Things to consider before choosing a mobile PET-CT scanner

By | Date posted: | Last updated: June 1, 2023
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It is more than important to deliver medical care in every area on the earth more exactly, where there are is people. According to studies around 70% of the population has health insurance and for sure there should be some help for those who for some reason don’t have health insurance. To be a healthy person is a condition for which every human being fights for but if someone doesn’t work or pay health insurance that doesn’t mean he has to suffer medically. For those people there are so many medical organizations that take care of people who need medical support. They create health projects for people with special needs and decide to bring the hospital near their house. Therefore, mobile hospitals are very helpful and at the same time, they bring the positive answer to the persons who are without health insurance.

Choosing a PET-CT scan is always a good idea.  A PET-CT scan is a combined system of images, produced by PET scan and CT scan. This combination allows the doctor to detect the reason for an ailment and set the diagnose. It is more important to see the targeted area from many positions so the doctor can give his/her correct opinion about the patient’s condition. Mobile health organizations are always supported but there are few things that should be considered.

1. Decide if the system will be in some building or if it will be truly mobile.

This means that if the van is really bought to help with the space limitations within the hospital, there are more available options to choose from. But, if the radiologist has an intent for the PET-CT scan to be mobile in every sense of the word, then he/she us limited to air-cooled systems. It is good to know that chillers contribute highly to the downtime rate of water cooled CTs, so adding a jostling ride with starts and stops just compounds an inherent problem.

2. How many slices the doctor will need?

If the medical professional needs 16, then he/she has two options. The first one is the Philips GXL and the GE Discovery ST. Consider the fact that Siemens’ 16-lice Biograph uses a water-cooled Sensation 16CT and it is not recommended to be used for mobile routes. Even though there are many of these devices that has been purchased to be on a mobile charge, only one is moving on a route, providing just little or no evidence at all that it will work well in extended periods of time.

3. What are the intentions about the service?

All persons who consider purchasing a mobile PET/CT scan should consider the service agreement and price. It seems that the service coverage of the mobile PET/CT scan couldn’t be more highly recommended. There are a number of good third party service organizations that will for sure take it under a service contract.

Figuring out what is the best option for the mobile trailer can be very tricky. But, for sure it is good to track the traffic of the patient’s flow which is a determinant factor when purchasing this type of medical machine. Another thing to look at is the real desire of what the medical professional really needs. It is often confusing that what you want is not always what you need and these are actually two different things. What machine the doctor will decide to purchase depends on the cost and what they are willing to spend.

When purchasing a new machine keep in mind that there are more investments not only the device. Consider the entire investment together with the equipment hardware, software, updates, certifications, and refurbish requirements. Also the medical professionals should think about the expected life time of the medical device. These are questions which are very helpful and worth thinking about.

It is good to know that when a decision to choose a mobile PET/CT scan consider not buying the cheapest one. All radiologists should know that their new machine needs to work in the next few years. The medical providers should think very well about which model to buy and also they should think about the price. If there is something better for a good price should be worthy to consider buying. In some cases, the prices outweigh the benefits. This is expected to be well clear when taking the final decision. But, when the needs are defined and the budget is set, the radiologist will find the right way to choose the best possible solution for buying PET-CT scan.

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Mobile MRI Unit: Bringing MRI to Patient and Reducing Healthcare Budget

By | Date posted: | Last updated: June 1, 2023
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Magnetic Resonance Imaging is a type of imaging modalities that are characterized by the fastest growing. It is well known that the reducing of the healthcare budget is a trend with continuing action. This means that in most cases the installation of new or additional MRI imaging devices would be increased.

The latest discussions are declaring that the technological advancements of MRI systems have a great development process in the past decade. But, the most interesting thing is that they are still an expensive option. All radiologists are under pressure because they want to deliver high-quality medical care to their patients and because of this, they are looking for more cost-effective solutions. One of these acceptable points is the emergence of a mobile MRI unit. These units are driven by economic, social, and technological factors.

Mobile MRI systems are located in trailers and that’s why they are called mobile. Along with the imaging system in the van are located all the technology that is necessary for performing the procedures such as monitors, climate controls, (air-conditioning, humidification manipulation, and heating) workstations, and magnetic shielding,

Here are a few reasons why mobile MRI units are a good investment:

They reduce the waiting time of patients and at the same time increase the care quality

These trailers are easily for transport and they can be shared between the healthcare providers. Because of this, the cost of ownership can be decreased. When in some projects or bigger hospital mobile MRI trailers can be rented and by this, the waiting lists can be reduced without buying a fixed system for their usage. Renting a mobile MRI is a temporary solution. In order to have enough time for a complete treatment of the patients, these units will become a necessary measure. Mobile MRI units can decrease the patient’s costs to 50%. They will save traveling costs and at the same time, they will save their time and the time of the medical provider. The flexible nature of these trailers will provide access to all patients who are not able to receive an MRI scan. Those people are coming from rural areas and also those people who are less mobile. For achieving success in the mobile version, these units were transformed into smaller, lighter, and self-shielding. It is good to remember that the newest versions of mobile MRI require minimal time for set-up and another great thing is that the magnet that often needed to be ramped after every move, is now ramped during the first calibration and it remains ramped throughout every next move.

