FONAR TO ATTEND RSNA, WORLD'S
LARGEST RADIOLOGY CONFERENCE
Doctors F.W. Smith and J.P. Elsig to be Keynote Speakers at Exhibit;
RSNA Message: Position Imaging is Here to Stay – Don't Miss
The Future of MRI
CHICAGO,
ILLINOIS November 27, 2006 - FONAR Corporation (NASDAQ-FONR),
The Inventor of MR Scanning™, announced today, that FONAR
is attending the 2006 Radiological Society of America (RSNA, Booth
#7722), from November 26-30, 2006. Francis W. Smith, M.D., a radiologist
with the Positional MRI Centre, University of Aberdeen, and Jean
Pierre Elsig, M.D., a spine surgeon with FMRI Zentrum, Zurich,
Switzerland are the keynote speakers for the medical meeting which
is expected to have 60,000 attendees.
A
press conference will be held at the RSNA at 9:30 AM, Monday,
November 27, on a scientific paper submitted by Dr. Smith and
his colleague, Waseem Bashir, M.D. titled 'Aching Back? Sitting
Up Straight Could Be the Culprit'. The study was done using the
FONAR Upright™ Multi-Position™ MRI. For details visit:
http://www.rsna.org/Media/rsna/newsroom2006.cfm
|
Nuffield
Orthopaedic Centre
(An Oxford University Teaching Hospital) |
"The
BEST IMAGE is the one that DOES NOT MISS the pathology,"
is the recurring theme that Doctors Smith and Elsig will emphasize.
Raymond
Damadian, M.D., president and founder of FONAR said, "Thomas
Edison and George Westinghouse asked 19th century citizens of
east coast cities, 'Will you continue to use gas lights when electric
lights are available?' Today, FONAR asks America's medical marketplace,
'Will you continue to use STATIC, single-position-only recumbent
MRI when DYNAMIC Upright, Multi-Position MRI is available at the
same cost and image quality?' DYNAMIC Position Imaging is here
to stay" said Dr. Damadian. "Don't miss the future of
MRI."
FONAR
is the winner of the Frost & Sullivan 20206 American Medical
Imaging Innovation Award. Visit: www.fonar.com/news/112006.htm.
To see the award visit: www.fonar.com/news/pdf/frost&sullivan-award.pdf/.
"We are proud of FONAR being chosen as Frost & Sullivan's
2006 winner for medical imaging innovation", said Dr. Damadian.
"FONAR is in the process, by means of its Upright™
Multi-Position™ MRI of ushering in a new revolution in medical
imaging. We are calling it DYNAMIC MRI. DYNAMIC MRI which FONAR
has made possible with its new Upright™ Multi-Position™
MRI product allows the physician to get beyond the traditional
limitations of today's STATIC single-position-only recumbent MRI
machines which have no capability of assessing the functional
impairment to a body part caused by injury or disease. They cannot
see the body part in action performing and carrying out its normal
life function which the FONAR Upright™ Multi-Position™
MRI can do. They cannot assess the degree of impairment of that
body part under its normal weight load while it is in the multiple
positions typical of normal daily activity (e.g. flexion, extension,
lateral bending, rotation, etc.). DYNAMIC MRI which FONAR has
made possible by its product, The FONAR Upright™ Multi-Position™
MRI, allows the physician to get beyond the traditional limitations
of today's STATIC single-position-only recumbent MRI machines
which have no capability to assess spine FUNCTION. Unlike the
FONAR Upright™ product, in the conventional single-position-only
recumbent MRI the patient lies horizontally in one position with
his weight-load removed from his spine. The MRI pictures obtained
are taken in this single weight-unloaded position. By being limited
to solely provide pictures of the weight-unloaded spine, today's
conventional STATIC single-position-only recumbent MRI machines
are NON-PHYSIOLOGIC in that they lack the ability to visualize
the human spine in its most critical role. They cannot picture
the spine performing its primary PHYSIOLOGIC FUNCTION of supporting
the weight of the human body in its entirety while it occupies
the multiplicity of different positions the human body occupies
as it carries out, fully erect, its numerous functions."
"In
contrast, the FONAR Upright™ Multi-Position™ MRI accomplishes
genuine PHYSIOLOGICAL imaging of the human spine with the spine
carrying its normal weight load. In doing so, the FONAR Upright™
Multi-Position™ MRI accomplishes a full-fledged DYNAMIC
assessment of the human spine in its full range of motion which
in turn is key to any surgical spine correction aimed at the concurrent
elimination of pain and the reestablishment of function."
