RT26 MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING

RT26 MRI - TOPIC 1

THE MRI SYSTEM
- uses magnets
- a non-ionizing type of radiation
- has different protocols
= HISTORY OF MRI =
[] DEMOCRITUS - A Greek philosopher in 400 B.C theorize that all matter is made of both indivisible and
invisible particles "atom"

[] MAGNESIA - West Turkey, discovered "Iodestones"

- used for navigation, religious, and magical purposes

[] HANS CHRISTIAN OERSTED - 1819 discovered that electricity produces magnetism

[] MICHAEL FARADAY - 1831, twelve years after the discovery of Oersted, discovered the electricity

[] JEAN BAPTISTE-JOSPEH FOURIER - made the heart of the MRI mathematics "the Fourier Transform"

[] SIR JAMES CLERK MAXWELL of Scotland - 1860 discovered magnetic lines of force could be
mathematically expressed. Electrical and magnetic fields coexist at a 90 degree angle

[] HEINRICH HERTZ - discovered invisible electromagnetic waves exist with varying wave frequencies

[] NIKOLA TESLA - discovered rotating magnetic field

[] ISIDOR ISAAC RABI - first described and measured in molecular beams of magnetic resonance
- method used was a hairpin coil and electromagnet
- passed a molecular beam of Lithium Chloride (LiCl) through a vacuum chamber and subsequently into
the magnetic apparatus; 1983, he reported energy absorption/resonance peaks for both elements
- Coined it as "nuclear magnetic resonance"

[] FELIX BLOCH and EDWARD PURCELL - known their development of new ways and methods for
nuclear magnetic precision measurements
- expanded the technique for use on liquids and solids in NMR, for which they shared the Nobel prize in
Physics in 1952

[] RAYMOND DAMADIAN
- July 3, 1997 - performed the first MRI of the whole body; took four hours and 45 minutes for the first
scan
- father of MRI
- Indomitable - name of Damadian's whole body scanner

[] 1952 - Demonstration of use of magnetic gradients for spatial localization and actual demonstration of
1D imaging; led to …

[] …DR. PAUL LAUTERBUR - designed the gradient coils

- developed a way to generate the first MRI images, in 2D and 3D using gradients

[] PETER MANSFIELD - developed a mathematical technique that allows scans to take seconds and
produces clearer images (faster speed and clearer images compared to Lauterbur)
(Owing to larmor precession, a Mathematical technique called a “fourier transformation” could
then be used to recover the desired image, greatly speeding up the imaging process.)

= TIMES OF MILESTONES IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN MRI SCANNER =

1974 - Selective excitation or sensitization of tomographic image slice was invented by Sir Peter
Mansfield
1975 - Richard Ernsts’s group invented two dimensional fourier transformation
1978 - Clow and Young produced the first published image of human head
1984 - General Electric introduced high field 1.5 Tesla system
2003 - Lauterbur and Mansfield awarded Nobel prize for medicine or physiology

= TYPES OF MAGNETS IN MRI =

[1] PERMANENT MAGNET
- magnetic field originates from permanently ferromagnetic materials (permanent magnet) to generate a
magnetic field between the two poles of the magnet
- no requirement for additional electrical power or cooling (iron core structure leads to a limited fringe
field and no missile effect)
- limited to maximum field strength of 0.3 to 0.5 Tesla
- Main disadvantage is cost, supporting structure, and varying changes in the magnetic field
- field homogeneity and limitation can be an on-going problem in permanent magnets and the weigh is
20-100 tons

[2] ELECTROMAGNETS or RESISTIVE SYSTEMS

- a type of magnet that utilizes the principles of electromagnetism to generate the magnetic field
- typically large current values and significant cooling of the magnet coils is required. The resistive
magnet does not require CRYOGENS but needs a constant power supply to maintain a homogeneous
magnetic field, and can be quite expensive
- resistive magnets fall into two general categories IRON-CORE and AIR-CORE
[3] SUPER CONDUCTING MAGNETS
- partially built from superconducting materials and therefore reach much higher magnetic field intensity
- the coil winding of superconducting magnets are made of wires of a type 2 superconductor
[] Liquid Helium (-495F, 0K, -273C) - act as a coolant and needs refilling (needs at least 2000 liters)
- typically exhibits field strengths of greater than 0.5T, operate clinically up to 3T, and have a horizontal
field orientation, which makes them prone to missile effects without significant magnetic shielding
[] Liquid Nitrogen (-321F, -196)

= TYPES OF MAGENTS IN TERMS OF FIELD STRENGTHS =

[] Ultrahighfield (4 - 7) Tesla - used for research
[] High field (1.5 - 3) (Superconducting)
[] Midfield (0.5 - 1.4)
[] Low field (0.2 - 0.4)
[] Ultra low field ( <0.2 )

