A novel RF coil and incubator for reducing acoustic noise in neonatal MRI

PROJECT SUMMARY In this Phase I Small Business Technology TransferSTTRprojecta team of researchers at Cincinnati Childrenandapos s Hospital Medical CenterCCHMCwill work with the engineering team at NeoViewIncto design and build novel body coil and incubator prototypes for aTesla Neonatal Intensive Care UnitNICUMRI systemThese components will play a central role in NeoViewandapos s neonatal MRI product which will for the first time bring a fully featured high field MRI into the NICUThe novel body coil replaces the hard structural components and hollow air spaces used in existing body coil designs with layers of Mass Loaded VinylMLVsupported by a rigid internal skeletonIn effectthe RF coil becomes a large cylindricalpillowplaced in the bore of the magnetIn a prototypeTesla NICU MRI scanner at CCHMC this concept has been shown to reduce the acoustic noise generated by the scanner bydBA with no impact on MR scanner protocols or image qualityPreliminary tests have shown that a hard shell incubator placed inside the quiet coil reduces the acoustic noise exposure for the patient by an additionaldBAThe reduction in a neonateandapos s acoustic noise exposure afforded by NeoViewandapos s small magnetthe quiet coiland incubator is expected to be approximatelydBAThis dramatic decrease in noise has the potential to enable MRI neonatal scanning without the need for hearing protectionThe team of CCHMC researchers and NeoView engineers will work together to first evaluate the MR properties of MLV in a conventional whole bodyT MRI systemAcm high pass birdcage coil will then be designed using electromagnetic simulations and built using layers of MLVImage quality and acoustic attenuation evaluations will be carried out in both NICU and whole body MRI systemsA mock incubator will also be constructed for evaluationThis mock incubator will have all the internal components needed to support a neonate during scanning to create a realistic platform for evaluating acoustic noisebut will not include subsystems for thermal and humidity managementThe impact of design choices for the incubator walls and access ports on the ingress of acoustic noise will be evaluatedAt the end of this Phase I projecta prototype coil and incubator will have been constructed and optimal design elements and critical design requirements for product versions of the coil and incubator will be identifiedSuccessful completion of this Phase I project will place the research team in an excellent position to develop product quiet coils and incubators in Phase IIOnce Phase I and II are fully realizedMR scanning of non sedatedswaddled sleeping infants will become possible without inducing physiologic stressand without the need to rely on hearing protectionIntegrating these elements will advance MRI technology for neonatesimprove the clinical care of premature babiesand enable new research metrics for studying early human developmentFurthermorewe believe that the technical innovations in this projectalthough targeted at neonatal imagingwill also prove useful in conventional adult sized MR scannersThe quiet RF coil approach in particular holds promise for substantial reduction of acoustic noise without any impact on imaging protocols or performance PROJECT NARRATIVEThis project will develop new technology that will substantially reduce the acoustic noise experienced by premature babies undergoing Magnetic Resonance ImagingThe ability to scan a sleeping premature baby without hearing protection minimizes physiological stress and is expected to reduce the incidence of motion induced artifactsWith the success of this projecta neonateandapos s small size will no longer put him her at a disadvantage when it comes to MRbut instead will enable MR imaging beyond what is possible in an adult scanner