Artificial intelligence can reconstruct rapid MRIs into higher-quality images than traditional scans, according to a Jan. 17 Radiology study that came out of a partnership between New York City-based NYU Langone Health and Facebook parent company Meta.
Using AI to "fill in" missing parts of the scans, which are four times faster than standard ones, may expand the availability of the technology and lower appointment wait times, the researchers wrote.
"FastMRI has the potential to dramatically change how we do MRI and increase accessibility of MRI to more patients," said Michael Recht, MD, the Louis Marx Professor of Radiology and radiology chair at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, in a Jan. 17 health system news release.
NYU Langone Health and Meta AI Research started the fastMRI initiative in 2018 to make the imaging technology speedier. The project has already yielded the largest-ever public database of raw MRI data for use by scientists and researchers.
As part of the study of 170 participants receiving a diagnostic knee MRI, the researchers found the AI-reconstructed images were diagnostically equivalent to traditional scans and had better overall image quality. The fastMRIs take about 5 minutes compared to a half hour for a traditional one.
This research "truly paves the way for more innovation and advancements in the future," stated Patricia Johnson, PhD, assistant professor in the department of radiology.