Yuichiro Matsuoka1, Hayato Yoshinaka1,
Susumu Aizawa2, Makiya Matsumoto2, Yoshinori Morita1,
Hiromu Kutsumi1, Etsuko Kumamoto3, Kagayaki Kuroda4,5,
Takeshi Azuma1
1Graduate School of Medicine, Kobe
University, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan; 2Graduate School of Engineering,
Kobe University, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan; 3Information Science and
Technology Center, Kobe University, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan; 4Medical
Device Development Center, Foundation for Biomedical Research and Innovation,
Kobe, Hyogo, Japan; 5School of Information Science and Technology,
Tokai Univesity, Hiratsuka, Japan
An
endoscope shows an interior surface image of organ, but it has difficulty
finding the information under tissue surface. To assist endoscopy and
endoscopic surgery by providing cross-sectional images, we have developed an
integrated MR-endoscope system. An intraluminal RF coil to be inserted into
esophagus was designed, and MR imaging using this coil and a tracking system
to detect the coil position in MRI was conducted using an excised porcine
tissue. The layer structure in esophagus could be distinguished in T1- and
T2-weighted images. The feasibility of esophagus imaging by the developed
coil having high Q value was demonstrated.