SSFP-based MR thermometry

Area of Science:

• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
• Biomedical Engineering
• Therapeutic Monitoring

Background:

• Proton resonance frequency (PRF) shift-based phase-difference imaging (PDI) is the standard for MR thermometry.
• PDI is accurate but susceptible to artifacts, limiting its clinical utility.
• Developing artifact-resistant MR thermometry methods is crucial for precise temperature monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and evaluate a novel MRI technique for temperature monitoring using balanced steady-state free precession (balanced-SSFP).
• To assess the feasibility of the balanced-SSFP method for spatiotemporal temperature mapping.
• To overcome limitations associated with conventional PDI methods.

Main Methods:

• Utilized balanced steady-state free precession (balanced-SSFP) pulse sequence for MRI data acquisition.
• Employed magnitude images from the SSFP sequence to determine the proton resonance frequency (PRF) shift.
• Reconstructed spatiotemporal temperature maps based on the calculated PRF shift.

Main Results:

• Successfully reconstructed spatiotemporal temperature maps using the balanced-SSFP method.
• Demonstrated the technique's efficacy in both gel phantom experiments and a rabbit model.
• Observed that the PRF shift, derived from SSFP magnitude images, is proportional to temperature changes.

Conclusions:

• The balanced-SSFP-based MRI technique is a viable and promising new method for temperature monitoring.
• This approach offers potential for improved MR thermometry with reduced artifacts compared to PDI.
• Further research is warranted to explore the full clinical potential of balanced-SSFP MR thermometry.