Eliminating susceptibility induced hyperintensities in T1w MPRAGE brain images at 7 T

Ruoyun Ma, Thomas R. Henry, Pierre François Van de Moortele

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Scopus citations

Abstract

Introduction: At ultrahigh field, local susceptibility induced hyperintensities are pronounced in brain areas close to air-tissue boundaries in the inferior frontal lobe and temporal lobes on T1w MPRAGE images. Resulting from incomplete inversion, these artefacts can introduce biases in brain volumetry and erroneously suggest the existence of local tissular anomaly. We propose a straightforward approach to eliminate these artefacts by applying a shift (ΔfIR) to the center frequency of the adiabatic inversion pulse while widening the bandwidth of the latter by shortening the pulse duration (ΔtIR). Methods: An MPRAGE sequence was customized allowing to change the duration (standard: 10,240 μs) and center frequency of the hyperbolic secant inversion RF pulse (IR). All measurements were performed on a 7 T whole body scanner (Siemens, Erlangen, Germany). 13 healthy volunteers (7 female and 6 male, average age (SD) = 38 ± 15 yrs) were recruited for the study, 3 of which were scanned for protocol optimization and the rest for performance evaluation. ΔB0 was mapped through the brain with a gradient echo sequence. The effects of ΔfIR and ΔtIR were studied separately and jointly to determine optimal parameter combinations to achieve the largest spatial extent of complete inversion throughout the brain. Results: Applying a positive ΔfIR restored inversion efficiency in the inferior frontal and temporal lobes, but also introduced undesired hyperintensities in the anterior temporal lobes. Widening the bandwidth alone could also partially reduce hyperintensities in the frontal area but with a limited efficiency. By simultaneously applying a positive ΔfIR of 300 Hz and shortening ΔtIR by 40%, these artefacts were eliminated across the whole cerebrum. Conclusion: A robust elimination of susceptibility induced hyperintensities near air-tissue boundaries in T1w MPRAGE 7 T brain images is demonstrated. This technique only requires limited MR sequence modifications.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)274-279
Number of pages6
JournalMagnetic Resonance Imaging
Volume63
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 2019

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) [ P41 EB015894 ‘Biotechnology Research Center’; P30 NS076408 ‘Institutional Center Cores for Advanced Neuroimaging’]; National Science Foundation (NSF) [Award ID 1607835 ‘US-French Research Proposal: Hippocampal Layers: Advanced Computational Anatomy Using Very High Resolution MRI at 7 Tesla in Humans’].

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) [P41 EB015894 ?Biotechnology Research Center?; P30 NS076408 ?Institutional Center Cores for Advanced Neuroimaging']; National Science Foundation (NSF) [Award ID 1607835 ?US-French Research Proposal: Hippocampal Layers: Advanced Computational Anatomy Using Very High Resolution MRI at 7?Tesla in Humans'].

Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Elsevier Inc.

Center for Magnetic Resonance Research (CMRR) tags

  • IRP
  • P41

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