MRI and neurodegenerative diseases.

Introduction 

The MRI is a Sophisticated diagnostic and noninvasive method to extract valuable quantitative and qualitative characteristics that can provide a comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms of brain function.Neurodegeneration is the generic term for the progressive loss of structure or function of neurons, including death of neurons.Many neurodegenerative diseases including Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and Huntington's disease can occur as a result of neurodegenerative processes.As research progresses, many similarities appear which relate these diseases to one another at a subcellular level. Discovering these similarities offers hope for therapeutic progress that could improve the outcome of many diseases.But for better understanding of these processes, the clinical diagnosis and the development of therapy is necessary to display these degenerative changes.In clinically acceptable time (less than one hour)  is possible to study the situation by applying multiparametric MRI (anatomical imaging, DTI, DWI, PWI, fMRI, p1, p2, p2 *) a diagnostic method that provides information functional, biochemical and structural data for the brain. The ultimate goal of this method is the individualized treatment of each incident and the time of treatment to maximize the desired effect and halt disease progression. These techniques are described below and based on the literature are unique and highly effective diagnostic methods to better manage the disease.

 

Η MR / PET στην απεικόνιση του πνεύμονα

Μια πιλοτική μελέτη διεξήχθη από ερευνητές στην Γερμανία και θα δημοσιευθεί στο τέλος Αυγούστου στο περιοδικό Radiology δείχνει ότι η τεχνική MR/PET παρέχει διαγνωστικές εικόνες υψηλής ποιότητας για την εκτίμηση πνευμονικών εξεργασιών με ταυτόχρονη μείωση της δόσης ακτινοβολίας κατά τουλάχιστον 75%.
Η μελέτη αυτή προσφέρει δεδομένα που αποδεικνύουν την κλινική χρησιμότητα της υβριδικής απεικονιστικής μεθόδου MR/PET, καθώς όπως ευρέθη παρατηρήθηκε παρόμοιος χαρακτηρισμός των βλαβών και σταδιοποίηση των καρκινικών όγκων σε επτά από τους δέκα ασθενείς σε σύγκριση την κλασσική PET / CT.
Η MR/PET θα μπορούσε να προσφέρει μια σημαντική εναλλακτική επιλογή για την απεικόνιση του θώρακα, μαζί με μια δραματική μείωση στην έκθεση σε ιονίζουσες ακτινοβολίες από περίπου 28 mSv για την μέση δόση μίας εξέτασης PET / CT σε 7 mSv απεικόνιση με MR/PET για ολόκληρο το σώμα, όπως αναφέρει στην μελέτη η επικεφαλής συγγραφέας δρ  Ν. Schwenzer, από τμήμα την πανεπιστημιακή κλινική ακτινολογίας του πανεπιστημίου Eberhard-Karls University στην Tübingen (Radiology, Vol. 264:2, σελ. 551-558).

Molecular Imaging

Molecular Imaging targets the biochemical changes of diseases, which often occur a long time before the morphological expressions. Early detection of these biochemical changes provides many more choices and chances for therapeutic intervention during the early stages of a disease. This is the type of power that can and will transform daily medical practice from a system that reacts to disease and treats symptoms, often after it is too late for a cure, to one that detects disease at the beginning and treats its root cause. Ultimate goal with molecular imaging is to enable disease detection much earlier than is currently possible, which ultimately will obviate unnecessary surgeries and treatments. If an intervention is necessary nonetheless, molecular imaging may also be of help. E. g. by detecting tumor borders during the procedure. And in the best-case scenario, it will also result in more cost-effective treatments.
Molecular imaging holds the potential of simultaneously being able to locate, diagnose, and treat disease in vivo as well as the ability to depict how well a treatment is working early after therapy onset.