Early Experience of Pre- and Post-Contrast 7.0T MRI in Brain Tumors

We investigated the safety and clinical applicability of 7.0 Tesla (T) brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with brain tumors. Twenty-four patients with intraaxial or extraaxial brain tumors were enrolled in this study. 7.0T MRIs of T2*-weighted axial and T1-weighted coronal or sagittal images were obtained and compared with 1.5T brain MRIs. The T2*-weighted images from 7.0T brain MRI revealed detailed microvasculature and the internal contents of supratentorial brain tumors better than that of 1.5T brain MRI. For brain tumors located in parasellar areas or areas adjacent to major cerebral vessels, flow-related artifacts were exaggerated in the 7.0T brain MRIs. For brain tumors adjacent to the skull base, susceptibility artifacts in the interfacing areas of the paranasal sinus and skull base hampered the aquisition of detailed images and information on brain tumors in the 7.0T brain MRIs. This study shows that 7.0T brain MRI can provide detailed information on the intratumoral components and margins in supratentorial brain tumors. Further studies are needed to develop refined MRI protocols for better images of brain tumors located in the skull base, parasellar, and adjacent major cerebrovascular structures.

Biofeedback eletromiográfico / Eletromyographic biofeedback

O equipamento de Biofeedback eletromiográfico utiliza circuitos eletrônicos para detetar e amplificar sinais biológicos associados às atividades musculares, fornecendo informações precisas sobre o estado de contração muscular do paciente e possibilitando que ele interaja no sentido de modificá-lo.

Abstract : The electromyographic Biofeedback detects and amplifies biological signals related to muscular activities using electronic circuits. It provides some information about the muscular aotivity of the patients helping them to modify wrong habits