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news release:
Cardiac MRI Allows Doctors to Look
at the Heart Without Cutting: New York Methodist Hospital Among First in NYC to
Offer the Innovative Test
A new noninvasive technique is taking some of
the guesswork-as well as the legwork-out of diagnosing and preventing
cardiovascular diseases. Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), as the
technique is called, is truly innovative because it allows doctors to view
detailed images of the heart-without having to cut open the chest or thread a
catheter through the veins or arteries.
Brooklyn, NY, 7 April 2007: A new
noninvasive technique is taking some of the guesswork--as well as the
legwork--out of diagnosing and preventing cardiovascular diseases. According to
John Heitner, MD, director of advanced cardiac imaging at
New York Methodist
Hospital, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), as the technique is called,
is truly innovative because it allows doctors to view detailed images of the
heart--without having to cut open the chest or thread a catheter through the
veins or arteries.
"We're very excited to be among one of the only
hospitals in New York City to offer this new noninvasive technology to help
diagnose and treat heart disease," said Anthony Tortolani, MD, chairman of
cardiothoracic surgery. "It has so many advantages for patients. It's highly
accurate, versatile, and safe", added Dr. Tortolani.
According to Dr. Heitner, "the new technology can
be used to evaluate chest pain and determine if a heart attack is or has
occurred--in many instances, it can be quicker and more accurate than stress
testing, electrocardiograms (ECGs) or other diagnostic techniques." MRI allow
cardiologists to see if larger blood vessels are blocked and if there are
plaques (build-ups of fatty and other materials) in the vessels, and whether
they are stable or likely to rupture and cause a heart attack in the future.
Recently, too, researchers have shown cardiac MRI can create movie-like images
of the beating heart, so doctors can assess damage to the heart muscle while
it's moving. This can help them evaluate how well the heart is pumping blood and
whether the heart lining is swollen, so they can prescribe treatments. And it
can be used to follow heart patients after they've had angioplasty or surgery.
How MRI Works
Cardiac MRI uses radiofrequency waves and a powerful magnetic field to create
images of the heart on a computer screen. The MRI machine directs the waves at
protons that form the nuclei of hydrogen atoms in the body, causing the protons
to vibrate. These vibrations release a radiofrequency signal that can be
converted by computer to form three-dimensional images. One of the major
benefits of cardiac MRI is that it can often create these intricate pictures of
the heart and blood vessels without injection of a contrast material, which
requires the use of an intravenous line.
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