By: Dr. Philip Chao

3T-MRI really is the best way to do MRI. “T” for “tesla” is a measure of the strength of a magnetic field. How strong is your MRI? 3T is the strongest magnet available for clinical use in MRI scanners and to date, there is only one in the entire State of Delaware. Simply put: the stronger the magnet, the better the images. Also, the stronger the magnet, the faster the scan. This is important in almost every MRI study. You can always use a clearer and sharper picture. I used to think that 1.5T (the old quality standard) was good enough, but now that I have had 3T for almost 2 years, I have to say 3T truly is better. Just this week, I saw two cases of small aneurysms of the brain only picked up by the sharper images of 3T MRI. Without 3T you will wonder if you have a small aneurysm or other abnormality simply missed by less accurate images. One of the cases had 2 prior 1.5T studies that totally missed the aneurysm.

3T yields faster, more detailed images more safely and uses smaller doses of contrast—a dye injected to ensure sharper contrast. All this combines to make 3T the best way to image almost any part of the body. Fat saturation images are also improved at 3T so we can see inflammation and tumors more clearly.

I recently installed Delaware’s BEST OPEN MRI. This scanner is the widest in the world. It is the least claustrophobic, most spacious scanner in the world. It is also the shortest. So in 60% of cases your head will be outside the scanner, allowing you to watch the 52” 1080P plasma TV in the ceiling. We are the only facility in the world who has this amenity which puts patients at ease and allows us to get a better image for the larger patient or the claustrophobic patient. Ever since I installed Delaware’s 1st and only 3T scanner, I knew I also had to have a scanner which could provide the best MRI images for both the larger patient and the claustrophobic patient. The larger bore also has another advantage. A mother can hold her child and comfort them during their MRI scan.

3T is particularly useful for detecting demyelinating plaques. 3T shows up to twice as many plaques as any less powerful scanner. And, be advised that reimbursements for 3T scans are no different than for weaker MRI scans. The patient does not pay more for 3T.

In the early 1990’s, Japanese corporations developed software and permanent magnets at 0.3T and ingeniously marketed them as OPEN MRI scanners. While these units do have openings along the side of the bore of the scanner, the actual space for the patient is narrower than other, high field MRI scanners. Years later, OPEN MRI still enjoys some success in competing with 1.5T and 3T-MRI units due to this clever marketing. Little mention, however, is made of the fact that their magnet strength is no longer competitive (0.3T v. 3T). Because of its low magnet strength, OPEN MRI is an intermediate sensitivity exam and will miss many abnormalities. OPEN MRI’s have been banned in Germany, for this very reason! And soon workman’s compensation will no longer reimburse these low quality OPEN MRI studies. Our BEST OPEN MRI unit is a superconducting 1.5T high quality magnet and can be reimbursed.

Most patients are unaware that MRI scanners have different strengths. They have no idea that the strength of an MRI scanner’s magnet can determine the quality of the images used in making a diagnosis. Cancerous tumors might simply not be seen! To most people, an MRI is an MRI. But, not all MRIs are created equal. Older OPEN MRI machines are definitely inferior. In terms of physics, the “signal to noise” (a measure of the elements used to create an MRI image—a bit like talking about “pixels” in a digital camera) of an OPEN MRI is one-tenth that of a 3T MRI, or 1/5 that of a 1.5T MRI scanner. Don’t play games with your health, always demand the newest scanners with the newest software and the highest field strength.

An accurate diagnosis depends on getting the best test possible. If you need an MRI, have it done on the very best machine available. The first time. Why waste time and money on inferior tests? Be sure from the beginning. 3T-MRI is better than CT and low field OPEN MRI. Get the best. Use 3T-MRI. (www.3t-mri.net). And if you are claustrophobic or a larger patient – get the best for you, OPEN BORE MRI (opening is 30 inches) (www.bestopenmri.net).

Dr. Philip Chao graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Yale University and was Scholar of the House. He continued his studies at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, receiving his medical degree in 1983. After a transitional internship year at the Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital in Cooperstown NY, Dr. Chao did his residency in Radiology at Brooklyn’s SUNY Health Science Center (1984-1987), where he became Chief Resident. He stayed on to complete a fellowship in Neuroradiology (1987-1988). Dr. Chao has been interested in MRI technology since its very beginning—the first MRI scan took place in 1981 while he was pursuing his medical studies. The University of Pennsylvania, where Dr. Chao was both a Body MRI Fellow (1988-1990) and a Neuroradiology Fellow (1989-1990), was at the heart of the development of this technology and Dr. Chao was able to work with pioneers in MRI on the first GE Signa 1.5T (tesla) scanner. His advanced research and specializations complete, Dr. Chao left the University of Pennsylvania for a position as Director of MRI in Wilmington DE—a position he held for 14 years. Dr. Chao eventually left that position to create the best MRI center in Delaware, using the very latest technology: 3T MRI. While 3T (tesla) scanners have been used for scanning research patients since 2002, these advanced, more powerful MRI scanners only became available for clinical use in 2004. Dr. Chao worked hard to bring 3T technology to Delaware and in February 2007, MRI Consultants, LLC began operating the first 3T scanner in the State. 3T is the newest horizon for MRI.

For more information, contact MRI Consultants at 302.295.3367 or 302.295.0467.