We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

MedImaging

Download Mobile App
Recent News Radiography MRI Ultrasound Nuclear Medicine General/Advanced Imaging Imaging IT Industry News

POC Brain MRI Can Serve as Diagnostic Tool in Hospital EDs and ICUs

By MedImaging International staff writers
Posted on 08 Aug 2022
Print article
Image: POC MRI is a bedside imaging technology that can be deployed in EDs and ICUs (Photo courtesy of Unsplash)
Image: POC MRI is a bedside imaging technology that can be deployed in EDs and ICUs (Photo courtesy of Unsplash)

Point-of-care (POC) MRI is a bedside imaging technology with fewer than five units in clinical use in the US and a paucity of scientific studies on clinical applications. Now, a new study has demonstrated that POC brain MRI can serve as a diagnostic tool in emergency departments (EDs) and intensive care unit (ICUs) to provide bedside image acquisition, with some limitations in diagnostic quality.

The study was conducted by researchers at the University of California – Irvine (Irvine, CA, USA) to evaluate the clinical and operational impacts of deploying POC MRI in ED and ICU patient settings for bedside neuroimaging, including the turnaround time. In the preliminary retrospective study, all patients in the ED and ICU at a single academic medical center who underwent non-contrast brain MRI from January 2021 to June 2021 were investigated to determine the number of patients who underwent bedside POC MRI. Turnaround time, examination limitations, relevant findings, and potential CT and fixed MRI findings were recorded for patients who underwent POC MRI. Descriptive statistics were used to describe clinical variables. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the turnaround time between POC MRI and fixed MRI examinations.

The study found that of 638 non-contrast brain MRI examinations, 36 POC MRI examinations were performed in 35 patients (median age, 66 years [IQR, 57–77 years]; 21 women), with one patient undergoing two POC MRI examinations. Of the 36 POC MRI examinations, 13 (36%) occurred in the ED and 23 (64%) in the ICU. There were 12 of 36 (33%) POC MRI examinations interpreted as negative, 14 of 36 (39%) with clinically significant imaging findings, and 10 of 36 (28%) deemed non-diagnostic for reasons such as patient motion. Of 23 diagnostic POC MRI examinations with comparison CT available, three (13%) demonstrated acute infarctions not apparent on CT scans. Of seven diagnostic POC MRI examinations with subsequent fixed MRI examinations, two (29%) demonstrated missed versus interval sub-centimeter infarctions, while the remaining demonstrated no change. The median turnaround time of POC MRI was 3.4 hours in the ED and 5.3 hours in the ICU.

Based on these findings, the researchers concluded that POC MRI was performed rapidly in the ED and ICU. A few POC MRI examinations demonstrated acute infarctions not apparent at standard-of-care CT examinations.

Related Links:
University of California – Irvine 

New
Gold Member
X-Ray QA Meter
T3 AD Pro
New
Ultrasound Scanner
TBP-5533
New
40/80-Slice CT System
uCT 528
New
Portable Color Doppler Ultrasound Scanner
DCU10

Print article
Radcal

Channels

Radiography

view channel
Image: The CT scanner prototype eliminates the need for physical compression of the breast (Photo courtesy of Quion Lowe and Lisa Dahm/U of A Cancer Center)

Novel Breast Cancer Screening Technology Could Offer Superior Alternative to Mammogram

Breast cancer represents 15.5% of new cancer cases and 7% of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Approximately 13.1% of women will be diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime.... Read more

Ultrasound

view channel
Image: Scientists have highlighted ultrasound’s potential to treat complex health conditions affecting the brain (Photo courtesy of University of Plymouth)

Ultrasound Can Identify Sources of Brain-Related Issues and Disorders Before Treatment

For many years, healthcare professionals worldwide have relied on ultrasound to monitor the growth of unborn infants and evaluate the health of internal organs. However, ultrasound technology, once primarily... Read more

Nuclear Medicine

view channel
mage: syngo.PET Cortical Analysis software enables the measurement of beta-amyloid and tau protein deposits in the brain (Photo courtesy of Siemens Healthineers)

PET Software Enhances Diagnosis and Monitoring of Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer’s disease is marked by the buildup of beta-amyloid plaques and tau protein tangles in the brain. These deposits of beta-amyloid and tau appear in various brain regions at differing rates as the brain ages.... Read more

General/Advanced Imaging

view channel
Image: Heavy smokers can ben Image (2):	efit from lung cancer screening using low-dose CT (Photo courtesy of 123RF)

Low-Dose CT Screening for Lung Cancer Can Benefit Heavy Smokers

Lung cancer is often diagnosed at a late stage, with only about one-fifth to one-sixth of patients surviving five years after diagnosis. A new report now suggests that low-dose computed tomography (CT)... Read more

Imaging IT

view channel
Image: The new Medical Imaging Suite makes healthcare imaging data more accessible, interoperable and useful (Photo courtesy of Google Cloud)

New Google Cloud Medical Imaging Suite Makes Imaging Healthcare Data More Accessible

Medical imaging is a critical tool used to diagnose patients, and there are billions of medical images scanned globally each year. Imaging data accounts for about 90% of all healthcare data1 and, until... Read more

Industry News

view channel
Image: The advocacy partnership aims to help accelerate access to life-saving treatments (Photo courtesy of Philips)

Philips and Medtronic Partner on Stroke Care

A stroke is typically an acute incident primarily caused by a blockage in a brain blood vessel, which disrupts the adequate blood supply to brain tissue and results in the permanent loss of brain cells.... Read more