1st indigenous MRI machine is here, thanks to Allahabad University prof & team | Allahabad News – Times of India

PRAYAGRAJ: In a major breakthrough, scientists at New Delhi’s Inter-University Accelerator Centre (IUAC), led by its director and Allahabad University’s adjunct professor, Prof Avinash Chandra Pandey, have successfully developed India’s first superconducting magnet system used in MRI machines for whole-body clinical scanner.
At present, India depends on 100% import for MRI machines which cost exorbitantly. The IUAC has developed a 1.5 Tesla (T) superconducting MRI magnet system, which is like the heart of the MRI machine. This will not only make India produce cheaper indigenous MRI machines, but also put it in the league of select countries which produce these machines. At present, China is the biggest exporter of MRI machines to India.

1st indigenous MRI machine is here, thanks to AU prof & team

Allahabad University’s adjunct professor, Prof Avinash Chandra Pandey

The MRI machine is used to take images of any body part (head, joints, abdomen, legs, etc.) for detection of diseases by providing precise contrast resolution in any imaging direction.
This is nothing less than India making its own cryogenic engine, or state-of-the-art weaponry. Having our own indigenous MRI machine would not only cut the cost of the equipment but will also provide access to this vital diagnostic technique to those who today cannot afford the same because of its high cost,” says renowned radiologist Padma Shri Dr Harsh Mahajan. He is former president of the Indian Radiology & Imaging Association (IRIA) and also the consultant to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna, Austria. He has also served as the honorary radiologist to the President of India.
Talking to TOI over phone, IUAC director Prof Pandey, said: “In India, there are 1.5 MRI machines per million population whereas in developed countries it is more than 10 MRI per million. India needs a large number of MRI machines in the next few years which is only possible through indigenous manufacturing, thereby providing easy and cheaper healthcare access to the people.” Pandey further said the horizontal tube in an MRI machine through which the patient enters, known as the bore, contains a strong magnet from front to back. This magnet is the most important component of an MRI system. “The entire system provides an incredibly strong and large, stable magnetic field. And to generate such powerful magnetic fields that are tens of thousands of times greater than the Earth’s own magnetic field, MRI scanners use high-strength permanent magnets in which the magnetic field cannot be dissipated,” he said.
At present, MRI machines’ processes are quite high as the scanners are built around massive superconducting magnets. A single unit of 1.5 Tesla MRI machines costs around Rs 5-6 crore and Rs 9-11 crore for a single unit of 3 Tesla capacity. Refurbished 1.5 T Siemens Magnetom Symphony Closed MRI Scanners are sold for Rs 1.75 crore to Rs 3 crore in India. “As compared to this, the MRI machines that could be manufactured in our country using our technology would be much cheaper. This would also help India export these units to other countries and thereby provide easy and cheaper healthcare access to the people, especially of the third-world nations,” said Pandey. The development will also bring down the exorbitant price of the MRI tests, he added.
“A few Indian industries are willing to build commercial MRI magnets using this indigenous technology. This along with cryogen-free technology and artificial intelligence will lead to lighter and cheaper whole-body scanners which can be mounted on a mobile van for rural healthcare in the future,” said Pandey, who has been associated with the AU’s department of physics for 22 years and is heading IUAC for the past four years.
“Superconducting MRI magnet is one of the most complex diagnostic equipment which gives the highest level of clarity in imaging. The indigenous development of India’s first whole body 1.5T magnet by IUAC will place India in the elite league of MRI manufacturing countries”, says renowned radiologist and former professor of SGPGIMS, Lucknow and at present principal director, Radiology Fortis, Gurugram, Dr Rakesh Kumar Gupta. In addition, the commercial production of such indigenous development will substantially reduce the import dependency, he added.