Measurements of the magnetic fields produced by the human heart, brain, and lungs

Conference · Sat Mar 01 04:00:00 EDT 1975 · IEEE Trans. Magn., v. MAG-11, no. 2, pp. 694-700

OSTI ID:4094654

Cohen, D

Magnetic fields produced by organs of the human body are being measured in a shielded room, using both a SQUID magnetometer and second-derivative gradiometer. Measurements of the field around the human body can yield new information not obtainable with surface electrodes about organs which generate current and about organs which contain foreign, ferromagnetic particles. Magnetocardiograms of normal and abnormal heart subjects are being analyzed and visually displayed in order to assess their information content. Magnetoencephalograms recorded from normal and abnormal brain subjects are also under analysis. Measurements were made of magnetite dust in the lung, with two potential medical applications: (1) the use of pure magnetite dust as a deliberately inhaled tracer (harmless) for pulmonary diagnosis; and (2) the assessment of the amount of asbestos accumulated in the lungs of heavily-exposed workers, since most asbestos (harmful) occurs with adhered magnetite. (auth)

• Research Organization: Massachusetts Inst. of Tech., Cambridge
• NSA Number: NSA-33-017081
• OSTI ID: 4094654
• Conference Information: Journal Name: IEEE Trans. Magn., v. MAG-11, no. 2, pp. 694-700
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

*DISEASES-- DIAGNOSIS
*MAGNETOMETERS-- SQUID DEVICES
*SQUID DEVICES- - USES
420201* --Engineering--Facilities & Equipment--Cryogenic & Superconducting Equipment & Devices
BRAIN
CARDIOGRAPHY
DIAGNOSTIC TECHNIQUES
FERROMAGNETIC MATERIALS
HEART
LUNGS
MAGNETIC FIELDS
MEDICINE
N42220* --Engineering--Facilities & Equipment--Cryogenic & Superconducting Equipment & Devices