Research

Research Awards for Dr. Thekla Oechtering and Dr. Franz Wegner

The European Society for Radiology honoured the innovative work on MRI-based flow research and magnetic particle imaging in Lübeck’s radiology field

Dr. Thekla Helene Oechtering and Dr. Franz Wegner from the Clinic for Radiology and Nuclear Medicine at the University of Lübeck and the University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Lübeck, have won the Best Scientific Paper Award 2019 from the European Society of Radiology. They received the award at the 25th European Congress of Radiology, held in Vienna from 27 February to 3 March.

Dr. Thekla Oechtering, assistant doctor at the Clinic for Radiology and Nuclear Medicine (Director: Prof. Dr. Jörg Barkhausen), received the award for her comparison of haemodynamics (blood flow) in biological versus mechanical aortic valves. Various valve models under physiological conditions in a flexible silicone phantom of the aorta were subject to a standardised comparison using a new MRI measuring method. The research, which was carried out in cooperation with the Clinic for Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery (Director: Prof. Dr. Stephan Ensminger), showed modified flow patterns, in particular after biological valve replacement, and highlights the need for long-term monitoring of patients whose heart valves have been replaced. For years, the MRI-based blood flow research has been an important topic at the Clinic for Radiology and Nuclear Medicine; the University of Lübeck has been supporting Dr. Oechtring in her flow research since 2018 as part of its funding for young scientists.

Dr. Franz Wegner, assistant doctor at the Clinic for Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, received an award for this work on a new type of imaging procedure, "magnetic particle imaging" (MPI), and the possibility of visualising the in-stent lumen of stents. In contrast to the standard methods of Computer Tomography (CT) and MRI, MPI allows for the artefact-free imaging of the in-stent lumen. The research results from the close collaboration between the Clinic for Radiology and Nuclear Medicine and the Institute of Medical Engineering (Director: Prof. Dr. Thorsten M. Buzug) give rise to the hope that in the future it will be possible to recognise luminal constriction in stents without the use of x-rays and thus prevent the consequences of stent occlusions, such as heart attacks or strokes. For almost ten years, the Clinic for Radiology and Nuclear Medicine and the Institute of Medical Engineering have been successfully researching these new, nanoparticle-based imaging methods, with funding provided by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.