Past, Present and Future of Open Science (Keynote): LOW FIELD MRI - A POSSIBLE BRAIN IMAGING MODALITY FOR SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA

[jsheunis]

LOW FIELD MRI - A POSSIBLE BRAIN IMAGING MODALITY FOR SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA

By Johnes Obungoloch, Mbarara University of Science and Technology

• Theme: Past, Present and Future of Open Science
• Format: Keynote

Abstract

While MRI technology entered into clinical practice as a low field imaging modality, the super conducting magnet technology quickly dominated clinical practice and in the process alienating a large potion of the world including sub-Saharan Africa.

There are currently less than 0.1 MRI systems per 1,000,000 people in sub-saharan Africa [1]. Most African countries still rely on x-ray computed tomography for brain imaging due to the high costs of high field MRI systems.
Due to its low cost and relaxed technical complexity, low field MRI is once again attracting attention as the most probable brain imaging modality, especially for the developing world. Because of the low signal provided by the low field MRI systems, the images acquired are bound to have reduced quality however, there are efforts to use the new field of machine learning to enhance the quality of these images.

One of the challenges that faces medical technology in sub-Saharan Africa is the lack of sustenance for those technologies which are normally developed outside Africa, leaving the continent with limited expertise to manage the technologies. Currently there are very few MRI scientists in sub-Saharan Africa. Therefore the success of low field MRI in Africa will depend largely on a concerted collaborative effort between the few African MRI scientists and the experienced scientists in the developed world, to not only introduce low field MRI but also develop the local expertise to sustain the technology.
My talk will highlight some of the the efforts being done in the development of low field MRI systems and their possible applications.

References
1.World Health Organisation, "Global Health Observatory Data Repository: Medical Equipment Data by Country," 2016. [Online]. Available: http://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.main.510. [Accessed 2020].

Useful Links

https://mri-uganda.com/
http://fast.must.ac.ug/fast-staff/dr-johnes-obungoloch/

Tagging @Johnes1221

[Johnes1221]

Please join the discussion, I will be vailable for questions at 13:10 to 13:50 Uganda time
Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) Hub: 10:10 UTC to 10:50 UTC. View these in you local time zone: https://tinyurl.com/OSR-PPF-Keynote-EMEA-Starts to https://tinyurl.com/OSR-PPF-Keynote-EMEA-End
Thank you

[Johnes1221]

please find the slides here:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3907040

[Starborn]

Thank you, will catch up with this !

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On Thu, Jun 25, 2020 at 10:55 AM Johnes1221 ***@***.***> wrote: please find the slides here: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3907040 — You are receiving this because you are subscribed to this thread. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#48 (comment)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/ACFKUCKBWBPLO2VT4WRYQMTRYK4ALANCNFSM4NC3OXCQ> .

[Starborn]

great work. I d like to see how this solution could be useful/adopted/exported to other countries where resources are scarce. There are similar challenges in Asia, Latam.

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On Thu, Jun 25, 2020 at 10:55 AM Johnes1221 ***@***.***> wrote: please find the slides here: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3907040 — You are receiving this because you are subscribed to this thread. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#48 (comment)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/ACFKUCKBWBPLO2VT4WRYQMTRYK4ALANCNFSM4NC3OXCQ> .

[Starborn]

johnes I viewed and downloaded your slides, also refreshed but still showing O view and O dowloads in the count Maybe others share same problem? perhaps check with Zenodo? P On Thu, Jun 25, 2020 at 11:57 AM Paola Di Maio <paola.dimaio@gmail.com> wrote:

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great work. I d like to see how this solution could be useful/adopted/exported to other countries where resources are scarce. There are similar challenges in Asia, Latam. On Thu, Jun 25, 2020 at 10:55 AM Johnes1221 ***@***.***> wrote: > please find the slides here: > https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3907040 > > — > You are receiving this because you are subscribed to this thread. > Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub > <#48 (comment)>, or > unsubscribe > <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/ACFKUCKBWBPLO2VT4WRYQMTRYK4ALANCNFSM4NC3OXCQ> > . >