On Monday, neurosurgeons Dr. Ali Rezai and Dr. Milind Deogaonkar of the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center were among the first in the United States to implant an MRI-compatible device that helps patients suffering from chronic back or limb pain.

The Food and Drug Administration recently approved the RestoreSensor SureScan MRI neurostimulation system, manufactured by Medtronic Inc., for use in the treatment of chronic, back or limb pain. The system works by stimulating the spinal cord with pulsed electrical signals.

Though the device is said to be effective at treating chronic pain, patients with this device cannot receive MRI scans due to concerns around the system's magnetic fields and radio frequency energy, which heats up the metal components, causing burnt spinal tissue.
To counteract this, manufacturers coated the device with a heat absorbent material that distributes the heat along the length of the electrode, resulting in only minimal amounts of heat making contact with the surrounding tissue.

MRI scans have allowed physicians to get highly detailed images of soft tissues in the body. Around 60 million MRI procedures are performed annually worldwide, including an estimated 32 million in the United States.

"I think the next step will be to see similar MRI compatible devices for deep brain stimulation," Dr. Milind Deogaonkar told DOTmed News.

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