ArticleBMJ open2019
Determining a reliably visible and inexpensive surface fiducial marker for use in MRI: a research study in a busy Australian Radiology Department.
Article in BMJ open, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed.
- Skin marker for MR-only surface high-dose-rate brachytherapy.Journal of contemporary brachytherapy · 2025Article
- ACPSEM position paper: the safety of magnetic resonance imaging linear accelerators.Physical and engineering sciences in medicine · 2023Article
- Predicting spinal column profile from surface topography via 3D non-contact surface scanning.PloS one · 2023Article
- Alumina as a Computed Tomography Soft Material and Tissue Fiducial Marker.Experimental mechanics · 2022Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesSingle-use commercial surface fiducial markers are used in clinical imaging for a variety of applications. The current study sought to find a new, reliably visible, easily sourced and inexpensive fiducial marker alternative for use with MRI.
designFive commonly requested MRI sequences were determined (three-dimensional (3D) T1-weighted, T1 coronal, 3D T2-weighted, T2 fat suppressed, proton density), to examine the visibility of 18 items (including a commercial fiducial marker).
settingClinical 3T MRI scanner in an Australian Tertiary Hospital and an Australian University Biomedical Engineering research group.
interventions18 marker alternatives were scanned using five common MRI sequences. Images were reformatted to obtain both an image through the mid-height of each marker and a maximum intensity z-projection image over the volume of the marker. Variations in marker intensity were profiled across each visible marker and a visibility rating defined.
main outcome measuresOutcome measures were based on quantitative assessment of a clear intensity contrast ratio between the marker and the adjacent tissue and a qualitative assessment of visibility via a 3-point scale.
resultsThe fish oil capsule, vitamin D capsule, paint ball pellet, soy sauce sushi tube and commercial markers were typically visible to a high quality on all the imaging sequences and demonstrated a clear differential in intensity contrast against the adjacent tissue. Other common items, such as plasticine 'play doh' and a soft 'Jelly baby' sweet, were surprise candidates, demonstrating high-quality visibility and intensity contrast for the 3D T1-weighted sequence.
conclusionsDepending on the basis for referral and MRI sequence chosen, four alternative fiducial markers were determined to be inexpensive, easily sourced and consistently visible. Of these, the vitamin D capsule provided an excellent balance between availability, size, cost, usability and quality of the visualised marker for all the commonly used MRI sequences analysed.
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