The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Dec. 09, 1997
Filed:
Apr. 17, 1996
Robert R Edelman, Brookline, MA (US);
Beth Israel Hospital, Boston, MA (US);
Abstract
A paramagnetic gas such as oxygen is administered twice at different concentrations to a living patient, as by causing the patient to breathe air and causing the patient to breathe pure oxygen. Two T1-weighted MR images are then acquired of a region in which the gas is present; advantageously, the region includes the patient's lungs. Because the paramagnetic gas shortens the T1 relaxation time of e.g. the patient's lung tissue, a comparison of the T1-weighted MR images shows where the gas has reached the patient's lung tissue and where the gas has been prevented from reaching the patient's lung tissue. This permits the radiologist to carry out e.g. a ventilation study without administering a radioactive material to the patient.