[] DIAMAGNETIC
- have no unpaired orbital electrons (water, plastic)
- weakly repelled by either magnetic poles
[] PARAMAGNETIC
- materials lie somewhere between ferromagnetic and non-magnetic
[] FERROMAGNETIC - strongly magnetized by a magnet and usually can be permanently magnetized by
exposure to a magnetic field (Alnico) aluminium, nickel, cobalt

= BASIC TERMS IN PHYSICS =

[] Atom - composed of a nucleus and revolving electrons
- atoms with an off number of protons in their nuclei exhibit the property of magnetic resonance
[] Electrons - negative
[] Neutrons - neutral
[] Protons - positive
[] Nucleus - compromises of protons and electrons
[] Hydrogen - has a single proton and thereby a large magnetic moment
- also abundantly present in the body in the form of water and fat; therefore produces the best magnetic
resonance signals
[] Hydrogen Ions - use extensively in magnetic resonance imaging
[] Magnetic Field - a vector quantity that consists of north and south pole
[] Magnetic Dipole - a field that has its own magnetic north and south poles separated by a finite
distance
[] Magnetic Moment - refers to spinning motions of positive protons and negative electrons that create a
small magnetic field about the atom
[] Magnetic Intensity - amount of flux in a unit area perpendicular to the direction flow
[] Magnet - a device that attracts iron and produces a magnetic field
- the bigger the magnet, the stronger the magnetic field

RT26 MRI - TOPIC 2

[] Radiofrequency Pulse - refers to that portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in which electromagnetic
waves can be generated by alternating current fed to antenna
[] Resonance - (same task as attenuation; different application) phenomenon resulting in absorption or
emission of electromagnetic energy by nuclei or electrons in a static magnetic field after excitation by a
suitable magnetic field
[] Larmor Frequency - specific frequency of resonance is located based on the particular tissues and
strength of the main magnetic field

[] Relaxation Time - time usually in fraction of a second in which the hydrogen nuclei switches from a
magnetized state to a demagnetized state when magnetic pulse is turned off
[] T1 Relaxation Time- Spin Lattice - Longitudinal Relaxation - a biological parameter that is used in
MRI to distinguish between tissue types
- this tissue specific time constant of proton is a measure of the time taken to realign with the external
- the time required for a component of net magnetization to return 63% of its original value following an
excitation pulse
original image (blunt)
- lower the momentum, the darker, the higher, the whiter

[] FID/FREE INDUCTION DECAY- rotating frame,

- the net magnetization vector decays as spins lose phase coherence and begin to cancel each other out
- they do this because they experience slightly different magnetic field strengths due to interaction
between spins
- causes some spins to lag behind the average, and some get ahead of the average. Eventually, the spins
point in arbitrary directions and the Mxy components of the net magnetization vector is lost
[] T2 Relaxation Time - SPIN SPIN Relaxation - Transverse Relaxation
- interaction between individual spins
- time required for a components of net magnetization to return is 37% of its original value following the
excitation pulse
[] T2 Star- interaction between the spins and Bo (magnetic field strength) inhomogeneity

Image 1 - T2 Relaxation Time Image 2 - T2 Star

[] Hyperintense - White
[] Hypointense - Dark
[] Hyperactive - Fast
[] Black Spots - pathology

[] TE/Echo Delay Time/Time Echo

- time between middle of exciting
[] TR/Repetition time
- the period of time between the beginning of a pulse sequence and the beginning of the succeeding
(essentially identical) pulse sequence
[] Proton Density
- MRI sequence is set to produce a PD-weighted image, it is the tissues with the higher concentration or
density of protons which produce the strongest signals and appear the brightest on the image
- Proton Density weighted sequence produces contrast mainly by minimizing the impact of T1 and T2
differences with long TR (2000-5000ms) and short TE (10-20)
[] PDWI (proton density weighted imaging)
- useful for brain imaging because of great white matter and gray matter contrast
- useful for extremity imaging
- can be useful in thighs, lower legs, upper arms and forearms imaging
- useful for temporomandibular joint imaging
 TR (Time Repetition) TE (Time Echo)
T1W Short Short
T2W Long Long
PDW Long Short

T1 Dark - Normal equilibrium or relax

T2 White- Hyperintense

= In Clinical Practice =
[] TE is always shorter than TR
[] A short TR = value approximately equal to the average T1 value, usually lower than 500ms
[] A long TR = 3 times the short TR, usually greater than 1500 ms
[] A short TE is usually lower than 30 ms
[] A long TE = 3 times the short TE, usually greater than 90

[] MZ referred to as the longitudinal magnetization. There is no transverse (Mxy) magnetization (if it

returns to normal equilibrium or relax that is T1)
[] Mxy referred to as transverse magnetization (if it returns to normal equilibrium or relax that is T2)