Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 26, 2026
Human Fetal Blood Flow Quantification with Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Motion Compensation
Published on: January 7, 2021
T2* relaxometry of fetal brain at 1.5 Tesla using a motion tolerant method
Serge Vasylechko1, Christina Malamateniou, Rita G Nunes
1Biomedical Image Analysis Group, Department of Computing, Imperial College London, United Kingdom.
Purpose:
The aim of this study was to determine T2* values for the fetal brain in utero and to compare them with previously reported values in preterm and term neonates. Knowledge of T2* may be useful for assessing brain development, brain abnormalities, and for optimizing functional imaging studies.
Methods:
Maternal respiration and unpredictable fetal motion mean that conventional multishot acquisition techniques used in adult T2* relaxometry studies are not practical. Single shot multiecho echo planar imaging was used as a rapid method for measuring fetal T2* by effectively freezing intra-slice motion.
Results:
T2* determined from a sample of 24 subjects correlated negatively with gestational age with mean values of 220 ms (±45) for frontal white matter, 159 ms (±32) for thalamic gray matter, and 236 ms (±45) for occipital white matter.
Conclusion:
Fetal T2* values are higher than those previously reported for preterm neonates and decline with a consistent trend across gestational age. The data suggest that longer than usual echo times or direct T2* measurement should be considered when performing fetal fMRI to reach optimal BOLD sensitivity.
