Current clinical practice is based on endoscope with ultrasound transducer mounted at the tip of the endoscope. The main advantages of MRI, compared to ultrasound, is the soft tissue contrast and the ability to get an image at any orientation.

We have developed a fully MRI compatible endoscope that has navigational capabilities, as well as MR imaging capabilities at its tip. The future disposable endoscope will enable MR-guided biopsy of suspect lesions from inside the gastrointestinal tract, for example biopsy of suspected polyps or adjacent organs like the pancreas. The tip-mounted imaging coil, coupled with the tracking sensor, enables high-resolution, high-contrast imaging at the tip, in addition to the standard optical viewing of the field of operation with a miniature video camera.