Aging patients need accessible MRI imaging

Older patients need high-quality healthcare too. All mobile MRI units represent a good chance to deliver great healthcare to every person. These trailers are becoming a viable solution for clinical settings in rural areas. They enhance the communication between many different healthcare providers which is an important factor when providing the best healthcare for the patients. Another great thing is that the patients don’t have to drive to hospitals to pick up their MRI results. Their information can be found in the system and it allows a great collaboration and second opinion between doctors.

The cost of a mobile MRI

The main decision about purchasing this type of vehicle should not be based on the costs. The first consideration should be put on the effort to deliver the chance to use this technology in locations that cannot afford to provide these medical services in the fixed hospitals. A mobile MRI still costs less than the fixed one. But, keep in mind that the cost of the mobile and fixed scanner involves different fixed and operating costs.

Benefits of mobile MRI

It is good to remember that an MRI scan can cost millions of dollars and if it should be replaced with a new version it can become a difficult situation. People should know the fact that MRI technology is constantly and rapidly advancing in all developed countries. The increase in the usage of MRI scans is closely related to its benefit factors. There are a few positive things about using mobile MRI in the healthcare sector. They are the following:

  • All services and costs could be shared among several hospitals sharing a mobile MRI
  • There is no need for patients to travel in order to benefit from an MRI scan
  • The installation of these units is lowered together with the site costs
  • They provide convenient access to the patient and enhance their experience

Summary 

It is proven that mobile MRI units are great for patients because they have fewer benefits. One of the most important things is that they are easily reached and can be easily maintained.

Mobile MRI scans are the future for those patients who live in areas with poverty and who do not have access to MRI scans.

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Making MRI Scans 10X Faster with Machine Learning

By | Date posted: | Last updated: June 1, 2023
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We are witnesses of the rapid progress of the technological sciences in every part of our everyday life. This means that it is more than important to make progress in the medical fields. This is very crucial for the human’s life and it is significant because the health of the people is the key to every other success.

The MRI scan and equipment that are available to the medical organizations are the right devices that help in the diagnostics and the final treatment of their patients. Most of the doctors are facing some difficulties in their fields of imaging just because they are stuck in the moment of full-time job with so many patients. They run out of proper time for every person and because of this, they are less dedicated to the patients. With the new and advanced medical equipment, all these problems are resolving step by step.

In the area of MRI scans, engineers are trying to make this process faster not only to save money but also to make the procedure available to more patients. With the appearance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) all this makes sense.

Improvements in the MRI market

Scientists have worked on tools that are the perfect solution to speed up the MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scans. They use artificial intelligence to create the MRI scans to be ten times faster. Also, machine learning technology is the second essential part which helps in the MRI scan improvements.

After the finish of the project, the engineers noticed that the new MRI scan was able to produce new scans with fewer data. They have noticed that if the MRI machine works well with less data, the scanning procedure could be sped up completely. This is a great option for those patients who are claustrophobic, those who are in pain, or simply those who have a problem with the length of the procedure of the MRI scans. Because of this, engineers work on improvements of the medical devices and in this case to speed up the procedure. So, the initial focus of the people who work on the project is to change the way of operating the MRI machines.

The use of new technologies is good because this way more patients would be treated with lower costs and this way the radiant exposure from x-rays to CT scans would be lower too. Even though we speak about machine learning, Artificial Intelligence can also speed up the MRI procedure simply by training neural networks to recognize the structure of the photos and fill in views. The procedure is practically the same as how the brain in humans can receive an incomplete image and fill in missing parts. The main point is that the neural networks must bridge gaps without hurting accuracy.

However, an MRI device usually takes 2D images and later stacks them to create 3D versions. Scientists have a vision that machine learning can perform less-detailed MRI scans by intelligently filling in the gaps. This will eventually cut down the MRI scan up to 90%. The main goal is to run an MRI device ten times faster than previously but to accomplish a great image quality level that with the conventional methods.

