No abstract

No abstract

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology has profoundly transformed current healthcare systems globally, owing to advances in hardware and software research innovations. Despite these advances, MRI remains largely inaccessible to clinicians, patients, and researchers in low‐resource areas, such as Africa. The rapidly growing burden of noncommunicable diseases in Africa underscores the importance of improving access to MRI equipment as well as training and research opportunities on the continent. The Consortium for Advancement of MRI Education and Research in Africa (CAMERA) is a network of African biomedical imaging experts and global partners, implementing novel strategies to advance MRI access and research in Africa. Upon its inception in 2019, CAMERA sets out to identify challenges to MRI usage and provide a framework for addressing MRI needs in the region. To this end, CAMERA conducted a needs assessment survey (NAS) and a series of symposia at international MRI society meetings over a 2‐year period. The 68‐question NAS was distributed to MRI users in Africa and was completed by 157 clinicians and scientists from across Sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA). On average, the number of MRI scanners per million people remained at less than one, of which 39% were obsolete low‐field systems but still in use to meet daily clinical needs. The feasibility of coupling stable energy supplies from various sources has contributed to the growing number of higher‐field (1.5 T) MRI scanners in the region. However, these systems are underutilized, with only 8% of facilities reporting clinical scans of 15 or more patients per day, per scanner. The most frequently reported MRI scans were neurological and musculoskeletal. The CAMERA NAS combined with the World Health Organization and International Atomic Energy Agency data provides the most up‐to‐date data on MRI density in Africa and offers a unique insight into Africa's MRI needs. Reported gaps in training, maintenance, and research capacity indicate ongoing challenges in providing sustainable high‐value MRI access in SSA. Findings from the NAS and focused discussions at international MRI society meetings provided the basis for the framework presented here for advancing MRI capacity in SSA. While these findings pertain to SSA, the framework provides a model for advancing imaging needs in other low‐resource settings.

In a healthy body, homeostatic actions of osteoclasts and osteoblasts maintain the integrity of the skeletal system. When cellular activities of osteoclasts and osteoblasts become abnormal, pathological bone conditions, such as osteoporosis, can occur. Traditional imaging modalities, such as radiographs, are insensitive to the early cellular changes that precede gross pathological findings, often leading to delayed disease diagnoses and suboptimal therapeutic strategies. 18F-sodium fluoride (18F-NaF)-positron emission tomography (PET) is an emerging imaging modality with the potential for early diagnosis and monitoring of bone diseases through the detection of subtle metabolic changes. Specifically, the dissociated 18F- is incorporated into hydroxyapatite, and its uptake reflects osteoblastic activity and bone perfusion, allowing for the quantification of bone turnover. While 18F-NaF-PET has traditionally been used to detect metastatic bone disease, recent literature corroborates the use of 18F-NaF-PET in benign osseous conditions as well. In this review, we discuss the cellular mechanisms of 18F-NaF-PET and examine recent findings on its clinical application in diverse metabolic, autoimmune, and osteogenic bone disorders.

A microfluidic platform was developed that generates a gradient of chemotherapy via diffusion to study evolutionary dynamics of cancer.