MELVILLE, NEW YORK, April 25, 2007 - FONAR Corporation (NASDAQ-FONR), The Inventor of MR Scanning™, announced today that a distinguished panel of plastic surgeons discussed the evaluation of breast implants at the annual meeting of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS), held at the Javits Center in New York City, April 19-24, 2007. Upright™ Positional™ MRI was cited as key technology for the evaluation of breast implants.
          The panel discussion was titled “Silicone Gel Implants – What are the Advantages?” One of the panelists, distinguished plastic surgeon Dennis C. Hammond, M.D., of the Center for Breast and Body Contouring, Grand Rapids, Michigan and his associate, Katie R. Ugolini, M.D., have been working with the FONAR Research and Development Department over the past few months to determine if imaging breast-implant patients in an upright position, as opposed to recumbent, would be helpful in evaluating different types of breast implants. Drs. Hammond and Ugolini also wanted to determine if upright imaging would be superior to recumbent imaging for detecting breast implant leaks.

          Dr. Hammond reported, “Now for the first time we have an imaging technique which will allow us as plastic surgeons to truly see how these devices are performing once they are placed inside a patient. This has important implications for designing better implants in the future which may be much less likely to rupture and as well as provide better cosmetic results for the patient.”
          “Advances in technology,” continued Dr. Hammond, “are allowing us to provide important benefits, regardless of implant type. We are now beginning to gather critical information using MRI on what implants actually look like in the upright position, which is important to the surgeon.”
          Dr. Hammond continued, “Women who undergo breast augmentation need follow-up MRI exams to check for implant leakage - the first exam three years after the surgery, and then every two years thereafter. When there is implant leakage, it is typically at the bottom of the breast, which is caused, over time, by of the weight of the breast. If the patient has her MRI check-up lying down, the weight of the breast is redistributed and, consequently, the leakage can be missed. In just the short period of time that Dr. Ugolini and I have been working with FONAR, we’ve already seen evidence of that occurring. The FONAR Upright™ MRI is the only MRI on the market that can provide a picture of a breast in its natural, fully-weight loaded position. ASAPS attendees told us how impressed they were with our findings.” To see their press release visit: www.residentandstaff.com/press_release.asp?id=10049189
          According to the ASAPS, there were 383,886 breast implants inserted in 2006. In addition, it is estimated that over $1 billion was spent in 2006 on breast implant surgery.
          Raymond V. Damadian, M.D., president and founder of FONAR, said, “We are pleased with yet another useful application for the FONAR Upright™ MRI, and we are grateful for the work of Drs. Hammond and Ugolini. Just as the Upright™ MRI is becoming indispensable for imaging of the spine, research results thus far look as though it will also be indispensable for the evaluation of breast implants.”