Many companies that are in the manufacturing field use Artificial Intelligence tools that will predict the need for maintenance before total breakdown happens. A broken MRI device is very costly and inconvenient for hospitals. With the help of AI algorithms, there would be predictions about regular maintenance just for defects prevention.

It is good to know that accelerated MRI machines could reduce the amount of time a patient has to hold their breath during the imaging process of their liver, heart, or other organs in the torso and abdomen. The increased speed will let MRI machines to fill the role of an X-ray or CT machines for some applications. This way, patients will avoid the ionizing radiation which is associated with those types of scans.

Summary

It is good that the rapid progress of technology is brought to the radiology field in dentistry. We need improvements in every medical machine especially in those which are somehow harmful to the patients. Making MRI machines ten times faster is a good choice especially in the bigger cities because, in one day, the radiologist can have more patients than regular. This way, the patients won’t have to wait for months to receive this type of scan. The fast MRI machine means that the patients would gain more time for their diagnose and treatment and they won’t spend their precious time.

Even though this is a new method which still needs to be proved, there are positive marks about this advancement. Scientists work for a better future and better health condition of humans.

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The Takeoff of AI (Artificial Intelligence) in Medical Imaging for Faster and Accurate Patient Diagnosis

By | Date posted: | Last updated: June 1, 2023
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The technological progress is a fast-moving process and it has a huge impact on the medical imaging too. All the patients want better conditions for their medical treatment. This is especially important because we live in the 21 century where there are remarkable changes in every field. Medicine is one of the crucial sectors in human life and because of this, all medical fields deserve to be improved and renovated.

Medical imaging is a special part of the radiology. Nowadays, there are so many scans that can help in the diagnostic process of some illnesses. The MRI scans are a long procedure and those patients with claustrophobia or younger patients can’t be so long in the clinic. Because of this, scientists work on reducing this time and make the MRI scan faster than usual.

All this is possible with the appearance of artificial intelligence (AI). It is implemented in the MRI improvements and it has the possibility to make the imaging equipment work ten times faster. A faster MRI procedure is a great option because the patients won’t be inconvenienced too long and because more patients can be scanned during one working day. This will save time and money and it is acceptable for both, patients and medical therapists.

The impact of artificial intelligence over the MRI scanning

The medical practitioners rely on the results that are obtained from the MRI scans to view the inside a patient’s body. These images are very crucial because they help doctors to find abnormal tissue.

It is good to know that artificial intelligence technology is a promising and at the same time an effective tool for the objective, automated, and sensitive assessment of the imaging studies. These methods based on machine learning and AI is of neuroimaging interest in the unraveling of data. Another great thing is that AI algorithms extract important information which can help in the early diagnostic process of disease. Keep in mind that AI won’t replace doctors or diagnose a patient’s condition. But, the AI will augment the possibility to find the key, more exactly, relevant data that will care for a patient and later present it in an easy understood format. When a medical therapist- radiologist brings up a chest computer tomography scan to read, the artificial intelligence method would review the photo and show potential finding now.

When the patient has previous information about their medical condition, when having a scan for his chest pain, the AI system will help in pharmacy information for some specific drugs for COPD, coronary disease, heart failure, and anticoagulants. This system will also help in some reports for the performed scans, will connect with the lab results or any other pathology reports that can relate to specimens collected from the thorax. Some previous reports can be connected with AI technology and can add value to the final diagnosis of the patient. This method is very good because every radiologist can open the file of the patient and see all his information about the process. The information is well presented in a concise format and at the same time, concisely improves the image of the patient’s health.

The main goal is to make better the understating of the radiologist about the patient condition and at the same time, improve the diagnosis, therapies and the outcome of the result without adding more burden to the medical practitioner or the patient.

According to many scientists, AI software for taking images is not new and people already use it on Facebook. But, keep in mind that AI demands big data, powerful algorithms, massive computing power, broad investments, and a lot of integration from a programming point of view.  From a radiological standpoint, it seems that there are two types of artificial intelligence.

Summary

The artificial intelligence has made massive progress in the radiology field. It is for sure to make it function better by setting some algorithms in favor to make an MRI scan ten times faster than previously recorded. This means that radiologists will have the possibility to take the information about one patient in a way where all analysis is saved. Another great thing is that more radiologists will have the right to read those scans. Each one can enter the file of the patient and see if he agrees with the result and the diagnosis or he may think differently. This will save some patient’s time and money because he will not need to take another MRI scan for the consultant doctor.

It is good to know that three main sectors in the AI process that helps in the development of medical imaging. Those are intelligent applications, intelligent services, and intelligent scanners. Each area can potentially improve the work for the radiology sector, leaving more time with the interaction with the patient.

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