Fast isotropic banding-free bSSFP imaging using 3D dynamically phase-cycled radial bSSFP (3D DYPR-SSFP)

Area of Science:

• Magnetic Resonance Imaging
• Medical Imaging Physics

Background:

• Balanced steady-state free precession (bSSFP) imaging is prone to banding artifacts.
• Dynamically phase-cycled radial balanced steady-state free precession (DYPR-SSFP) offers a solution for artifact removal in 2D imaging.
• Extending DYPR-SSFP to 3D imaging is crucial for volumetric analysis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present an extension of DYPR-SSFP for fast, three-dimensional (3D) isotropic, banding-free bSSFP imaging.
• To enable high-resolution volumetric imaging without compromising scan time.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a 3D radial trajectory with quasi-random view ordering for image acquisition.
• Implemented DYPR-SSFP with dynamic RF phase-increment for artifact correction.
• Validated the approach on brain and knee imaging at 3 Tesla.

Main Results:

• Achieved volumetric, banding-free images using the extended DYPR-SSFP technique.
• Acquired images with isotropic resolution up to 0.56mm.
• Completed scans within clinically acceptable timeframes.

Conclusions:

• The combination of DYPR-SSFP and 3D radial trajectories enables banding-free isotropic volumetric bSSFP imaging.
• This technique achieves high resolution without increasing scan time.
• The method shows promise for clinical applications like cranial nerve and articular cartilage imaging.