3.0-tesla Scanners Gain MRI Market Share

SAN JOSE, Calif., April 14 -- Hospitals and imaging clinics are increasingly upgrading to 3.0-tesla magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners, according to an analysis by Frost & Sullivan, "US MRI Scanners and Coils Markets."

Revenues in this industry totaled $1.46 billion in 2002 and are projected to reach $1.97 billion by 2009, Frost & Sullivan said. The study attributes the scanners' popularity to enhanced image quality and decreased scan times resulting from parallel imaging techniques such as sensitivity encoding.

3.0-tesla scanners, which now belong to the new subsegment of very high-field MRIs, are experiencing strong growth as end users migrate from 1.5-tesla scanners, according to the study. Emerging applications such as contrast-enhanced MR angiography, interactive cardiac MR and interventional MR will propel the new scanners to the forefront of the market, Frost & Sullivan said.

"Hospitals and imaging clinics have begun to upgrade low-field systems with mid-field open and high-field closed scanners, relegating low-field open systems to smaller niche markets," said Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Jim Clayton.

However, he said, physicians' offices and specialists such as orthopedists looking for affordable MR solutions to complement their existing services are likely to sustain some demand for low-field systems.

For more information, visit: www.medicalsystems.frost.com