OUR MAGAZINE COVER NOSSA CAPA
Paul Lauterbur e Peter Mansfield, ganhadores do Prêmio Nobel de Medicina de 2003
Two scientists that played crucial roles in the development of imaging methods won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine of 2003. Paul Lauterbur and Peter Mansfield were awarded for discoveries concerning magnetic resonance, a non-invasive method used by millions of doctors every year.
The medical use of magnetic resonance imaging has developed rapidly. The first MRI equipments in health were available at the beginning of the 1980s. In 2002, approximately 22,000 MRI cameras were in use worldwide, and more than 60 million MRI examinations were performed.
A great advantage with MRI is that it is harmless according to all present knowledge. The method does not use ionizing radiation, in contrast to ordinary X-ray or computer tomography examinations. However, patients with magnetic metal in the body or a pacemaker cannot be examined with MRI due to the strong magnetic field, and patients with claustrophobia may have difficulties undergoing MRI.
Paul Lauterbur discovered that introduction of gradients in the magnetic field made it possible to create two-dimensional images of structures that could not be visualized by other techniques. In 1973, he described how addition of gradient magnets to the main magnet made it possible to visualize a cross section of tubes with ordinary water surrounded by heavy water. No other imaging method can differentiate between ordinary and heavy water. Paul Lauterbur is American and works at the University of Illinois, USA.
Peter Mansfield utilized gradients in the magnetic field in order to more precisely show differences in the resonance. He showed how the detected signals rapidly and effectively could be analysed and transformed to an image. This technique became useful in clinical practice a decade later. Mansfield is a British citizen and works at the University of Nottingham, UK.
Publication Dates
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Publication in this collection
17 Nov 2004 -
Date of issue
Oct 2004
