Factors for consideration | |
Accessibility | Easily acquired, readily replaced and preferably locally sourced without high shipment costs or transit time |
Use | Sufficiently robust to tolerate body weight if placed between the participant and scanner bed Suitably compliant or flat to ensure minimal discomfort to the patient if marker is in a load-bearing location (eg, posterior superior iliac spine for a supine MRI) |
Biochemistry | Chemically inert, hypoallergenic |
Economy | Low acquisition cost per marker given markers are single-use items |
Medical physics | Sufficient hydrogen content to permit high intensity contrast to surrounding tissue |
Fixation | Reliably affixed to the patient’s external anatomy |