FONAR Corporation Announces UPRIGHT MRI Sale to Central California Medical Practice Dedicated to Being a Center of Excellence for the Spine

MELVILLE, NY--(Marketwire - August 31, 2011) -

FONAR Corporation (NASDAQ: FONR), The Inventor of MR Scanning™, announced it has sold an UPRIGHT® Multi-Position™ MRI to Bakersfield UPRIGHT MRI Center, Bakersfield, CA.

Hoorman M. Melamed, MD, FAOOS, a board certified orthopaedic spine surgeon and a principal at the Bakersfield UPRIGHT MRI Center, said, “Selection of the FONAR UPRIGHT® Multi-Position™ MRI for our group was a very careful and deliberate decision. We recognize that the UPRIGHT® MRI offers capabilities beyond that of a recumbent-only MRI. The UPRIGHT® MRI allows for scanning patients weight-bearing and the dynamic positions of flexion and extension. This allows us to see and evaluate the spine under load of a patient’s pathology thus enabling us to avoid under estimating a patient’s pathology and therefore obtaining a better diagnosis.”

Another principal of Bakersfield UPRIGHT MRI Center, Afaq Kazi, MD, Board Certified Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, said, “My personal philosophy is that to alleviate a patient’s pain, you need to find the source of that pain. Too often my patients say that their back pain occurs when they are in the weight-bearing position. Therefore it is no surprise that often the recumbent-only MRIs MISS the problem. The FONAR UPRIGHT® Multi-Position™ MRI is the answer for these patients.”

Dr. Kazi continued, “The FONAR UPRIGHT® Multi-Position™ MRI provides Correlated Slice Profile (CSP™) Imaging. CSP not only shows the recumbent images but shows the dynamic views of Upright Neutral, Upright Flexion, and Upright Extension. CSP shows me how a recumbent-only view will miss the full extent of a patient’s problems and this could potentially lead to an inferior treatment plan for that patient.”

“The diagnostic advantages of the FONAR UPRIGHT® Multi-Position™ MRI are outstanding,” said Dr. Melamed. “However, there are other advantages as well. Many patients are unable to lie down on a flat surface, so a recumbent-only MRI is out of the question for those patients. These are patients that have spinal deformities, vertigo or COPD. In addition, having spoken to the many patients who have experienced the scan, it is the most comfortable MRI in the industry. With more than 1 out of 5 patients having some degree of claustrophobia, the UPRIGHT® MRI has virtually no rejection from patients with claustrophobia. Considering the powerful image quality that the scanner has, this is indeed a remarkable scanner.”

Both doctors agreed that for their group to meet its goals and become a state-of-the-art center of spine excellence, the purchase of the world’s only dynamic, UPRIGHT® Multi-Position™ MRI was essential.

About FONAR

FONAR (NASDAQ: FONR) was incorporated in 1978, making it the first, oldest and most experienced MRI company in the industry. FONAR introduced the world’s first commercial MRI in 1980, and went public in 1981. Since its inception, nearly 300 recumbent-OPEN MRIs and 150 UPRIGHT® Multi-Position™ MRI scanners worldwide have been installed. FONAR’s stellar product line includes the Upright™ MRI (also known as the Stand-Up™ MRI), the only whole-body MRI that performs Position™ imaging (pMRI™) and scans patients in numerous weight-bearing positions, i.e. standing, sitting, in flexion and extension, as well as the conventional lie-down position. The FONAR UPRIGHT® MRI often sees the patient’s problem that other scanners cannot because they are lie-down only. The patient-friendly UPRIGHT® MRI has a near zero claustrophobic rejection rate by patients. As a FONAR customer states, “If the patient is claustrophobic in this scanner, they’ll be claustrophobic in my parking lot.” Approximately 85% of patients are scanned sitting while they watch a 42" flat screen TV. FONAR is headquartered on Long Island, New York.

For investor and other information visit: www.fonar.com.

UPRIGHT® and STAND-UP® are registered trademarks and The Inventor of MR Scanning™, Multi-Position™, pMRI™, Dynamic™, Full Range of Motion™, True Flow™, The Proof is in the Picture™, Spondylography™, Spondylometry™ Landscape™, CSP™ and Upright Radiology™ are trademarks of FONAR Corporation.

This release may include forward-looking statements from the company that may or may not materialize. Additional information on factors that could potentially affect the company’s financial results may be found in the company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.