GE Healthcare and Tesla Engineering have announced they will collaborate to produce 7-tesla whole-body MRI systems.
The announcement was made at the joint meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM) and the European Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine and Biology (ESMRMB), which is being held this week in Milan.
The ultrahigh-field MRI systems are used primarily for morphological and functional imaging of the brain. Researchers hope the systems will contribute to earlier disease detection, more accurate diagnosis, and increased effectiveness of investigational therapies for disorders and diseases such as cancer, stroke, epilepsy, drug abuse, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, attention-deficit disorder, multiple sclerosis, head injuries, visual disorders, and schizophrenia.
Tesla Engineering is currently building a new factory in Storrington, U.K., to manufacture the magnets. The first unit from the new production line is committed to GE and scheduled to ship in late 2015.