"Most
importantly, fundamental to any imaging of the spine and potential
surgical correction is the preeminent need to achieve successful
CORRELATION of the MRI image findings WITH THE PATIENT'S SYMPTOMS."
"The
fundamental characteristic of spine medicine is the reality that
the human spine is a structure that relentlessly and progressively
degenerates with age. Consequently, any aging spine (60 years
and above) is typically abundant with degenerative pathological
changes at multiple spinal levels all of which become candidates
for the source of the patient's pain, but only a few of which,
and commonly even only one of which, is specifically the cause,"
said Dr. Damadian.
"Failure
to successfully correlate the anatomic finding with the patient's
pain, i.e. to correctly identify the spinal level and exact spinal
encroachment causing the pain, can lead to corrective surgery
at the wrong level with failure to correct the patient's pain
and the additional prospect of making the patient's condition
worse by surgery at the wrong level."
"To
avoid such pitfalls and optimize the prospect of identifying with
precision the specific lesion responsible for the patient's pain,
PHYSIOLOGICAL imaging with the spine fully weight-loaded represents
the key to achieving a full DYNAMIC assessment of the spine in
its full range of motion, where the anatomic defect responsible
for the pain can be CORRELATED WITH THE PATIENT'S SYMPTOMS.
"Only
in this way can all of the spine motions the patient identifies
as provoking his pain be tested with MR images to identify the
specific lesion (among multiple) giving rise to his pain so that
the exact source of the patient's symptoms can be identified and
successfully repaired, a burden that is clearly beyond the scope
of the typical STATIC weight-unloaded single-position-only recumbent
MRI."
"And
there is more. We are developing for future intraoperative MRI,
the FONAR 360™ MRI. The first of its kind has been installed
at Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre (NOC), an Oxford University teaching
hospital."
"The
FONAR 360™ is a room-size MRI, that will commence clinical
trials shortly to develop image-guided surgical procedures, known
as intraoperative MR imaging. The FONAR 360™, unlike any
other MR imaging system, is a magnet the doctors can walk inside
of. The patient is positioned on a surgical table that is placed
immediately on top of one of the two magnet poles of the MR unit.
This design maximizes access to the surgical regions in need of
intraoperative repair wherein the entire surgical team and all
medical personnel have full 360 degree access to the patient.
No other MRI provides this capability," said Dr. Damadian.
About FONAR
FONAR® was incorporated in 1978, making it the first, oldest
and most experienced MRI manufacturer in the industry. FONAR introduced
the world's first commercial MRI in 1980, and went public in 1981.
Since its inception, FONAR has installed hundreds of MRI scanners
worldwide. Their stellar product line includes the FONAR Upright™
Multi-Position™ MRI (also known as the Upright™ MRI
and the Stand-Up™ MRI), the only whole-body MRI that performs
Multi-Position™ Imaging (mpMRI™) and scans patients
in numerous weight-bearing positions, i.e. standing, sitting,
in flexion and extension, as well as the conventional lie-down
position. The FONAR Upright™ Multi-Position™ MRI often
sees the patient's problem that other scanners cannot because
they are single position, lie-down only. With nearly one half
million patients scanned, the patient-friendly FONAR Upright™
Multi-Position™ MRI has a near zero claustrophobic rejection
rate by patients. A radiologist said, “FONAR Upright™
MRI – No More Claustrophobia – The Tunnel Is Gone.”
As another FONAR customer states, "If the patient is claustrophobic
in this scanner, they'll be claustrophobic in my parking lot."
Approximately 85% of patients are scanned sitting while they watch
a 42" flat screen TV. FONAR’s latest MRI scanner is
the FONAR 360, a room-size recumbent scanner that optimizes openness
while facilitating physician access to the patient. FONAR is headquartered
on Long Island, New York, and has approximately 400 employees.
#
The Inventor of MR Scanning™,
True Flow™ MRI, Stand-Up™ MRI, Upright™ MRI,
Dynamic MRI, Position™ MRI, Multi-Position™ MRI,
PMRI™ and The Proof is in the Picture™ are trademarks
of FONAR® Corporation.
This release may include
forward-looking statements from the company that may or may not
materialize. Additional information on factors that could potentially
affect the company's financial results may be found in the company's
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
###
FONAR Corporation
110 Marcus Drive
Melville, N.Y. 11747
Tel. 631-694-2929
Fax. 631-390-9540
Email sales@FONAR.com
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