PM CT and MRI in Children
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Utility of Post-Mortem Computed Tomography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging for Assessing Cause of Death, Developing Finite Element Models and Understanding Bone Pathophysiology in Children
IRAS ID
181203
Contact name
Amaka C Offiah
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Sheffield Childrens NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
4 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
Post-mortem computed tomography (PM CT) scans are now widely used in forensic medicine in adults. Although magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) may be more useful in children, PM CT is also likely to have a role, particularly for abnormalities of the skeleton and (small) calcified abnormalities. Co-registration (fusion) of PM CT and MRI images may be the ultimate solution. Post-mortem imaging is particularly useful in those cases where consent for a traditional autopsy has been withheld, or when (due to religious and/or cultural beliefs) rapid burial is required. Although it is still very much a research tool, at Sheffield Children’s Hospital we have for the past 18 months routinely performed post-mortem CT (PM CT) scans and established the first (and currently only) clinical post-mortem MRI service for UK fetuses and neonates. As a result we are building up a valuable pool of PM CT and MRI images, with potential to increase our knowledge of health and disease in live children through a wide range of research projects, from the documentation of normal age-related changes all the way through to the development (albeit not in the near future) of the virtual physiological human fetus, infant and child. Such in silico models will allow personalised treatment and management protocols to be developed and improve our understanding of disease mechanisms. We have already produced some very promising results related to a Children’s Hospital Charity-funded project on the development of CT-based finite element models of children’s femora to allow simulations of mechanisms of injury when child abuse is suspected.
In the coming years, we will develop a programme of work around PM imaging, with the ultimate goal of improving children’s health.REC name
West Midlands - Edgbaston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/WM/0242
Date of REC Opinion
17 Aug 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion