A general dual-bolus approach for quantitative DCE-MRI

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Radiology
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Quantitative dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI) is crucial for assessing tissue perfusion and vascularity.
• Accurate measurement of the arterial input function (AIF) is essential for reliable quantitative analysis in DCE-MRI.
• Traditional single-bolus techniques can be limited in capturing rapid kinetic changes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and validate a dual-bolus technique for high-resolution DCE-MRI.
• To demonstrate that this dual-bolus approach yields AIF measurements comparable to conventional single-bolus protocols.
• To enable optimized, separate acquisition protocols for AIF and tissue uptake curves.

Main Methods:

• Five rabbits underwent high-resolution DCE-MRI using a dual-bolus technique with a time-resolved imaging of contrast kinetics (TRICKS) sequence.
• Arterial input functions (AIFs) were measured from both a low-dose prebolus and a high-dose main bolus in the abdominal aorta.
• Comparison of TRICKS and fast spoiled gradient echo (FSPGR) acquisitions was performed in one animal.

Main Results:

• The scaled prebolus AIF closely matched the main bolus AIF, with overlapping 95% confidence intervals for curve fitting.
• The TRICKS and FSPGR AIF measurements were found to be equivalent in the tested animal.
• The dual-bolus technique successfully captured rapid circulation kinetics in the rabbit aorta.

Conclusions:

• The proposed dual-bolus DCE-MRI technique provides accurate and equivalent AIF measurements compared to high-dose single injections.
• This method allows for independent optimization of AIF and tissue uptake curve acquisition parameters.
• The technique holds promise for enhancing the precision and flexibility of quantitative DCE-MRI studies.