Transforming care for babies born with heart disease
Leeds is leading pioneering research into new technology for imaging babies with congenital heart disease (CHD).
The Baby MRI incubator at Leeds Congenital Heart Unit (LCHU), currently being trialled by researchers in the School of Medicine, is the first of its kind in the UK. It is part of a suite of state-of-the-art equipment providing detailed heart imaging during MRI scans.
Leading clinicians say the improved data may give worried parents an earlier diagnosis for their poorly babies, and help predict which patients need surgery in the future.
The research we are currently undertaking makes the Leeds Congenital Heart Unit the first in the UK to scan babies with congenital heart disease this way.
It was funded by Children's Heart Surgery Fund, with supporting donations from Morrisons Foundation, Heart Research UK, Ilkley Round Table and other key funders.
The incubator allows doctors to use the latest 4D Flow MRI technology which will not only reduce diagnostic uncertainty, but also lower the risks associated with traditional imaging methods and the scan time to under 10 minutes.
