MRI system displayed at the 5th China International Import Expo in Shanghai. (PHOTO: XINHUA)

By Staff Reporters

The world's first 5.0T whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system has blown people away at a recent exhibition of advanced medical devices in Shenzhen.

Approved by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) last August, and jointly developed by the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology (SIAT) of the Chinese Academy of Science (CAS) and other institutes, this system gave a glimpse of the rapid development of advanced medical devices in China.

5.0T MRI improves medical service

The higher the magnetic field is, the higher the definition of MRI is, said Zheng Hairong, deputy director of SIAT and director of National Innovation Center for Advanced Medical Devices.

With an ultra-high magnetic field of 5.0 T, the MRI system offered a better user experience with higher definition and signal to noise ratio.

Zheng said that it takes a long time for the traditional 0.5T MRI system to do the scanning and the image is not very clear. However, the 5.0T MRI system can generate images of high definition, which opens a new chapter for the mechanism research and precise diagnosis and treatment of difficult miscellaneous diseases in different parts of the body.

Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH) in Beijing was among the first users of the system. Wang Yining, chief physician at the department of radiology of PUMCH, shared a case of a 44-year-old patient who suffered from limb weakness.

Wang said that no abnormality was identified in the patient's body through a 3.0T MRI system, but the imaging for blood vessels by the 5.0T MRI system helped the physician to diagnose the cause of the disease, saving time for treatment.

Innovation drives advanced medical device development

Apart from the 5.0T MRI, there are other examples of technology commercialization in the field of medical devices.

Together with a medical enterprise, a research team led by Zheng also developed a new generation of key technologies in ultrasound shear wave elasticity imaging. Three series of products were developed based on these technologies, realizing early screening and accurate classification of liver fibrosis without puncture.

As early as 2007, SIAT started work on high-end medical imaging. The institute has achieved many breakthroughs in R&D of key parts and systems of medical imaging devices, with 505 patents authorized and 208 patents transferred.

Zheng noted that the mechanism they adopted is different from traditional innovation modes. First, the research they do focuses on national strategic needs. Second, they work closely with enterprises, and apply the latest technologies to products. Third, they adopt a flexible mechanism for research team management, which considers the specific technology related contribution of each member.

As the first national manufacturing innovation center in Shenzhen, the National Innovation Center for Advanced Medical Devices (NMED) also operates in a way that is different from traditional research institutes, focusing on practical innovation. Liu Xin, president of NMED, said that the center is committed to understand the industrial need and market demand of global high-end medical devices earlier, faster and in more depth.

Medical device industry flourishes in Shenzhen

The high-end medical device industry started early in Shenzhen, and the industry’s scale and total value of output are taking the lead in China. It is now a global leading area for the development of the industry.

To establish a full-chain innovation ecology for advanced medical devices, NMED has attracted a large number of medical enterprises, especially leading enterprises of the industry, to Shenzhen, enlarging the city's industry cluster as a whole.

Shenzhen has many advantages in developing the high-end medical device industry, said Bi Yalei, director of industrial cooperation and development division at SIAT, adding that the industrial chain is abundant in Shenzhen, with strong capacity for industrial support, and the city has attracted experts on all subjects and from all over the world. The industry is widely open, he said, noting the close cooperation among universities, research institutes and enterprises.

The commercialization rate of research achievements in medical devices is relatively low in China, said Liu, adding that he hopes NMED could be a good platform to connect research and industry.