It's a common procedure regarded as the best method of 'seeing' such blockages.
But a University of Alberta researcher is trying to develop a less invasive way of getting the job done, providing more detailed information about what's going on inside a blood vessel while causing less discomfort to patients.
Dr. Alan Wilman is one of 43 medical and health researchers sharing in more than $27.5 million in Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research personnel grants awarded across Alberta today. At the U of A alone, 20 researchers have been awarded $12 million.
Wilman, a physicist, designs Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) techniques that provide highly detailed images of blood vessels. His previous achievements include developing a new MRI technique used to diagnose blood-vessel disease in more than a half-million patients worldwide each year.
Now he's trying to further refine the techniques, using double and triple the strength of magnetic fields used in clinical MRIs.
"The idea is to develop a safer and cheaper alternative that gives the same or better results," said Wilman, who earned his PhD in physics at the U of A, then moved to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota to conduct research before being lured back to the U of A with AHFMR funding.
Blood vessel diseases, including heart attacks and strokes, are the number one cause of death in Canada, and Wilman, who teaches in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, hopes his work will help prevent deaths by aiding in diagnosing these conditions.
"There is an illusion that MRIs are expensive. But if you can diagnose a stroke or a heart attack before it happens, you will save the health-care system money," he said.
The techniques he's developing will not only provide a picture but also give doctors information about the material causing the block. This will aid in determining which route to take to treat their patients, Wilman said.
Wilman completed a BSc at the University of British Columbia, followed by a PhD in Physics at the University of Alberta (U of A). The Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) system Wilman used for his PhD was funded completely by AHFMR. In addition, in 1985 AHFMR funded the first human MRI scanner in Western Canada. Wilman was recruited from the Mayo Clinic with AHFMR funding. He has received funding from AHFMR for six years and has now been offered an AHFMR Senior Scholar award for five years.
Wilman conducts his research at the Centre for Magnetic Resonance Evaluation of Human Function and Disease at the U of A Hospital, a facility partially funded by AHFMR. The Centre contains three MRIs at magnetic field strengths of 1.5, 3.0 and 4.7 Tesla, each of which is devoted entirely to research. The 4.7 T MRI machine is the highest field strength in Canada that is used with human subjects.
The U of A in Edmonton, Alberta is one of Canada's premier teaching and research universities serving more than 33,000 students with 6,000 faculty and staff. It continues to lead the country with the most 3M Teaching Fellows, Canada's only national award recognizing teaching excellence.