Design of an experimental set up for MRI induced heating measurement on biomedical implants

Abstract

The radiofrequency (RF) field used during Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) exams interacts with electrical conductor material exposed like as biological tissues and metallic medical implants. This interaction leads to temperature and specific absorption rate (SAR) increase at the implant position and could cause harmful hot spots. In this work an experimental set up for temperature and SAR measurements is presented. The measurements are performed by means of a laboratory reproduction of a general MRI RF transmission system, on a standard phantom with a typical cardiovascular stent implant. © 2009 Springer-Verlag.