This book is designed to introduce the reader to the field of NMR/MRI at very low magnetic fields, from milli-Tesla to micro-Tesla, the ultra-low field (ULF) regime. The book is focused on applications to imaging the human brain, and hardware methods primarily based upon pre-polarization methods and SQUID-based detection. The goal of the text is to provide insight and tools for the reader to better understand what applications are best served by ULF NMR/MRI approaches. A discussion of the hardware challenges, such as shielding, operation of SQUID sensors in a dynamic field environment, and pulsed magnetic field generation are presented. One goal of the text is to provide the reader a framework of understanding the approaches to estimation and mitigation of low signal-to-noise and long imaging time, which are the main challenges. Special attention is paid to the combination of MEG and ULF MRI, and the benefits and challenges presented by trying to accomplish both with the same hardware. The book discusses the origin of unique relaxation contrast at ULF, and special considerations for image artifacts and how to correct them (i.e. concomitant gradients, ghost artifacts). A general discussion of MRI, with special consideration to the challenges of imaging at ULF and unique opportunities in pulse sequences, is presented. The book also presents an overview of some of the primary applications of ULF NMR/MRI being pursued.

The World Health Organization stated that approximately two-thirds of the world’s population lacks adequate access to medical imaging. The scarcity of imaging services in developing regions contributes to a widening disparity of health care and limits global public health programs that require imaging. Radiology is an important component of many global health programs, including those that address tuberculosis, AIDS-related disease, trauma, occupational and environmental exposures, breast cancer screening, and maternal-infant health care. There is a growing need for medical imaging in global health efforts and humanitarian outreach, particularly as an increasing number of academic, government, and non-governmental organizations expand delivery of health care to disadvantaged people worldwide. To systematically deploy clinical imaging services to low-resource settings requires contributions from a variety of disciplines such as clinical radiology, epidemiology, public health, finance, radiation physics, information technology, engineering, and others. This book will review critical concepts for those interested in managing, establishing, or participating in a medical imaging program for resource-limited environments and diverse cross-cultural contexts undergoing imaging technology adaptation.

Quantitative Magnetic Resonance Imaging is a 'go-to' reference for methods and applications of quantitative magnetic resonance imaging, with specific sections on Relaxometry, Perfusion, and Diffusion. Each section will start with an explanation of the basic techniques for mapping the tissue property in question, including a description of the challenges that arise when using these basic approaches. For properties which can be measured in multiple ways, each of these basic methods will be described in separate chapters. Following the basics, a chapter in each section presents more advanced and recently proposed techniques for quantitative tissue property mapping, with a concluding chapter on clinical applications. The reader will learn: - The basic physics behind tissue property mapping - How to implement basic pulse sequences for the quantitative measurement of tissue properties - The strengths and limitations to the basic and more rapid methods for mapping the magnetic relaxation properties T1, T2, and T2* - The pros and cons for different approaches to mapping perfusion - The methods of Diffusion-weighted imaging and how this approach can be used to generate diffusion tensor - maps and more complex representations of diffusion - How flow, magneto-electric tissue property, fat fraction, exchange, elastography, and temperature mapping are performed - How fast imaging approaches including parallel imaging, compressed sensing, and Magnetic Resonance - Fingerprinting can be used to accelerate or improve tissue property mapping schemes - How tissue property mapping is used clinically in different organs - Structured to cater for MRI researchers and graduate students with a wide variety of backgrounds - Explains basic methods for quantitatively measuring tissue properties with MRI - including T1, T2, perfusion, diffusion, fat and iron fraction, elastography, flow, susceptibility - enabling the implementation of pulse sequences to perform measurements - Shows the limitations of the techniques and explains the challenges to the clinical adoption of these traditional methods, presenting the latest research in rapid quantitative imaging which has the possibility to tackle these challenges - Each section contains a chapter explaining the basics of novel ideas for quantitative mapping, such as compressed sensing and Magnetic Resonance Fingerprinting-based approaches

This book describes the design of the first functioning single-sided tomograph, the related measurement methods, and a number of applications in medicine, materials science, and chemical engineering. It will be the first comprehensive account of this new device and its applications. Among the key advances of this method is that images can be obtained in much shorter times than originally anticipated, and that even vector maps of flow fields can be measured although the magnetic fields are highly inhomogeneous. Furthermore, the equipment is small, mobile and affordable to small and medium enterprises and can be located in doctors’ offices.

In the past few decades, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) has become an indispensable tool in modern medicine, with MRI systems now available at every major hospital in the developed world. But for all its utility and prevalence, it is much less commonly understood and less readily explained than other common medical imaging techniques. Unlike optical, ultrasonic, X-ray (including CT), and nuclear medicine-based imaging, MRI does not rely primarily on simple transmission and/or reflection of energy, and the highest achievable resolution in MRI is orders of magnitude smaller that the smallest wavelength involved. In this book, MRI will be explained with emphasis on the magnetic fields required, their generation, their concomitant electric fields, the various interactions of all these fields with the subject being imaged, and the implications of these interactions to image quality and patient safety. Classical electromagnetics will be used to describe aspects from the fundamental phenomenon of nuclear precession through signal detection and MRI safety. Simple explanations and Illustrations combined with pertinent equations are designed to help the reader rapidly gain a fundamental understanding and an appreciation of this technology as it is used today, as well as ongoing advances that will increase its value in the future. Numerous references are included to facilitate further study with an emphasis on areas most directly related to electromagnetics.

Intraoperative imaging technologies have taken an ever-increasing role in the daily practice of neurosurgeons and the increasing attention and interest necessitated international interaction and collaboration. The Intraoperative Imaging Society was formed in 2007. This book brings together highlights from the second meeting of the Intraoperative Imaging Society, which took place in Istanbul-Turkey from June 14 to 17, 2009. Included within the contents of the book is an overview of the emergence and development of the intraoperative imaging technology as well as a glimpse on where the technology is heading. This is followed by in detail coverage of intraoperative MRI technology and sections on intraoperative CT and ultrasonography. There are also sections on multimodality integration, intraoperative robotics and other intraoperative technologies. We believe that this book will provide an up-to date and comprehensive general overview of the current intraoperative imaging technology as well as detailed discussions on individual techniques and clinical results.