Obtaining clear diagnostic images during MRI scanning is essential for diagnosing certain medical conditions, and critical for surgeons who use imaging during surgical procedures. However, motion can cause blurring and obtaining clear images is difficult if the patient is moving--think patients with Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, or fidgety children.

Now there is a new technology, called the PROPELLER MRI, which allows doctors to track the movement of the patient during the scan and reduce it in the image. The technology not only allows for clearer images, it allows for a quicker scan and quicker results. PROPELLER stands for "Periodically Rotated Overlapping Parallel Lines with Enhanced Reconstruction."

Despite the newness and sophistication of the technology, PROPELLER scans cost the same as traditional MRIs and can actually save money because patients don't need as many re-takes.