Abstract: A portable heated cushion (100) is disclosed having a foam core (102) which may be substantially rectangular, a thermally reflective panel (104) positioned on the foam core, a flexible heating element (106) atop the thermally reflective panel, an elastic panel (108) covering the heating element, and an outer cover (110) covering the assembly. A power supply, such as a rechargeable battery pack (120), is disposed in the outer cover and electrically connected to the heating element. In one embodiment, the outer cover includes an aperture (124) positioned to provide access to leads (116, 118) on the rechargeable battery pack for charging. The portable heated cushion may further include a power supply for recharging the battery pack.

Abstract: A method and system for detecting iron using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is provided. The method comprises generating a substantially high magnetic field strength within the MRI system, acquiring magnetic resonance (MR) images by a pulse sequence adapted to create a magnetic field map of the brain for use in enhancing brain iron deposits, and, characterizing regions of interest using the magnetic field map to detect statistically relevant quantities of brain iron deposits to indicate a given disease.