GE’s 7T MRI Scanner Wins FDA Clearance

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) cleared the SIGNA 7T MRI from GE Healthcare this week, making the company's most powerful MRI available for purchase and use.

With a magnet five times more powerful than most other scanner on the market, company officials said, SIGNA is designed to go further than other MRI systems both in clinical and research activities.

By bringing together advanced technologies, imaging methods, and internal GE experience, SIGNA 7T, which was initially introduced during this year’s International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, can image anatomy, function, metabolism, as well as brain and joint micro-vasculature and can be used in a wide variety of cases across neurologic and musculoskeletal imaging, including a novel platform for knee and cartilage imaging.

With this scanner, said Jie Xue, president and chief executive officer of GE Healthcare MRI, clinicians will be able to make a greater impact on a patient care.

“This new scanner is a critical tool in research for neurological disorders like Alzheimer’s disease and mild traumatic brain injury,” Xue said. “Now, clinicians will have access to the power of ultra-high field imaging combined with the ultra-high performance gradients to translate research advances into new clinical diagnostic tools and potential treatment options.”

Using UltraG gradient technology – the most powerful whole-body gradient coil GE has to offer – SIGNA 7T can provide ultra-high field imaging speed and resolution, as well as advanced diffusion, and functional brain imaging, according to company specifics. In addition, it offers deep-learning tools, such as AIR x brain for automated slice positioning and Silent MR imaging for protocol translation between GE MR systems.