Macroscopic susceptibility in ultra high field MRI

Magnetic susceptibility provides the basis for functional studies and image artifacts in MRI. In this work, magnetic susceptibility and the associated artifacts were analyzed at 8 T in phantoms and in the human head.

A mineral oil phantom was constructed in which three cylindrical air-filled tubes were inserted. This phantom was analyzed with gradient-recalled echo and SE imaging techniques acquired using varying TEs and receiver bandwidths. To visualize the presence of magnetic susceptibility artifacts in the head at 8 T, near axial, coronal, and sagittal GE images were also acquired from human volunteers.

The use of gradient-recalled echo imaging resulted in the production of significant magnetic susceptibility artifacts. These artifacts could be readily visualized in phantom samples containing air-filled cylindrical tubes. In the human head, susceptibility artifacts produced significant image distortion in the skull base region. In this area, susceptibility artifacts often resulted in the complete loss of MR signal. Magnetic susceptibility artifacts were manifested as bands of varying signal intensity in the frontal lobe and temporal bone region. In addition, they produced clear distortions in the appearance of brain vasculature and seemed to accentuate the relative size of venous structures within the brain.

When using gradient-recalled echo imaging in combination with relatively long TE values, magnetic susceptibility artifacts can be severe at 8 T. These artifacts could be reduced by increasing receiver bandwidths and by lowering effective TEs. As ultra high field MRI provides a fertile ground for the study of susceptibility artifacts in MRI, improvements obtained at this field strength will have a direct impact on studies performed at lower field strengths.