title: 7-T MR--from research to clinical applications?
abstract: Over 20,000 MR systems are currently installed worldwide and, although the majority operate at magnetic fields of 1.5 T and below (i.e. about 70%), experience with 3-T (in high-field clinical diagnostic imaging and research) and 7-T (research only) human MR scanners points to a future in functional and metabolic MR diagnostics. Complementary to previous studies, this review attempts to provide an overview of ultrahigh-field MR research with special emphasis on emerging clinical applications at 7 T. We provide a short summary of the technical development and the current status of installed MR systems. The advantages and challenges of ultrahigh-field MRI and MRS are discussed with special emphasis on radiofrequency inhomogeneity, relaxation times, signal-to-noise improvements, susceptibility effects, chemical shifts, specific absorption rate and other safety issues. In terms of applications, we focus on the topics most likely to gain significantly from 7-T MR, i.e. brain imaging and spectroscopy and musculoskeletal imaging, but also body imaging, which is particularly challenging. Examples are given to demonstrate the advantages of susceptibility-weighted imaging, time-of-flight MR angiography, high-resolution functional MRI, (1)H and (31)P MRSI in the human brain, sodium and functional imaging of cartilage and the first results (and artefacts) using an eight-channel body array, suggesting future areas of research that should be intensified in order to fully explore the potential of 7-T MR systems for use in clinical diagnosis.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. Ewald.moser@meduniwien.ac.at
authors.forename: Ewald
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Moser
authors.forename: Freddy
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Stahlberg
authors.forename: Mark E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Ladd
authors.forename: Siegfried
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Trattnig
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods; D018810:Magnetic Resonance Angiography / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D019906:Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Biomolecular / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D057170:Translational Research, Biomedical