350th Installed MAGNETOM Trio Demonstrates the Clinical Need for High-Field MRI

Siemens Medical Solutions, www.usa.siemens.com/medical, recently installed its 350th 3T MAGNETOM Trio magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner at South Jersey Radiology Associates P.A. of Voorhees, N.J.






With this installation, the high-field imaging system, is demonstrating that it is not only a research tool, but that it can also make an impact in clinical imaging. Additionally, the scanner is one of more than 175 worldwide 3T systems that use Siemens Medical Solutions proprietary Tim(R) (Total imaging matrix) coil architecture, which eliminates the need for patient repositioning and manual coil changes during scans while significantly enhancing image quality.






“The Trio will allow us to advance to the next level by imaging those regions that are still problematic at 1.5T: small joints such as the wrist, forefoot and fingers,” said William F. Muhr, Jr., MD, a radiologist at South Jersey Radiology Associates P.A. “The 3T field strength moves our neuroimaging to the next level with diffusion tensor imaging and fiber tracking. The magnet will also benefit patients with renal impairments who cannot tolerate as much gadolinium contrast. The increased signal-to-noise ratio at 3T allows us to perform body imaging and MRA at reduced contrast doses. While performing these applications, the MAGNETOM Trio also excels at routine knee, hip, spine and brain imaging, allowing us to run a full patient schedule right out of the gate.”






The MAGNETOM Trio meets a wide range of imaging needs, from routine clinical use, to high-end research, combining the system’s fast gradients with one of the largest field-of-view acquisitions and the highest 3T magnet homogeneity. Siemens’ Tim technology enables the MAGNETOM Trio to address challenges encountered with other 3T systems, without compromising image quality. The high signal-to-noise ratio of the MAGNETOM Trio, in combination with Tim technology, enables reduced scan times, which consequently reduces motion artifacts, improves patient comfort and helps increase patient throughput.






“The success of MAGNETOM Trio can be attributed to its excellent performance in all radiological settings, from neurology and orthopedics to angiography and abdominal imaging,” said Nancy Gillen, vice president, MR division, Siemens Medical Solutions. “The Trio has brought advanced 3T MRI to not only leading academic medical centers but to diagnostic imaging centers and smaller hospitals as well. And our patented Tim technology continues to yield innovations as exemplified by the new generation of Siemens MRI systems.”






Building upon Siemens’ Tim technology, the T-class of the MAGNETOM Trio now features syngo(R) TimCT, an advanced technology that offers continuous table movement during scanning, a process that is comparable to computed tomography. This technology allows physicians to acquire one complete planning scan, or peripheral angiography, in a single, continuous movement. The results are faster scans, increased image quality and the potential for new application capabilities.