FDA Clears MRI Software That Speeds Brain Imaging

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared MRI software (Strategically Acquired Gradient Echo; SpinTech, Spingham, MI) enables well-defined, quantitative brain imaging with enhanced visualization in 5 minutes. The software can be used on 1.5T and 3T systems across manufacturers and runs on existing equipment. The software helps acquire 10 enhanced contrast qualitative outputs and 6 quantitative outputs on 3T systems. 

The software also generates quantitative outputs such as T1 & PD maps and provides information to aid in diagnosis for dementia, multiple sclerosis (MS), Parkinson disease (PD), stroke, tumors, and more.

"Radiologists have long struggled to obtain comprehensive, high-quality clinical data within very constricted scanning windows," said Dr. Mark Haacke, PhD, founder and chief science officer at SpinTech. "Now, they don't need to choose which sequences to run, just what they are going to examine, as all the data they need has already been collected. On top of the enhanced imaging data, radiology groups will also benefit from increased patient throughput. And, of course, patients experience shorter scan times, so everybody wins."

Medical care facilities or establishments for imaging can improve the efficacy of MR imaging systems without taking machines offline or having to purchase new hardware. The clearance from the FDA is only applicable for inside the brain and should only be used in combination with conventional MR acquisition technique.