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STATESBORO IMAGING CENTER INSTALLS “OPEN” MRI FOR BETTER PATIENT EXPERIENCE
Open Design Makes MRI More Patient-Friendly
Statesboro, Georgia, May 2005 – By acquiring a new type of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) – called the OPART™ Open MRI – Statesboro Imaging Center now offers patients a new, more comfortable option for undergoing important diagnostic tests. With the availability of an open system, Statesboro Imaging Center hopes to eliminate the closed in, anxiety-provoking sensation many patients experience during an MRI exam.
Since the use of MRI has become more widespread, complaints about the narrow “tube” – the center of the donut-shaped machine where the patient lies down – have also risen.
Less anxious patients are less likely to need sedation and more likely to successfully complete the MRI procedure, which is a valuable tool for the diagnosis of cancer, vascular disease, neurological disorders and the evaluation of sports injuries and trauma cases.
There are a variety of reasons that patients cannot tolerate a traditional “closed” MRI system, which typically requires a patient to be enclosed head-to-knees in the “tube” of the machine. Some patients are acutely claustrophobic. Others report never experiencing anxiety about closed spaces until they have their first scan. Similarly, people of size find the opening of traditional systems too narrow to comfortably fit inside.
Regardless of the reason, many of these patients have not been able to benefit from an MRI procedure in the past. Statesboro Imaging Center’s new OPART provides an alternative. The manufacturer, Toshiba America Medical Systems, designed the OPART without a traditional tube. Instead, the system resembles a hollow cube with four large, window-like openings, enabling patients to see outside the system in every direction. This “line-of-sight” design, combined with the large area for the patient to lie down, reduces anxiety among most patients. In addition, the open sides allow a parent to sit beside their child during an exam to read a book, or just hold their hand.
Instead of relying on  X-rays like other imaging technologies, MRI uses a powerful magnet approximately 7,000-times stronger than the magnetic force of the earth. During an exam, the hydrogen atoms in the patient’s body react to the magnetic field. Then, the computer reads signals from the atom formation and reconstructs data into detailed images of the body’s interior.
Statesboro Imaging Center provides a full range of comprehensive health care services to the Statesboro area.
Toshiba America Medical Systems, based in Tustin, Calif., is a leading innovator of medical technology. The company markets, sells, distributes and services diagnostic imaging systems throughout the United States.
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