MRI Insights

Shorter Scans, Enhanced Images: AI in Pediatric MRI

Traditional pediatric MRI scans often require sedation, presenting drawbacks and concerns. However, utilizingan AI-assisted image enhancement technology called iQMR enables shorter scan times in the hope of decreasing this need.

Figure 1: A Siemens Verio 3T brain MRI scan showing of a 6 year old male child; AX T2 FSE 

In an article titled “Pediatric neuro MRI: tricks to minimize sedation*,” Barkovich et al. shed light on the drawbacks of sedation, and propose methods to perform shorter scans to minimize its use. They caution that reducing scan times may lead to the appearance of motion artifacts and degraded image quality.

Through the utilization of an innovative AI-assisted vendor-agnostic add-on solution called iQMR, the limitations associated with shorter scan times have been overcome. This technology enhances image quality, compensating for the low-resolution images acquired at reduced scan time, and ensuring accurate and detailed diagnostic results.

Significantly reducing the time children spend inside the scanner by performing shorter MRI scans, can assist in minimizing anxiety and discomfort for young patients and in some cases may eliminate the need for sedation. This can bring peace of mind to parents and enable healthcare providers to deliver better care while optimizing throughput.

*Pediatric neuro MRI:tricks to minimize sedation. Matthew J. Barkovich,1 Duan Xu,1,2 RahulS. Desikan,1 Cassandra Williams,2 and A. James Barkovich1,2National Library of Medicine, January 2019.

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