Early brain changes may help predict autism among high-risk infants

NIH: Brain changes at age 6 or 12 months may help predict the development of autism spectrum disorder by age 2 years among infants with a high family risk, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. Currently, autism can be diagnosed as early as age 2 years, based on certain behaviors and communication difficulties. The study, funded by the NIH Autism Centers of Excellence Program, is published in the February 16, 2017, issue of Nature.

Screening MRI Benefits Women at Average Risk of Breast Cancer

RSNA: MRI screening improves early detection in women who are at average risk for breast cancer. Researchers studied data from 2,120 women with no breast-cancer-associated risk factors who underwent supplemental MRI screening every 1 to 3 years in addition to mammography and ultrasound. Breast MRI detected 60 additional breast cancers, including 40 invasive cancers, all of which were missed by mammography and ultrasound. None of the cancers that arose over the total 7,007 screening rounds were found by mammography or ultrasound alone. MRI screening improves early diagnosis of breast cancer in all women—not only those at high risk—according to a new study from Germany published online in the journal Radiology.

Revolutionary ‘miniature’ MRI scanner for babies tested

Sheffield: A ground breaking prototype ‘miniature’ MRI scanner for babies has been installed at The Jessop Wing Maternity Hospital in Sheffield. The scanner, which is one of only two in the world, is part of a two-year research project into the feasibility and benefits of scanning babies in the neonatal unit.
Paul Griffiths, Professor of Radiology at the University of Sheffield and Honorary Consultant at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, and Martyn Paley, Professor of BioMedical Imaging also at the University of Sheffield, have been working on the concept and design of the scanner for 12 years.

Brain scanners allow scientists to ‘read minds’ – could they now enable a ‘Big Brother’ future?

Cambridge: Brain imaging can reveal a great deal about who we are and what is going inside our heads. But how far can – and should – this research take us? Julia Gottwald and Barbara Sahakian, authors of Sex, Lies, and Brain Scans: How fMRI Reveals What Really Goes on in our Minds, investigate for The Conversation. Are you lying? Do you have a racial bias? Is your moral compass intact? To find out what you think or feel, we usually have to take your word for it. But questionnaires and other explicit measures to reveal what’s on your mind are imperfect: you may choose to hide your true beliefs or you may not even be aware of them.

Video: Starring the Wiring Diagram of the Human Brain

Visualization of real MRI brain scan data from a single person, showing nerve fiber bundles near or feeding into part of the hippocampus.

MRI brain scans may help identify risks, prevent adolescent substance abuse

Oregon: Neuroimaging of the brain using technologies such as magnetic resonance imaging, or MRIs, increasingly is showing promise as a technique to predict adolescent vulnerability to substance abuse disorders, researchers conclude in a new analysis. A greater understanding of what such technologies offer and continued research to perfect the use of them may ultimately help identify youth at the highest risk for these problems and allow prevention approaches. These might include neuropsychological intervention exercises that can strengthen vulnerable cognitive networks in the brain.

MRI Technology Reveals Deep Brain Pathways in Unprecedented Detail

Duke: Scientists at Duke Medicine have produced a 3-D map of the human brain stem at an unprecedented level of detail using MRI technology. In a study to be published June 3 in Human Brain Mapping, the researchers unveil an ultra high-resolution brain stem model that could better guide brain surgeons treating conditions such as tremors and Parkinson’s disease with deep brain stimulation (DBS).

Is magnetic resonance imaging of human brain is harmful?

Medical-Hypotheses: In human brains, there are a lot of macroscopic (∼100nm) magnetite granules. Exposure of the patient's head in high strength magnetic fields could lead to penetrance of those particles into brain neurons and their staying there for a long period. That conclusion is the consequence of calculations based on the equations describing the dynamics of those particles under the action of ponderomotive magnetic, elastic and viscous forces. The role of iron in brain metabolism is not conclusively clear but there is evidence of the connection between excess iron and neurodegenerative diseases. In this regard, it's considered necessary to look more carefully at the matter of safety for brain magnetic resonance imaging.

Solving the prostate predicament with an MRI

Scimex: The ongoing debate around prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing for prostate cancer could potentially be resolved by using multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI), says Australian researchers. PSA testing is often discouraged due to overdiagnosis or unnecessary treatment of benign tumours, but the researchers say an mpMRI would be more reliable in detecting significant prostate cancers while excluding tumours that didn't need treatment.

Breast cancer screening: 90 per cent of all cancers can be detected with MRI

Vienna: Around 90 per cent of all breast cancers can be definitively diagnosed using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). This compares to the combined methods of mammography and ultrasound which yielded a detection rate of just 37.5 per cent. This is the key finding of a study published in the highly respected "Journal of Clinical Oncology". The study was carried out at the University Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine at the MedUni Vienna in cooperation with the University Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics and the Clinical Institute of Pathology.

Welcome to the World of Wearable Electronics

Berkeley University. US:  An infant born three months prematurely fails to flush pink at birth and has an alarmingly low blood pressure. Ultrasound identifies a heart abnormality and doctors rush the newborn to an MRI suite to confirm the diagnosis. But the scanning itself can cause physical agitation that interferes with clear imaging. In some cases, it can make it harder for the baby to breathe.

DVD reduces MRI patients’ anxiety and improves scan quality

Manchetser University. UK: A DVD designed to help people prepare for a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan, including guidance on how to relax, has led to more successful scans. The patients receiving the DVD also felt less anxious during the scan says a paper published in the British Journal of Health Psychology.

MRI Technique Developed for Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Children

UCSD. US: Between 5 and 8 million children in the United States have nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), yet most cases go undiagnosed. To help address this issue, researchers at UC San Diego School of Medicine have developed a new magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based technique to help clinicians and researchers better detect and evaluate NAFLD in children. The study is published Feb. 5 in Hepatology.

Quantum Leap in Diagnosis of Disease

Bonn University. Germany: A state-of-the-art diagnosis system is now being introduced at the University of Bonn's Radiological Clinic: the first of its kind worldwide, it is a new type of high-field nuclear magnetic resonance tomography spectrometer which opens up completely new possibilities both for clinical application to patients, for clinical research and pure research. Philips have placed the multi-million euro spectrometer at the University's disposal; the Radiological Clinic beat rival applicants from the US, Japan and Europe.

Inflatable MRI Scanner

King’s College London (UK) has become the first London university to acquire an inflatable MRI scanner to help children overcome their anxiety and practice lying still for 30 minutes before they enter a real MRI scanner.

MRI could predict Alzheimer’s disease, improving treatment

Queensland University. Australia: Scientists at the University of Queensland have discovered that magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) could be used to predict the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. The discovery could greatly improve outcomes for Alzheimer’s patients, as early diagnosis could increase the effectiveness of drug treatments.

MRI: Window into the brain

Melbourne University. Australia: Magnetic Resonance Imaging, or MRI, has revolutionized modern medicine, allowing us to see detailed structure of the human brain. PhD students Charles Malpas and Bernd Merkel discuss their research into applying MRI as a tool to investigate diseased and healthy brains to help fine tune our understanding of how the brain works. Presented by Sila Genc.

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