Magnetom Flow (MRI scanner)

2024: Product Announcement

On February 28, 2024, Siemens Healthineers announced the Magnetom Flow magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system, which uses virtually no helium. Its volume is only 0.7 liters against approximately 1500 liters for traditional installations of a comparable class.

Liquid helium is used in MRI devices to cool the magnet winding to a temperature close to absolute zero. This is necessary to achieve the superconductivity effect. In standard scanners, helium can evaporate, and therefore refueling is periodically required. The Magnetom Flow system implements Dry Cool technology with a closed helium circuit. In this case, an emergency release of gaseous helium outside is excluded in case of loss of superconductivity by the magnet. This eliminates the need for a quench pipe.

Siemens Healthineers

It is noted that the Magnetom Flow system significantly reduced energy consumption compared to conventional MRI installations. With the improved Eco Gradient Mode, the scanner automatically turns off energy-intensive components when they are not activated. Due to the absence of a quench pipe, the cost of preparing the room and installing equipment is reduced. Plus, the Magnetom Flow complex has reduced dimensions: its height is less than 2 m.

The new tomograph has the same magnetic field strength as standard devices - 1.5 Tesla. To improve the quality of images, algorithms based on artificial intelligence are implemented. The time for conducting surveys can be reduced to 50%, while the quality of images is doubled. Combined with simplified workflows, the speed of diagnostic procedures is increased, whereby medical facilities can increase the overall throughput of patients.^[1]

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