New Cardiac Device to Detect Coronary Artery Disease

A new device that detects the magnetic field generated by a patient's heartbeat is designed to detect coronary artery disease. The device has been cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Called a magnetocardiograph (MCG), the system is based on superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) sensors and can generate a thousand images per heartbeat. Nine magnetic sensors measure the constantly changing magnetic fields generated by the heart's electrical activity. An MCG procedure takes less than 10 minutes to perform, is risk-free, and requires no injections or radiation. MCG seeks to measure the same electrophysiology event that an electrocardiogram (ECG) measures. The MCG system is capable of working in a typical open clinical setting.

MCG was developed by CardioMag Imaging, Inc. (Schenectady, NY, USA). The system is currently being used by six hospitals to detect coronary artery disease. "If the ongoing clinical trial at various luminary sites confirms our expectations, MCG could become standard diagnostic equipment in nearly every hospital in this country,” said Dr. Peter Smars, Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN, USA), who has been using the MCG system since May 2003.




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