findings Into Improved Patient Care
Funding Secured by U.S. Senator Mike DeWine Helps Improve Research and Patient Care
CINCINNATI -- With the help of grant funding secured by U.S. Senator Mike DeWine of Ohio, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center has installed a new MRI scanner that will enable the medical center to more quickly translate research findings into improved patient care.
Cincinnati Children's is the first pediatric institution in the nation and the first hospital in Ohio to install an MRI that enables whole-body imaging for clinical applications at the ultra-high magnetic field strength of 3 Tesla. This field strength provides images of the highest possible resolution -- enhancing research capabilities and enabling better and more accurate diagnosis of injury and disease. The field strength of this machine has been used solely for brain imaging up to now.
"The 3T system is 2 to 4 times stronger than most clinical MRI scanners," says Lane F. Donnelly MD, Radiologist-in-Chief at Cincinnati Children's. "Higher resolution images can depict abnormal tissues or smaller anatomy more clearly."
The Siemens 3 Tesla MAGNETOM Trio scanner also has the advantage of speed. Obtaining images more rapidly greatly enhances the imaging of moving structures, such as the beating heart, according to Dr. Donnelly. Because radiologists can obtain MR scans in a shorter period of time, they may be able to use less sedation in the imaging of infants and children.
"We are grateful that Senator DeWine champions children and children's hospitals as a priority for the state of Ohio," says James M. Anderson, president and chief executive officer of Cincinnati Children's.
As a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Senator DeWine (R-Ohio) works tirelessly on behalf of children's health and Ohio's children's hospitals. Last year, he helped Cincinnati Children's establish a Small Bowel Transplant Program, the first at a freestanding pediatric institution in the United States.
"As a father of eight children and grandfather of eight children, I believe there is nothing more critical to our nation's future than the quality of our children's health," says Senator DeWine. "I am pleased to have helped bring funding to Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center -- the first pediatric institution in the country to use this new imaging technology. The new scanner will make it possible to pinpoint a child's injury or ailment with speed and accuracy like never before."
Adds Senator DeWine, "Today, Cincinnati Children's will be able to better serve their young patients, while leading the nation in the benefits of technology research in pediatric health."
The Department of Radiology and Medical Imaging at Cincinnati Children's has long been recognized as a leader in pediatric clinical care. The department has also been a leader in pediatric imaging research since 1993, when it established the Imaging Research Center (IRC). For the last decade, IRC scientists have conducted clinical research involving functional magnetic resonance imaging (FMRI) of the brain, with the objective of applying research findings to improve patient care.
Contact Information
Amy Caruso, 513-636-5637,
amy.caruso@cchmc.org
