Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced MR Perfusion of Intradural Spinal Lesions

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Medical Imaging
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Intradural spinal lesions require accurate imaging for diagnosis and treatment.
• Dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) MRI perfusion offers valuable functional information.
• Optimizing DCE-MRI sequences is crucial for clinical application in the spine.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the technical feasibility and image quality of an optimized DCE-MRI perfusion sequence for intradural spinal lesions.
• To compare the performance of the sequence at 1.5T and 3T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners.
• To assess the impact of field strength on pharmacokinetic modeling of spinal lesions.

Main Methods:

• Fifteen patients with intradural spinal lesions underwent DCE-MRI perfusion imaging at 1.5T and 3T.
• An optimized dynamic contrast-enhanced MR perfusion sequence was utilized.
• Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), and goodness of fit for pharmacokinetic models (Tofts and Tofts extended) were analyzed.

Main Results:

• Higher SNR and mean CNR were achieved at 3T compared to 1.5T (P ≤ .05).
• The goodness of fit for both Tofts and Tofts extended pharmacokinetic models showed no significant difference between 1.5T and 3T.
• The DCE-MRI perfusion sequence demonstrated technical feasibility for spinal lesions at both field strengths.

Conclusions:

• Optimized DCE-MRI perfusion is technically feasible for evaluating intradural spinal lesions at both 1.5T and 3T.
• 3T MRI provides superior image quality, evidenced by improved SNR and CNR, compared to 1.5T.
• These findings support the use of 3T DCE-MRI for enhanced diagnostic assessment of spinal lesions.