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Scar tissue MRI helps doctors

The Robarts Research Laboratory has come up with a way to produce some beautiful pictures of your body — of the insides, that is.

A recent study shows an MRI-based technique combining scar-tissue-locating techniques with 3D images of blood vessels to aid the work of medical professionals.

The journey from idea to reality took roughly 18 months — a relatively quick process according to James White, a scientist at Robarts and the Biomedical Imaging Research Centre at Western.

White described the difference between previously available techniques and the new one as the difference between “having a map without destinations, and a map with destinations.” In other words, it is easier for surgeons and doctors to see where scarred tissue lies in relation to arteries and veins. This allows doctors to operate with greater precision.

While the published study focused on bypass surgery and a pacemaker-related procedure, these images will also be useful for other cardiac procedures such as angioplasty or treating arrhythmia, White said.

A new MRI machine installed in August 2008 paved the way for the technique’s success, allowing for images of higher quality than were previously available.

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